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Daniel Yallah signs one-day contract, trains with Philadelphia Union

Yallah, a YSC Academy grad originally from Liberia, is battling liver cancer and raising money to support his siblings

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“I’m not trying to brag, but I stole the ball off Ilsinho.”

YSC Academy grad Daniel Yallah, who was diagnosed with liver cancer in July, had a chance to sign a one-day contract and train with the Philadelphia Union on Friday ahead of their I-95 clash with the New York Red Bulls.

Yallah, who is originally from Liberia, spent time in the Philadelphia Union Academy and has starred in Team Liberia’s successful Philadelphia International Unity Cup campaigns the last two years.

After receiving the devastating news that he had an advanced form of liver cancer in late July, the soon-to-be 19-year-old launched a GoFundMe campaign to support his younger brother and sister. Yallah’s mother died in 2016 and his father isn’t around.

The campaign has raised nearly $17,000.

“With the big 1-9 coming on Tuesday, this is the best present,” Yallah wrote of his experience with the Union in an update on his GoFundMe page.

Matthew Ralph is the managing editor of Philadelphia Soccer Now. He's covered soccer at all levels for a decade in the Philadelphia region and has also written for TheCup.us, NPSL, PrepSoccer and other publications. He lives with his wife and two young children in Broomall, Pa., but grew up in South Jersey and is originally from Kansas.

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