The Fall of Forgotten Freddy (Adu)

[Shzm13]

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1. What next for Freddy Adu? With Swiss club Sion recently passing on the chance to sign him, Adu appears to be running out of options to resurrect his floundering career in Europe. To be fair to Adu, Sion didn't seem to be the right fit for him since it's actually looking for a striker, something that Adu clearly is not. That said, when a team in a lower-tier league that has a short window to sign someone (Sion's one-year UEFA ban on transfers goes into effect in January 2011) passes on you, it doesn't exactly bode well. Benfica remains keen to offload Adu, but after having failed to establish himself in the Greek league, and having been rejected by Sion, Adu's European market value is at an all-time low.
At this point, Adu is probably best served coming back to MLS, earning some regular playing time, improving his game and possibly getting back into the U.S. national team picture. Whether any MLS team would be interested enough in him (he didn't exactly set the league on fire the first time raound) to pony up the type of money that Adu is presumably looking for is another question. Granted, some MLS executives probably feel that Adu would still provide a solid draw for the U.S. audience, but how much they'd be willing to pay for that is debatable. On top of that, will Adu realize a return to MLS is in his best interests? Several players and executives I've spoken with in the past have always maintained that Adu's lack of maturity has also been a factor in holding him back.

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[Tyler]

Didnt he sign a pro contract at 15? I think that might have a little to do with why he floundered.

 

[Shzm13]

Many players have had pro contracts at that age. If I remember correctly, Fernando Torres signed w/ Atletico Madrid at 15.

Im sure Freddy has talent, but man, did all of that hype hurt him. Sucks bc it wasn't really his fault.

 

[Tyler]

Interesting they do that so much in soccer. He was hyped as the next big thing in soccer so I can see how that would hinder his ability to learn.

 

[Stout]

Many players have had pro contracts at that age. If I remember correctly, Fernando Torres signed w/ Atletico Madrid at 15.

Im sure Freddy has talent, but man, did all of that hype hurt him. Sucks bc it wasn't really his fault.

Maybe not initially, but there comes a point when a kid has to turn into a man and actually mature.

 

[Zeno]

Freddy needs to swallow his pride some and accept a position at a club where he will get playing time, if he really wants to stay in Europe that is fine but the most important thing for him right now is playing time and concentrating on improving his game. The kid does have talent, he just needs to focus on nothing outside of his game.

Right now the biggest obstacle with any club signing him is the size of his contract. Most teams that are looking at him can't afford the contract Benfica signed him to and unless he agrees to take a huge cut he isn't gonna get signed.

 

[Shzm13]

I dont follow Portugese football much, did he get consistent playing time at Benfica?

 

[Zeno]

I dont follow Portugese football much, did he get consistent playing time at Benfica?

He did his first season there then they replaced the coach and he fell out of favor, then he had 2 bad loan spells to a lower quality Portugese side and Monaco- on his last loan spell he did OK in Greece with Aris and they wanted him back but weren't willing to take on his high salary.

 

[Shzm13]

Sucks for Freddy. Any chance he plays in the Gold Cup next year?