Anyone know if this guy is a local boy? It's way way way to early to make any type of regular hype, but BigSoccer hype, sure (lol). He's got 11 goals in 6 matches, including 3 hat tricks in a row for UC Bakersfield. The kid is seriously lighting it up. From what I can tell he'd be a US eligible kid. 6'1 and destroying Cali opponents, impressive.
I have no idea if he's a citizen or not. There were rumors last year that Thomas Rongen was gonna bring him into a U20 national team camp last winter but that never happened. You could interpret that to mean that Rongen's interest means Zardes is a US citizen or it could mean he never got the call-up because he isn't. Or none of that. He's a 91, so the only YNT he's eligible for is the U23s, and it's gonna be damn tough for any kid still in college to crack that roster. I don't want to say impossible, but real close. Still, an intriguing pro prospect who is having a great year in college soccer.
Really nice article on him here. Grandfather came to the US from Brazil, parents Glen and Linda, dad wanted him to play football over soccer, I think it's safe to say he's a citizen.
Yeah, he's definitely a nice prospect. I have a feeling MLS isn't in his cards though, at least not if he keeps this up.
From the box on the side of the article linked above. Of note: His first name is pronounced "Jossi." ... His eight goals this season ties him for 17th on CSUB's single-season list. Joey Mejias holds the single-season record with 19, set in 2002. Zardes will crack the top 10 when he reaches 11. ... He's a third-generation American. His great-grandfather came to America from Brazil. ... He enjoys reaching the Bible, especially the New Testament. He also enjoys Will Smith movies with "Hitch" and "Pursuit of Happiness" his favorites. He said he grew up watching Smith star in "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air." *So, we could someday have Jozy and Jossy up front. *Third generation-American would pretty much make being a US citizen a slam dunk. As would his father wanting him to play college football over soccer. *Well, the Fresh Prince thing certainly explains the hair!
Here's a link to his bio from the LA Galaxy academy so it certainly seems like they can claim him as a homegrown player if they so choose (and you have to assume they'd choose to do so.) http://ussda.demosphere.com/teams/17276140/17297557-17276234/12290281.html
It seems like he didn't play very much with the team(6 appearances, 4 starts). Hopefully, for the Galaxy's case he's met the minimum requirements to qualify as a HG.
I think LA will hold his rights, and would take him if they could. I just don't see that happening if he keeps up his current form. That was my point. 11 goals, including 3 hat tricks in a row......there will be clubs in Europe dying to get their hands on him if he keeps it up. If LA can convince him to play in MLS, great! Cause I think he'll get more starting time at LA than in Europe, at least at first. Keep in mind this is all based on 6 matches. He was an assist magnet last season, so it's safe to say he a good offensive player altogether, not just a scorer.
For the record, he never had three hat-tricks in a row. In the season opener against UC Riverside he had 3 goals and an assist in a 5-1 win. In Bakersfield's next game, he had all their goals in a 3-1 win over San Francisco. Their next game ended 0-0 against UC Davis then he had a brace in 2-2 draw with Cal State Northridge followed by another 0-0 draw with St. Mary's. Friday he had his third hat-trick in a 4-1 win over Gonzaga but was held without a shot on-goal in CSB's 2-1 win yesterday over Oregon State. In total, 3 hat tricks and a brace for 11 goals 7 games. Still a damn good strike rate but not quite 3-for-3. It should also be noted that Bakersfield hasn't exactly played the elite of college soccer. None of the four teams against which he's scored, so far, this year are expected to make the NCAA Tournament. So while it's impressive, his scoring should be kept in perspective.
Oooh Oooh Me Me Me!!! Joseph Lapira................ I will say that we're having to pay more and more attention to college soccer when it comes to the MLS homegrown player initiatives. One question that comes up repeatedly on certain boards is whether MLS clubs can trade homegrown player rights to other clubs. This has actually happened in the case of Canadian players, but not as far as we can tell with American kids. On the surface it doesn't make sense because the kids don't have a contract with MLS in any way, shape, or form. But figure out how TFC traded academy player Josh Janniere to Colorado for a 2013 3rd round Supplemental draft pick. Since he wasn't under contract with MLS, it can only be that they traded his homegrown rights......................... So if LA feels they don't have room for Gyasi on their homegrown player list due to the presence of other prospects, could they trade his homegrown rights to Chivas? Unclear..........................
My initial thought was Jason Garey..... The HG rule has made people who care about youth development to pay more attention to college which can't be a bad thing. If I were the Galaxy I would sign him and wait for the league to change the rules to allow me to do whatever I wanted. Seems to be the way they operate.
And United Sikkim FC!!!!!! He'll probably go down in history as the only Irish international to play in the Indian 2nd division. I'd stake quite a lot of money on that...............
Well everybody knows the Indian second division is, at best, a step below MLS, which of course isn't all that different from the Premier League.
Found some recent footage of Zardes from a game this season: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLBv7ZP8BwU"]CSU Bakersfield vs UC Riverside - YouTube[/ame]
Against an opponent like UC Riverside it's hard to tell much beyond the fact that he has good pace, decent size, looks strong. Obviously, on athleticism alone he's worth following, but let's see what he can do against better defenders. CS Bakersfield plays New Mexico Oct. 23. We shall see...
I think a player only has to be part of an MLS academy team for 1 year to be eligible for a HG deal I don't think the number of games played is a factor. I believe it used to be 2 years but the rule was changed. This applies for U15/U16, U17/U18, and U20 teams. Aaron Horton played with the Crew's U20 team for 1 year which made him eligible to sign a HG deal with Columbus.