None of us have seen enough of him to make any definitive statements, but he's the stud forward at Bradenton right now. He's got a great feel for the game. I mean, this goal's from 2 yards........but it ain't easy.
You are correct, places himself at the right sport. Portugal made sure he stayed away from those poacher spots. He is not as good as he is being depicted here but has got a great attitude which will carry him far. Portugal were more concerned with Flores and Akale than they were of Rubio.
I don't. I'm trying to figure out whether all this excitement is about a top prospect or someone with a limited ceiling.
I think part of the reason why Richards was accepted was because his club (Eastside United) was already associated with the USL Timbers long before the Timbers joined MLS. Gavin Wilkinson was the technical director of Eastside United and many other Timbers players and assistant coaches were part of the coaching staff there. So the Timbers really did develop Richards, though they were not in MLS at the time.
I wouldn't be surprised if Rubio turns out to be as good as Chicharito. I'm pretty sure Rubio is the kind of player who watches videos over and over again of Chicharito and studies his moves.
He is kind of like a poacher. Chicharito is Rubin's idol and I'm pretty sure he tries to play like him.
He's young, nothing is guaranteed. All we can do is hope for the best regarding his development. And a poacher of Chicharito's quality would be a welcomed addition to the US senior team down the road. But we are waaaay waaay too far from making any conclusions about Rubin's career.
I remember reading reports here back in the day from people who saw the 17-year-old Landon Donovan play, and everyone, without exception, said the kid was a special talent -- they said he was playing a different game from everyone else. I think it's certainly possible to spot an exceptional talent at the age of 16.
And I remember reading reports of a bunch of other 17-year-olds whom everyone were saying are special talents throughout the years. Doesn't mean shit.
If Rubin were starting and scoring for a club like Indepiendente or Santos then I'd say it'd be time to get yelling, screaming and running in circles with joy.
There's special talents and there's special talents. I've never read reports of any player like those I read about Donovan. Like I said, people said he was playing a different game. He was named the best player at the U17 World Cup, for crying out loud. You could see at 17 that he was the type of player that comes along once a generation.
So a guy just making the bench for a club like that is nothing to be excited about? Rubio is a new generation of American talent and he has scored goals against many good teams.
I don't follow. Aguero and Neymar both displayed elite technical skills at one of the highest levels.
Rubin's style is different from theirs. He may not be this midfield maestro kind of player in the future but he good still turn 0ut to be a clinical striker.
I clearly have only seen Rubio only a few times, but from what I can tell, he seems a lot more of a poacher type like Chicarito, who happens to be the player that he looks up to. I think people sometimes underrate players like that. You don't have to have the quickness of Messi or the dribbling ability of Ronaldo to be a world class player. Chicarito is a perfect example of that. Again, I am not saying that Rubio ever reaches that level, but from the U-17 games, he seems a lot more like a poaching forward than a player maker from the midfield, that seems more like the profile of Flores.
It's not really about style, it was about talent. You brought up why guys from Argentina, Brazil (not sure about Spain and Italy since those countries hold teenagers back a lot more) get major attention as teenagers. It's because those guys like Aguero or Neymar are really good.