Expectations exceed Adu's vast potential :: Habib, Palm Beach Post

[Knave]

Normally I probably wouldn't post this sort standard Adu article, but I thought some of the quotes were interesting from a Rongen, Hudson, DC United angle ...

This one in particular:
He is the first player to come out of the pack that looks different," says former Miami Fusion coach Ray Hudson, who hosted Adu in training sessions when he coached D.C. United. "He isn't your cookie-cutter, Bobby Convey-Benny Olsen type of player who's just athletic, very good, but without that extra dimension to them. This kid has that X factor in him. He's the first one in this country that people have said, 'Whoa.' "
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/sports/content/auto/epaper/editions/thursday/sports_0478540096bd611a00d9.html

[John L]

And Rongen's quote:

Adu was sitting next to Rongen this week when Rongen warned everyone not to jump to conclusions.

"I came through an Ajax system that produced at 13-14-15 some very exceptional players and some players that were in their own right as good as Freddy, that at 18 and 19 were never heard from again," Rongen says. "Ultimately I think only he can really stand in his own way of his success or his lack of success."


Fortunately from Freddy's attitude and replies during interviews (and getting glimpses of his mother's attitude), Freddy also realizes this and is taking all this in stride

John L

[fatbastard]

Thanx, Knave, for caving in :) I liked this:Weird? What was weird about one person going up to him, asking to take a picture with him? Oh, maybe it was odd that the person was a rival player, and it was in the middle of the match. Haiti's Ricardo Champagne stood arm-in-arm with Adu in the center circle just before the second-half kickoff.

[JohnR]

Well, I guess we all figured Hudson disagreed with Arena's assessment of Convey, but this proves it.

[Cantankerous]

Well, I guess we all figured Hudson disagreed with Arena's assessment of Convey, but this proves it.
I don't know if it does. I don't know that Arena thinks of Convey as anything more than a very useful, hardworking, versatile player. I'm pretty sure that Arena sees no magic in him.

Everyone is clearly hoping that Freddy shows that special something that makes a great great player.


The only other DC player who has ever promised that magic before is Ben Crawley.

(That was to separate the old-timers from the newbies)

[fatbastard]

The only other DC player who has ever promised that magic before is Ben Crawley. (That was to separate the old-timers from the newbies)Mike Slivinski maybe :)

[Sachin]

I don't know if it does. I don't know that Arena thinks of Convey as anything more than a very useful, hardworking, versatile player. I'm pretty sure that Arena sees no magic in him.

Everyone is clearly hoping that Freddy shows that special something that makes a great great player.


The only other DC player who has ever promised that magic before is Ben Crawley.

(That was to separate the old-timers from the newbies)
Puh-leeze. He was no Thor Lee.

Sachin

[Cantankerous]

Puh-leeze. He was no Thor Lee.

Sachin
Hey, hey, HEY!

Say what you will, but Thor Lee scored DCU's first goal ever.

[JohnR]

I don't know if it does. I don't know that Arena thinks of Convey as anything more than a very useful, hardworking, versatile player.

Well, I don't know either. But selecting Convey for every damn game last year suggests that Arena's thinks Convey is a bit better than the next Ben Olsen. And of course the Convey fans regard Arena's ongoing selection as confirmation of his status as the next Reyna.

I'm pretty sure that Arena sees no magic in him.

Hmmm. Personally, I have had trouble seeing the magic in Convey, but I am far from sure that Arena shares my opinion.

As a side note, I am still trying to understand why so many of the "possibly different & great" young U.S. players -- Donovan, Adu, maybe Beasley, maybe Convey -- are essentially the same type of player, the quick darting little technical midget type. There are many kinds of world-class players ... why is it that so many of our hopes for being world class all look like Joe Cole?

[EdTheRed]

Ultimately, only Juan Berthy "Chico" Suarez stood in the way of Juan Berthy "Chico" Suarez...

[mcontento]

Ultimately, only Juan Berthy "Chico" Suarez stood in the way of Juan Berthy "Chico" Suarez...

With a middle name of Berthy you'd expect him to eat his way out of the league.

[Cantankerous]

With a middle name of Berthy you'd expect him to eat his way out of the league.
Apart from his total lack of work ethic, I wish he'd stayed. We could have called him 'Big Berthy'

[Cantankerous]

Well, I don't know either. But selecting Convey for every damn game last year suggests that Arena's thinks Convey is a bit better than the next Ben Olsen.
Ben would have been a mainstay on the team had he not been injured and sent out of the game for almost 2 years. He has never regained his wheels. I do think that Bobby is more versatile than Ben.

Hmmm. Personally, I have had trouble seeing the magic in Convey, but I am far from sure that Arena shares my opinion. I don't think selecting Convey all the time means that Arena sees greatness or magic in him. He sees utility. Nothing wrong with that. (I don't think we're saying too different a thing.)


As a side note, I am still trying to understand why so many of the "possibly different & great" young U.S. players -- Donovan, Adu, maybe Beasley, maybe Convey -- are essentially the same type of player, the quick darting little technical midget type. There are many kinds of world-class players ... why is it that so many of our hopes for being world class all look like Joe Cole?
All our big great players are goalkeepers. (Glib, I know, but that's our history.)

So, has the US ever had a magic player? One so talented that people who saw him KNEW they were in the presence of greatness? Or one where the brilliance of his future was blindingly obvious and actually came to pass?

Ramos, maybe? Keller in his prime? Adu in the future?

I'd nominate Kirovski for king of unfulfilled potential.

[newXgate]

As a side note, I am still trying to understand why so many of the "possibly different & great" young U.S. players -- Donovan, Adu, maybe Beasley, maybe Convey -- are essentially the same type of player, the quick darting little technical midget type. There are many kinds of world-class players ... why is it that so many of our hopes for being world class all look like Joe Cole?
I suspect it may be because the bigger guys are often more likely to choose basketball or American Football over soccer. Conversely, the Donovan/Beasley body types are never going to be involved in those sports to begin with, hence soccer is the obvious choice.

[JohnR]

So, has the US ever had a magic player? One so talented that people who saw him KNEW they were in the presence of greatness? Or one where the brilliance of his future was blindingly obvious and actually came to pass?

I would guess No.

First, which U.S. player has ever been "brilliant" by world standards? The answer is either "nobody" or -- if you take a generous view -- maybe Keller, Friedel, Ramos, and/or Reyna.

Were any of them viewed as a "magic player" at age 20? I doubt it. None of 'em were spirited away by AC Milan or Bayern Munich.

I suspect your Kirovski comment was tongue in cheek. In the grand scheme of things, Jovan was a nobody -- just one 15 year old among many in Man U's system. He was only big news because he was American, not because he was a standout by any reasonable standards.

Recently, Donovan and Adu would seem to qualify in terms of there being a consensus that they were great youth players with a potentially great future career ahead of them. Of course, we can't yet say whether those futures will come to pass.

[StillKickin]

The only other DC player who has ever promised that magic before is Ben Crawley.

(That was to separate the old-timers from the newbies)

Oh, my God. This is too funny. In about 2 weeks he's going to become my daughter's soccer coach.....along with Wolfgan Sunholz.

[Cantankerous]

I suspect your Kirovski comment was tongue in cheek. In the grand scheme of things, Jovan was a nobody -- just one 15 year old among many in Man U's system. He was only big news because he was American, not because he was a standout by any reasonable standards.
It was a little side slap at the furor he caused. He's a decent player. He sat on the bench for some big teams. To me that does not equate to brilliance

Still, I understand the gushing to a degree. He was one of the early players to actually be recognized by Europe, and that was a good step.

[Sandon Mibut]

I don't miss Ray coaching our team, but, damn, do I miss reading his quotes everyday.

"Like a wizened sort of observer like me, that has seen and heard of these players in England, in Italy, in Portugal, in South America, by the hundreds, they all have this stardom around them," Hudson says. "Now is Freddy going to be a shooting star? Well, you know what? He's pretty much already a superstar. Does it burst into this supernova, or does it implode?"

Too bad Ray couldn't coach as well as he could talk!

As for our phenoms all being the same, I think there is some validity to that. Having said that, Kenny Cooper, Jr., has a chance to be special and he is a big bruising forward. And, Oguchi Onyewu is probably the most athletic American player ever and he's 6-4 and over 2 bills. In time, he will be our best defender.

And, lastly, the next phenom, 16-year old Danny Szetella, is a 5-11, hard-working two-way midfielder (with a Polish passport) who has top European teams clamoring over each other to sign him.

[GrillMaster]

[snip]
As a side note, I am still trying to understand why so many of the "possibly different & great" young U.S. players -- Donovan, Adu, maybe Beasley, maybe Convey -- are essentially the same type of player, the quick darting little technical midget type. There are many kinds of world-class players ... why is it that so many of our hopes for being world class all look like Joe Cole?NFL, NBA, MLB.

GM

[voros]

As a side note, I am still trying to understand why so many of the "possibly different & great" young U.S. players -- Donovan, Adu, maybe Beasley, maybe Convey -- are essentially the same type of player, the quick darting little technical midget type. There are many kinds of world-class players ... why is it that so many of our hopes for being world class all look like Joe Cole?
Good point, though I suppose that's where some of the hype on Eddie Gaven comes in. Though a dribbler himself, he is nevertheless a bit different type of player and certainly no midget.