I think people have gotten a little carried away because of how good he looked in the CONCACAF finals. He’s a very talented player and has grown a ton the last 2-3 years, but I think he’s going to have to adjust to when he starts playing games in Germany. It’s going to be different for him and I think we will have to have some patience.
He'll have to adjust to being on a roster with no Americans, a different language, a different culture, and on top of that a level of soccer that he hasn't played before. I like the kid, but some people saying he'll make the first team bench by the end of the season are being way too optimistic. In my opinion, I think that's an impossible task. Even getting on the bench before the next winter break would be an incredibly impressive feat. My hope is that he gets a few games in the spring of next season.
Agree. No one has done that yet although Adams might but he's older and has a lot of MLS games under his belt.
yes, since it's the 1st game post Winter break. 11 games to go for the U19 season and all 00s as they graduate this season.
got his 1st start but only lasted 60 min before being subbed out (1st sub used) in a 2-1 loss to Mainz U19.
only lasted the 1st half as he along with another 2 players were subbed out in a 1-0 loss, was 1-0 HT when subbed out.
Started in Junior Pokal: AUFSTELLUNG | #VFBSCFMit diesen Jungs starten wir gleich ins Schwaben-Baden-Derby bei @jungundwild 🙌 #Juniorenpokal pic.twitter.com/RAg8IUbKYE— SC Freiburg (@scfreiburg) March 16, 2019 🔁 4. Wechsel beim #SCF (69'). ➡️ Alex #Méndez⬅️ Kimberly #Ezekwem #VFBSCF #Juniorenpokal— SC Freiburg (@scfreiburg) March 16, 2019 They lost 4-0.
He went 90' in a 4-0 win today. He didn't score any of the goals but there's no info on the assists yet.
scored a brace in a 3-3 draw vs Hoff U19 playing 85 min. First goals for the club after playing 8 games in all competition.
Alex Mendez's goals from yesterday.NBD just a 35-yard banger. pic.twitter.com/AoEOeNVU3i— scuffed (@scuffedpod) April 7, 2019
I watched the whole match and aside from the goals, Mendez's performance was about par for the course for him this spring. Generally clean and confident on the ball. Some elegant moments, a tiny bit of wastefulness. Couldn’t get on the ball enough. Only ~30 touches as a central midfielder. The game is too frenetic from his teammates, every weekend. Everyone is very direct. Turn and go. Tons of looseness in possession and hard tackling. He took most of the set pieces and they were generally sub-par. Defensively (which is really the key thing for him if he wants to move up quickly to the first team) I thought Mendez was too easy to pass around in the buildup to Hoffenheim’s first goal, though it’d be harsh to blame the goal on him. Ball sprayed out wide after he got one-twoed and was crossed in. I counted 5 good defensive interventions, which is encouraging. He's not going to suddenly get faster, so he just needs to be smarter and more committed to disrupting what the other team is doing. Seems like he's aware of it and is working on it. Definitely looks better defensively today than he did for the U20s in November.
Second goal, not bad either. And an emphatic finish from a tight angle on a ball over the top. pic.twitter.com/TdiCiNphW1— scuffed (@scuffedpod) April 7, 2019
Alex is getting paid €1,000 per month/€12,000 per year https://sports.yahoo.com/24-thoughts-inside-the-galaxy-laf-cs-battle-for-los-angeles-173745205.html This report matches what I heard
That's incredibly cheap, particularly when compared to the fact that Ledezma is making at least the non-EU minimum at PSV (~200k Euros)
You have to think not many of these players are going to go to Germany from the outset anymore then, rather start careers in the States, who are paying them several times more on their initial contracts, giving them early p.t. against young men in the 2nd division which is higher than the youth leagues over there most likely, and 1st division teams are being more inclined to integrate them. The exceptions who still go are probably dependent upon multiple factors - the financial security of their families, how much they're inclined to gamble, their hg club's rep, etc.