Usually we don't post much about kids in this forum, but I think this is a kid to REALLY keep an eye on. Last year we were told that just about every big club under the sun was tracking this kid (Barcelona reportedly scouted him). http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...4/junior-flores-signs-with-borussia-dortmund/ Junior Flores, a Northern Virginia teenager who has emerged as one of U.S. soccer’s top young players, has signed with German Bundesliga champion Borussia Dortmund, his father told the Insider on Thursday night. Flores, 16, agreed to a four-year deal that will go into effect in March 2014, when he turns 18. The paperwork was completed last week, Oscar Flores said. He also signed a two-year contract with Nike, effective immediately. His son, a central attacking midfielder, is in his second year of full-time residency with the U.S. under-17 program in Bradenton, Fla. The squad is currently competing at the AGS Cup in Spain.
He looks very good with the ball, I just wished he was a bit bigger, maybe he will grow in to a man's body. What got my attention is "Attacking midfielder" now that we don't get very often.
If he stays healthy you can pencil Flores into the lineup for years and years to come. If anyone saw the Nike International Friendlies last summer, he dominated the pitch in nearly every game. I believe he was responsible for all 3 goals in the Brazil win. He had said last year, before he could technically sign as a professional, that he had a contract in place, waiting for him when he turned 16. So there you go.
Plus they're not signing him to be a centerback. He's apparently about 5'7" right now, so even if he doesn't grown any more he's already about the height of Freddy Adu. Flores is also eligible for El Salvador by the way.............................
and also francisco torres. a player can be short and successful but Flores looks a bit frail, at least he is young enough to fill up his frame.
Sorry in advance for potentially raining on your parade, but he does have every intention of representing the USA, right? I'll readily admit I don't know much about him. I am simply curious. Also, we really need to lay off over-hyping every young prospect who appears. Wake me when they do something in games that matter.
i know i am going to sound like Debbie Downer, but i say it's more than likely that he will be completely off the radar in a few years. here's hoping i eat some crow in a few years.
I saw him a couple times with the U17s last year, and it's clear the kid's got the ball control, vision, and killer instincts in front of goal of a real blue-chip prospect, a real goal scoring and playmaking threat, and he's fantastic in tight spaces. One of the most impressive since, well, Freddy. Then again, Freddy hasn't exactly set the world on fire yet, so there are no guarantees. But I'm not surprised to see him sign with such a prestigious program; he's exactly the type of talent that those programs look for. He'll still have to overcome odds to end up a first team player at Dortmund, but I wouldn't be shocked if he does. Just overjoyed.
For those of you who regularly watch FC Dallas, you'll likely see an awful lot of David Ferreira in the way that this young man Flores plays. It really is striking in similarity. If he can develop into that kind of player, he'll carve a niche on the USMNT.
Ferreira is a very good player who would see time with the USMNT. If Flores makes it to that level, he will have had a successful career. I think we need to be more realistic with our expectations of young players.
Well, he's been at Bradenton for more than a year. I'd say that's a pretty damn good sign about him representing the US. People will always point to Subotic in response to that, but Neven has been an isolated case. It will obviously be a while before Juniors's a candidate for the USMNT, and he has to earn that opportunity. From everything I've heard about Junior Flores, however, he isn't your "run of the mill" prospect. We do need to do away with the Freddy Adu megahype............but it's OK to follow prospects like this closely. He'll be the key man for our U17 team, and I've heard rumors of him getting a look with our U20s already. The more our youth development programs advance, the more our prospects are going to be sought by European clubs. Note the last line of that article............. Arsenal is also eyeing Maryland-based midfielder Jake Rozhansky, from the U.S. under-17s.
Ferreira in his prime was a good #10. Fantastic at America de Cali and Atl. Paranaense of Brazil. Heck, he won the MLS MVP on the downside of his career. Speaking as someone who follows both Colombia and USA I would kill to have a playmaker like David for our beloved USA.
Well, if El Salvador had been planning to lure him away from us by using promises of the 2014 World Cup as bait then their project has run into a few problems: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_FIFA_World_Cup_qualification_–_CONCACAF_Third_Round#Group_B
I watched that entire round robin for the U-17's and Flores was amazing--he out-Brazilianed the Brazilians in their final game. Flores is everything that U.S. Soccer has been missing and I hope he doesn't have to shoulder the pressure that some of our previous young prospects have had to carry. Dortmund has an awesome youth system and is a great place to develop, but I'm not sure the German league would be his best fit--I'd love to see him go to Spain.
I posted something similar in another Junior thread... I was introduced to him over Summer break, 2012, and he's a pretty solid dude. My best guess is that he's just under 5'7 He has some thick shoulders and huge thighs, clearly he's hitting the gym. But the best thing about him is he is extremely humble, very respectful towards everyone he met and a person you can only root for.
If this kid really is that good, he should be moved up to the u-20's to continue his development with bigger strong and faster players. Where does he consistently play and train right now? Bradenton?
Development is a process not a moment in time. He's 16, trains everday at Bradenton , and can't go to Dortmund until he's 18. He's fine where he is. While U20's have a tournament now in Spain they are not in a residential training environment. They are all in college or pro training environments. Junior Flores would have neither. Yes he's that good and he doesn't need to do anything with any U20's right now. The worst thing for him is to push him to far ahead of his development process. He'll be fine staying in Bradenton until after the U17 in UAE in Nov 2013. He'll be able to take a small break and go to Germany alittle early to set up shop and do some training before making it official. He still is small in stature and let him develop his overall game physically and mentally so he's not overburdened. Dortmund has done this before and will know when to move him up or not based on their knowledge of the professional development model. He'll be fine.
I still don't see a problem with him training and playing with the U-20s if he is good enough. I don't think either of us are in a position to make that judgement, hence why I said "IF" he is good enough. It's not like I'm saying leave Bradenton or something, where he is currently getting his real football training day in and day out. IMO playing and training with the u-20's, who like you said are all mainly in professional training environments already, could be more of an asset to him being that he is about to enter into that world.