WEISS HOPING TO BE IN LATVIAN OPENER "As far as things here are going, everything is great in terms of [soccer]," the Florida native recently told YA. "We start our season on April 10th against the top team in Latvia, FK Ventspils. I'm not sure if I will be able to take part in the match however, because I am still waiting for my work visa to arrive."
I spoke to Nate and he got 20 minutes in the first game and nearly a whole half in the second game for Fk Jelgava. They lost their first two games to two of the bigger teams in the league but they have had very promising results in the Latvian Cup and are in the semi-finals of that 16-team tournament. Nate is hoping to continue playing strong and he feels that the team as a whole shouldn't have any problem being a top half of the table team although it will be hard to finish at the very top given the resources of the larger clubs. He is back to playing his "natural" position at left back even though he's listed as a midfielder for the team.
Saw this on Y-A Jelgava upset traditional Latvian giants Skonto on penalties in the semifinal of the Latvian Cup. Weiss was an unused sub. They'll play Jūrmala in the final on May 19.
Spoke to Nate again for a while and thought I'd post a video he sent me to the forum. Not sure who made it, either Nate or a friend of his, I'd imagine. It's clips from some of the televised segments of his games. He is #23 with the bright orange cleats. There are a host of youtube videos available if you search 'fk jelgava' but I can't recommend any as I haven't watched any except the one below. He is playing regularly as a sub in the second half, at left back or left wing depending on the game. He has one goal which you can see on the video and a couple of assists according to what he told me. The team has been getting some positive results lately and Nate is hoping the Europa League goes well so that he can get some positive publicity. He played with Alejandro Bedoya on a club team in Weston, FL for 5 or 6 years and I think his friend's recent international consideration has him excited about doing the same. Anyway, here is the link. Enjoy. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrKb796zrlU"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrKb796zrlU[/ame]
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kymvx2kMNa8"]YouTube- Nathaniel "Nate" Weiss[/ame] Link to another video Nate sent me. Some of the footage is the same, but a bunch of it is new.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icC0wIYi21o"]YouTube- nate against jauniba moments[/ame] just saw this..some highlights from his last game..looks ok!
Good question that I actually asked Nate when I met up with him a few days ago. He is back in South Florida and starting to train again since the Latvian season ended a few weeks ago. He said that he has been speaking to a few different teams and countries and there has definitely been some interest. He told me he has an invite to Czech Republic for January with a top division team. He mentioned Cypress, Greece and Slovakia as possibilities for next season although those were early discussions with a team and nothing formal. Also, I know he keeps in touch with people from Israel all the time. I'll try and update if/when I hear things from him.
Weiss will have a trial/training stint with Jonkopping Sodra and two other Swedish clubs, and he also has interest in Austria and the US. http://yanks-abroad.com/get.php?mode=content&id=7272
He played the second half today in the first pre-season training game. J-Södra lost 1-4 against IFK Göteborg. Opinions on his performance seem to vary: "Weiss made himself available and ran tiredlessly." "Weiss could be a contributer since that's our weakest position in defence." "None of the trialists showed enough to be real options. Enough with the signings that only increase squad depth."
Just wondering who/where those quotes are from...coaches, scouts, media, etc. I found a few articles on the Jonkoping Sodra website but the google translations were a bit dodgy.
Looks like he is currently in camp with the Chicago Fire. The article also names one of the Swedish clubs that has interest in Weiss - IFK Gothenburg.
Here is a youtube link to a clip of Nate playing against IFK Gothenburg in Sweden. He is playing with Jonkoping Sodra and is #20 in green. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDtQQg0P2hY"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDtQQg0P2hY[/ame]
Released from the Fire's camp: http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/fire-release-trialists-head-florida
Wouldn't it have made sense to spend one more year in Latvia. You know, have a little consistency to your training and your CV? I have to think that, just like in the real world, job hoppping (or in this case club hopping) doesn't look too good on a resume.
Dugoni, who is also on that list, was a YA last season when he played in Norway for Mjondalen. I had no idea he was even released by the club or trying to sign in the MLS.
over the years I have seen some of the things that people write, and while I am never bothered by other's opinions, there are times that I wish I could set a story straight, not to make me look better but more so that people can see whats really going on. I don't want to sound too pretentious because I understand that many of you could care less about what I do, but if there is even 1 person out there who is interested in knowing my thoughts and opinions, I will be checking this regularly and posting prompt responses. 3 weeks ago, I was on a trial with jonkopping sodra in Sweden, and played well enough that I garnered some interest from a preseason opponent in ifk gotenburg. I was offered the chance to stay with jonkopping, but having always wanted to play in the MLS a preseason invite would seemed to have trumped everything when they told me after watchin game tape that o was in contention for a starting spot. Upon arrival to Chicago I learned that not only was I going to be looking at a minimum contract, but I was also competing with 6 right backs, and one signed and delivered already, so needless to say after 2 weeks in preseason and only 20 minutes of actual game play, I realized this might not be the most ideal place to be. So, with that in consideration on Monday I will return to Sweden. Jonkopping has already reached there limits on roster spots, so the manager there will try to set me up with another team for six months, they bring me back in July when a few players contracts expire. I must make it clear that I am not going to use this forum as means to bash anyone, but I am moreshowing that I am willing the speak the blunt truth whether it makes me look good or bad. Starting on monday I will also use twitter as a way to let anyone who is interested follow me. I will use video and photos to make anyone following me feel as if they are there with me. If anyone wants to give me some advice on what would make this more interesting or what they would most like to see I am open to any and all suggestions... you can follow me on twitter @nweiss23
Unfortunately you are not the first nor will you be the last YA who wants to return home that gets a low-ball offer from MLS. I hope you can find a club in Scandinavia until the summer. It would be cool if you ended up somewhere where we could catch a match streamed online once in a while. Good luck and keep us posted.