You've got to be kidding. He has basically no "Ghanian accent". And in any case, perfect pronunciation is nice, but it's not really a perfect indicator of one's ability to pick up a language. It has nothing to do with anyone's ability to grasp grammar and memorize vocabulary, which are the main things.
No, he's definitely in midstride, running like he's supposed to be. Look closely at his feet. I think this picture speaks more than a thousand words about Freddy Adu.
You guys crack me up. Like trying to determine if the Communist Russian leader is dead or not (by one photo) or if someone is moving up within his inner circle.
No doubt Freddy is in shock right now and will be for several weeks. He had is assed kissed in the MLS and now is playing on a even keel. Can't help but make him better.
I hear that Aduologists are in high demand now in the State Department. They get paid in kittens and everything.
LMAO at the original poster of the still picture! Shame on Gringo Tex at beating me to the great sarcastic replies.
I'm sorry, but have you never heard Freddy speak? He has the accent of an 18 year. Any language can be mastered in a relatively short time if one dedicates themselves to learning it. By dedicating I mean not speaking any English unless you have no other choice. So, I say he is speaking Portugese fluently in 6 months at the most.
I think we all need to start being more realistic about what Adu can accomplish this seasons. When Quaresma was Adu’s age he played in 28 games scoring 3 goals, in the 2002-03 season when Ronaldo 17/18 he also scored 3 goals. When Nani was 18he didn’t even appear in a league game. When Anderson was 18 he arrived at Porto during the Jan. transfer window only playing in 5 games. When you add in the fact that all those guys are native Portuguese speakers and thus have leg up on Adu we really need to start getting the expectations in check. If Adu can play in 15-20 games and score 2 or 3 goals it would be a great season.
My Dog can fly! My Pee is a solid! Frisbees do not spin in flight! I have pictures to prove each of the facts above but none of my excuse making friends will believe me! I understand how hard it is to get people to believe good still photo evidence..... I know how you feel...
Nothing to be learned from those comments, except for the obvious: This isn't MLS, in that the bonus babies won't automatically play. But we knew that already, right?
Nothing to be learned from these comments at all except that everyone projects their hopes/dreams/failures/frustrations onto Freddy. And I hardly think you could call a player with a $2 million dollar transfer a 'bonus baby'...it's not really the price of a player expected to come in and light up the league or UEFA competition from the get go...it's the price of a player who will either 1) be a solid and dependable contributor who depends on teammates to lift the team (e.g. a water carrier), or 2) could be a star eventually if they progress in the right way (or could be a bust), but not right now. Hmm, which would Freddy be? For comparison sake let's look at the euro-career trajectories of 2 other players with transfer fees in the same ballpark...Clint Dempsey and Bobby Convey, and how did their first years go?
About language and adjusting to life in Europe, it's absolutely true that you never feel at home anywhere until you can speak the local language. Learning Portugese is definitely gonna be a big part of Adu's adjustment. But if Freddy speaks any other languages besides English already (I don't know what the official language or languages are in Ghana--French maybe?) it'll make the learning easier, as bilinguals pick up new languages faster than monolinguals.
Why? Why in the world should the new manager of the club go out into an interview and say: "Freddy Adu has been rubbish in training. Absolutely useless. So he won't play." Is that the way to bring along an 18 year old with great potential & inspire him to be better? Going out in public and somewhat humiliating him? I'm being a little over-the top on purpose, but c'mon. He doesn't owe anyone that. And being 'put on the bench' is funny comment too considering there just haven't been a lot of matches yet, and he effectively played maybe one match total for the previous manager as well. I think people are looking too much into it. Adu does have to adjust. He has to adjust to the speed of the league and game and the teams in Europe. Most here know that different clubs and leagues even in Europe have different playing styles but from looking at MLS, it's even more different. A lot of American players have had to adjust a bit to the leagues there and what they can/cannot get away with. In Adu's case, he has to do better, get better, adjust to his new surroundings, teammate, langauge, etc. and he's 18 years old & has time to do so. The manager said, effectively, that there are a lot of games to be played this season and if you do well enough in practice and in the opportunities you're given, you'll have more opportunities going forward. With the Copenhagen match, he really said (IMO) that he doesn't look at the past match/press clipping on it - he makes his own judgement. Simple as that, really. Adu will get his time. But like the Benfica fan said, it will come when the manager think's he's ready & it's best for the club. If he didn't tear it up in MLS, it's tough to imagine him immediately tearing it up in Portugal.
u can post this 101 different ways and hte posters here will not get it... great post which most people have been saying... people looking for something that is not there... still cannot say why... all I can say to those posters is to just relax
You evince a curious amount of respect for the doublespeak in the coach's comments. What I was pointing out, by bringing to light a paradox in his reasoning, was that he was saying nothing at all. Sanctimonious cries of "calm down BS posters, I'm the one who really understands the situation" don't get anyone anywhere.
What the... respect and 'doublespeak' have nothing to do with it. I just have no idea why on earth you seem to think the manager should go out into public and effectively humiliate one of his promising young stars. That actually doesn't matter if he was lieing out of his arse or not! Let alone why in the world you'd actually want him to do so? Do you really want one of your good young players to be handled like that? Not even a month after his arrival? Thank heavens he knows he doesn't owe you (or me) anything. He owes Benfica and their fans that he can shape the club into a winner and challenger on all fronts. And even then he can go about it without embarassing Adu. Meh. He said that he realizes that Adu's a promising young player that has to adapt to European football. He then went on to say that there are cup matches, Europe matches and plenty of league matches as a sort of hint that there may be opportunities throughout the season as he gets up to speed and adjusts to Europe. You can look into that anyway you want, but probably the common thinking is that "he needs some time, but his time will eventually come". It's been the same for several players, big stars today and even mediocre journey-men. It took Diego a long time to adjust to playing in Portugal, and it took Robinho a long time to adjust to playing in Madrid. Anderson took a while in Portugal as well although it should be noted that he was injured for a good part of the season too. And then some players go to different leagues in Europe and struggle. I remember Helder Postiga in England... did poorly. It's nothing offensive to Adu & if he said 'nothing', well IMO, he wasn't saying anything that shouldn't have already been known. But if you simply don't believe the manager and disagree with his decision, so be it. You're a fan, it's your right to second guess nad say what 'you would've done'. More fun anyway... your head isn't on the chopping block. And you're different how? I mean, you're actually doing the same thing that you're chastising others for. And then again - bogus speculation & forging conspiracies in the manager's comments 'don't get anyone anywhere' either. It's a waste of time and, as your old manager used to say, a 'useless exercise'. Conspiracy theories and the belief that the manager's 'paradoxically speaking' might be fun to consider sometimes, but quite frankly I'd find such thinking tiresome. So... to me, Adu needs to do better and he'll probably have more opportunities as it's a long season.
You do recognize the silliness in your argument based on your example of Adu as a "bonus baby" ? Specifically saying that the MLS "bonus baby" will always play while failing to note that your example -- Adu -- didn't always play -- heck even RSL benched him once at the end.
Ghana was an English colony. Essien speaks perfect English. I really wonder whether Adu has to become that proficient in Portugese. Will Szetela need to know that much Spanish?
Speaking the language helps you adjust to living in the whatever locale you're in and that sets you off on a different path mentally. If you recall what 'Dolo immediately said to Zizzo, "You have to learn German". And this is what this basically comes down to in terms of cultural adaptation. It's step one.
Unless he flies home after every game (which, he obvously doesn't) his/their lives will suck if they can't go anywhere without a translator and cant speak the language.
A formal translator is unnecessary. A local girlfriend can be the most beautiful, productive means to learning the local language. As for Benfica's Yu Dabao (于大宝), he's from Qingdao aka Tsingtao (think Chinese beer and former German port city)in China's Shandong Province. He most likely speaks the local dialect, Qingdaoese???, a regional Mandarin dialect. Like Adu and others in countries where their native langua, he more likely speaks football-ese on the field.
My biggest reason for not wanting Adu on the team is the very same thing you seem to grasp. I feel that if Adu only scores 3 goals and plays in 15 games, then everybody here will be asking for a transfer, and saying we didn't have faith in him and we hindered his success, and we are anti American, etc. My team plays to win, and we bought Adu because we believe in his potential, but that doesn't mean we have to put him in every game right away.