Sorry if this has been posted before but the above player has American connections. If you check out the following link, from the FIFA website you will notice half way down the page that Delura is mentioned as Germanys star player for the forthcoming world youth championships in Holland. It says he is Polish-American. http://www.fifa.com/en/comp/WYC/tournament/0,6416,WYC-2005-500,00.html Hope this is of some use to you guys! Green and White Army!!!!
Don't worry, Jri, if he's really a good player he'll switch to the US before he plays for Germany as an adult!
Hey, I get the wink there......I'll continue to unabashedly root/recruit/etc. legitimate candidates (upcoming talent) to be retained by US. Part of creating a good and great team is having more talent than you know what to do with, and no one can claim we are THERE yet. Also, every country mooches or tries. Finally, I always thought Mike Hanke would be the Schalke player to 'come out of the Wurst closet', but whatever..
Hey, I'll pitch in on the steaks with you and Sandon and maybe someone else can pick up the Fedex bill?
You know what? If you Are serious I would. we could start a trend, off line asap, we could send Rossi some stuff and Weah jr. etc.
delura is a very nice (and big) player, but the guy was born in gelsenkirchen so i don't know how they get "polish-american"
from the article He probably has an american parent and a polish parent I was born in America and I am of Irish and Italian descent
Wait until he plays against our U-20 team in the WYC and see how good the team is, maybe he'll want to play for the US?
yes, good point - i am familiar with this player, but i don't ever remember him being referred to as american and i'm pretty sure he plays regular for germany U-20 mannschaft
Some months ago Delura thought about a polish citizenship in order to play for poland. But then he decided to play for germany - why should he change his opinion and think about an engagement in the US-Team!? No, we need him ourselves. ;-p Sure that you don't mistake Gelsenkirchen for Geilenkirchen (NATO Air Base)?
Geez, everyone is a media critic these days! I don't know the truth definitively, but FIFA's press office says one thing and Schalke's says another -- can they both be wrong? (I suppose anything is possible...) At any rate, I'm going to keep looking into it and will report back.
He is a part of Germany's WYC squad. http://www.fifa.com/en/comp/WYC/WYCSquad/0,3343,WYC-2005-1-9641-GER,00.html #7
If he's just Polish-American but born in Germany I doubt he could play for Germany... Germany is a "citizenship by blood" country. Being born there doesn't confer citizenship as it does in the USA (or France). Also, remember that there are a lot of Germans from Prussia with Polish surnames. That part of the country went back and forth as far as which country it was, between Prussia, Poland and the German Republics.
Dear Shibb, Thank you for clarifying German immigration laws. Tchuss, Mirsolav Klose, Gerald Asamoah and Oliver Neuville
Sorry, an earlier post implied that he was Polish-American but born in Germany and therefore playing for the Germans. He's only playing for Germany because he's German or eligible for a German passport, via parentage. I guess it's not worth mentioning.
Actually that changed 1 or 2 years ago under the current SPD government- can't remember how recently that was, but born in the country now gets citizneship with some (far fewer restrictions)
Good to hear it. I moved away a few years ago, so missed that. Must have been after the "Kinder statt Inder" political campaigns. Presume it was designed to be more fair to multi-generational Turkish families and certainly should help with new blood for the DFV.