Freddy Adu: the soccer version of Danny Almonte?

My dad was 6-foot-5 when he was 14 and remains 6-5 today. My older brother was 6-4 when he was 14 and has not grown since.

 

The only reason I wasn't the same height and weight is because I went on a diet and lost 50 pounds.
But I didn't grow any taller.
So you're flat wrong.
And this column is a disgrace to people who do actual journalism for a living.

 

Could it be that Freddie Adu's problem is that he never had an opportunity to nurture his skills as a player. I'm not saying there's nothing to the age thing but I think the former is more apt to have happened.

 

A better story would be getting the birth certificate and finding out if it's legit or not.

There are a lot of people who stop growing at 14-15.

 

You're actually on to something here, Drip. But let me take it further.

Adu's problem is he's a dribbler-first who has: A) been pigeon-holed into a central midfielder despite his slight size, and B) despite that, has never been pushed to work on his passing -- the skill he needs more than any other to become an effective player.

This results in him getting the crap pounded out of him as he tries dribbling through bigger, skilled midfielders and rendered null, void and ineffective.

That he winds up on teams that for some reason, don't realize this, says more about the crappy coaching he's dealt with than it does him. Every person on this board knows of situations where talented players never quite work out as advertised. Many times, that's a matter of luck; of finding the right coach who is smart enough to use that player to their best advantage.

What Adu needs to do is find a coach willing and smart enough to use him as Manchester City uses Shawn Wright-Phillips (who at 5-3, is smaller than Adu), Arsenal uses Theo Walcott or smart coaches use Landon Donovan: as a winger who can create and find space on the periphery, then fire crosses to bigger players in the middle.

OK, chalk-talk over.

 

His issues seem to be more of an issue of skill rather than size. I mean, the best player in the world (Messi) is 5'7.

 

Messi knows when to pass, and knows when to run.

 

DING-DING-DING!!!!!

You don't see Messi getting splattered in the middle of the field because the ball is on his foot and gone by the time anyone gets near him.

Adu -- and his assorted coaches -- haven't clued into the fact that you can't dribble through European-club or international-level midfielders and defenders with any consistency.

 

Maybe Adu never thought that he had to work on his skills. And now that he sees how far he is behind other players, the doesn't know how to correct the problem.

 

So does this mean he's now Freddy Adon't?