Freddy Adu Traded to Real Salt Lake

For a kid like Freddy Adu, who has been touted as the greatest, who has been told he's the greatest, and who thinks he could walk over to manchester United and start . . . Salt lake is Siberia.

He fashions himself a big-timer.

personally, my only beef with Real Salt Lake is the team name. But to Adu or any other youngster who thinks he's the next big thing, leaving DC (MLS' greatest franchise) for Salt lake is an exile.

 

Remember, though. His former coach -- the one he had when he became the next big thing -- is now the coach in SLC.

I, too, think he'll be gone after this season. It's a deal by RSL to boost ticket sales, get funding for a new stadium and then part ways with the 'star.'

Both will be fine and Adu will only have to play in siberia for a few months.

 

The report I read had DC getting RSL's Designated spot, with the insinuation that they were lining up to be part of the Beckham sweepstakes as well. If that's not the case, then he and Nowak have to just fallen out completely.

 

If Adu gets anything out of moving to Team Wasatch, it's a chance to play in his natural position -- attacking mid. He's not a forward, and he's damn sure well not a winger. As long as Christian Gomez is at DCU, he'll own that position, leaving Adu trying to fit into a non-Adu-sized hole.

Nowak's ideal midfield seems to be Gomez creating and an assortment of four grinders around him. Now he has a chance to play that set-up, plus he earned a nice bundle of cash to help flesh out that dreadfully thin forward line.

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Just to clarify, the deal involved a "major allocation," which is likely RSL's 'You Suck' allocation for not making the 2006 playoffs. Allocations (basically just a packet of cash) are handed out for non-playoff teams or when a player currently under contract leaves the team, which is why Kansas City won't get one from Josh Wolff's signing with 1860 Munich.

 

That is one of the real positives. I think that having a coach that stands behind him instead of holding him down is necessary at this point.

I just wonder about the RSL management at this point. The whole Kreis issue and now unloading that much allocation, and post-sale allocation, to DC just to have Adu for a year seems a bit much.

 

If Freddy bails on the MLS he'll be left to rot on a reserve team in Europe. That or being loaned to some gawdawful third or fourth division club.

 

Don't be so certain. Adu's talent is not third of fourth division. Hell, the third and fourth division in England is quite below MLS.

It is possible that he is loaned out by an EPL team, if one were to sign him on, but it is more likely that a Dutch team will pick him up as they love Americans.

I also wanted to add in Ives' take on this: Soccernet.com Link