Freddy Adu

We should take a punt on this boy. Just needs to settle somewhere, we can currently get him for maybe £1.5m

Could be the steal of the century if he can live up to his early promise.

He's been shipped from pillar to post, he's not good. Can't even cut it in the MLS.

seems the hype went to his head.

Yes I know that but he's still young. Not sure about not cutting it in the MLS though.

From a marketing perspective maybe, from a football standpoint no chance.

I'd say that Eddie Johnson is a more acompolished footballer from the MLS.

Pele once said a lad who played for Barnet was the new George Best....I can't even remember the guys name now.

Yes I know that but he's still young. Not sure about not cutting it in the MLS though.

He's probably older than me and I'm 40 this year.
Seriously if he was any copp, teams like Everton would have taken him on loan like they did Donovan.

There is no chance he's actually 23. Age fraud is rife in Ghana and he's been the same height and weight since aged 14. The fact that he was a first teamer in the MLS when he was 15 and can't cut it now that he's 23, where he should be both physically and mentally much stronger. He is 100% not good enough for us in the Premier League.

He is a football manager signing.

He is a football manager signing.

Correction Championship Manager .
Eidos and Sports interactive hadn't split when he was still worth a punt..

Rubbish suggestion, not worth the money! Would much rather see someone like Bendtner or Xisco

Bendtner or Xisco

Thank god your not in-charge of the team !

We should take a punt on this boy. Just needs to settle somewhere, we can currently get him for maybe £1.5m

Could be the steal of the century if he can live up to his early promise.

On a free may be, definatley wouldn't pay anywhere near £1.5m though.

There is no chance he's actually 23. Age fraud is rife in Ghana and he's been the same height and weight since aged 14. The fact that he was a first teamer in the MLS when he was 15 and can't cut it now that he's 23, where he should be both physically and mentally much stronger. He is 100% not good enough for us in the Premier League.

This is true and has been widely speculated. Reason he was so good at the various age levels is because he was 5 or more years older than those he was playing with. My guess is he is now approaching 30. Think he's playing in Brazil now.

Bendtner or Xisco

Thank god your not in-charge of the team !

Would do a better job than you pal

We should take a punt on this boy. Just needs to settle somewhere, we can currently get him for maybe £1.5m

Could be the steal of the century if he can live up to his early promise.

His real age is probably about 40 yrs old

Was watching his interview with the BBC on the high expectations thrown at him from a young age.

Seems a good lad; incredibly down to Earth. Nevertheless, I don't think he could cut it in the Premier League.

Another Kenny Cooper

Hes about 40 just as Kanu is about 90 years old.

There is no chance he's actually 23. Age fraud is rife in Ghana and he's been the same height and weight since aged 14. The fact that he was a first teamer in the MLS when he was 15 and can't cut it now that he's 23, where he should be both physically and mentally much stronger. He is 100% not good enough for us in the Premier League.

This is true and has been widely speculated. Reason he was so good at the various age levels is because he was 5 or more years older than those he was playing with. My guess is he is now approaching 30. Think he's playing in Brazil now.

^^^^ this. When he was a 14 year old 'sensation' in the US it was because he was possibly 5 or more years older than the kids he was playing with, when he started playing with older teams he became 'ordinary'.

Time to leave old versions of football manager behind as he is definitely not good enough.

Essien is about 50 too.

We should take a punt on this boy. Just needs to settle somewhere, we can currently get him for maybe £1.5m

Could be the steal of the century if he can live up to his early promise.

Do want want us to get relegated? Would be a terrible signing.

Awful suggestion.

If we were in Leauge 1 then worth a punt but we're premier class now.

He was playing in the Portugese leauge and couldnt cut it there by the look of it so no chance he's good enough for the Prem.

You might as well throw in Sunny Pike whilst we're talking about wonderkids, anyone remember him? Was meant to be off to Ajax academy when he was a kid.

Awful suggestion.

If we were in Leauge 1 then worth a punt but we're premier class now.

He was playing in the Portugese leauge and couldnt cut it there by the look of it so no chance he's good enough for the Prem.

You might as well throw in Sunny Pike whilst we're talking about wonderkids, anyone remember him? Was meant to be off to Ajax academy when he was a kid.

I heard he was last seen stacking shelves in sainsbury's.........not sure if this is true.

Sounds about right mate if his wikipedia page is anything to go by!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonny_Pike

Awful suggestion.

If we were in Leauge 1 then worth a punt but we're premier class now.

He was playing in the Portugese leauge and couldnt cut it there by the look of it so no chance he's good enough for the Prem.

You might as well throw in Sunny Pike whilst we're talking about wonderkids, anyone remember him? Was meant to be off to Ajax academy when he was a kid.

I heard he was last seen stacking shelves in sainsbury's.........not sure if this is true.

Not true, there was a programme about young sporting progidies who failed a few year ago on channel four. He's doing a degree somewhere.

Awful suggestion.

If we were in Leauge 1 then worth a punt but we're premier class now.

He was playing in the Portugese leauge and couldnt cut it there by the look of it so no chance he's good enough for the Prem.

You might as well throw in Sunny Pike whilst we're talking about wonderkids, anyone remember him? Was meant to be off to Ajax academy when he was a kid.

I heard he was last seen stacking shelves in sainsbury's.........not sure if this is true.

Not true, there was a programme about young sporting progidies who failed a few year ago on channel four. He's doing a degree somewhere.

To be fair it could be true. you should retract that.

Aye, states in this article here that he was studying in Dundee University

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2006 ... edge.sport

Freddy Adu: The Wonderkid From Africa That Never Was

Freddy Adu

Freddy Adu, the kid once known as the brightest talent in world football – 9 years on, he is playing with Bahia, a relegation threatened Brazilian league team. Well,that’s almost a tragic story! It’s one of the pressures that youngsters in Africa face where the poverty level is quite high, so when a youngster is seen as such a prodigious talent, pressure from different quarters immediately begins to mount on his young and inexperienced shoulders. The money-hungry blue chip sporting companies, do not make it any easier for the kid. Such is the story of Freddy Adu.

Freddy Adu was once thought of as the brightest talent in world football. He signed his first professional contract and a $1million contract with Nike at the age of 14, making him the youngest athlete in history to sign a professional deal with such a huge brand. He was deemed good enough to make his MLS debut shortly after, making him the youngest player in the history of professional team sports. He scored his first goal, still aged just 14, which made him the youngest goalscorer in MLS history.

With every big club worth mentioning tracking him and a couple of years in MLS under his belt, Adu was under intense pressure to make a big move out of America. He had the opportunity to join the biggest academies in the world, with Real Madrid, Barcelona, Man Utd etc. all interested, but he opted to join Benfica, where he was told he could have first team football immediately.

Aged 17, he made his Benfica debut. After just a handful of poor performances, they wanted rid of him. It was clear he was out of his depth. His development had stalled and he simply wasn’t good enough to play against top level players. He was loaned out four times and each loan reportedly included an option to buy. Nobody bought him.

Earlier this month, after a semi-successful season at Philadelphia Union, he signed for Brazilian club Bahia.

This was the question presented in front of him when he was unveiled by his club. What happened over the course of your career? At 14, you were compared to Pele. You have had nine clubs. Is this finally your chance to show your soccer?

“Yes. The reason why it looks like I played for so many clubs is because, when I was 18 years old, I went to Benfica and Benfica is a very big club. They need to win right away, so I was loaned to different teams. They just wanted me to go out and get games and get better. It’s not all Benfica’s fault. It’s also my fault. I take some of the blame because I was young, I was inexperienced, and I was living in a different country for the first time in my life without my family and friends. It was difficult to adjust. But now, I am a little older and wiser, a better person, a better professional, more mature. This is a great chance for me and I intend to take advantage of it.”

Let this be a lesson to any young footballers who may be reading – develop while you’re young, compete when you’re older.

Freddy Adu: The Wonderkid From Africa That Never Was

Freddy Adu

Freddy Adu, the kid once known as the brightest talent in world football – 9 years on, he is playing with Bahia, a relegation threatened Brazilian league team. Well,that’s almost a tragic story! It’s one of the pressures that youngsters in Africa face where the poverty level is quite high, so when a youngster is seen as such a prodigious talent, pressure from different quarters immediately begins to mount on his young and inexperienced shoulders. The money-hungry blue chip sporting companies, do not make it any easier for the kid. Such is the story of Freddy Adu.

Freddy Adu was once thought of as the brightest talent in world football. He signed his first professional contract and a $1million contract with Nike at the age of 14, making him the youngest athlete in history to sign a professional deal with such a huge brand. He was deemed good enough to make his MLS debut shortly after, making him the youngest player in the history of professional team sports. He scored his first goal, still aged just 14, which made him the youngest goalscorer in MLS history.

With every big club worth mentioning tracking him and a couple of years in MLS under his belt, Adu was under intense pressure to make a big move out of America. He had the opportunity to join the biggest academies in the world, with Real Madrid, Barcelona, Man Utd etc. all interested, but he opted to join Benfica, where he was told he could have first team football immediately.

Aged 17, he made his Benfica debut. After just a handful of poor performances, they wanted rid of him. It was clear he was out of his depth. His development had stalled and he simply wasn’t good enough to play against top level players. He was loaned out four times and each loan reportedly included an option to buy. Nobody bought him.

Earlier this month, after a semi-successful season at Philadelphia Union, he signed for Brazilian club Bahia.

This was the question presented in front of him when he was unveiled by his club. What happened over the course of your career? At 14, you were compared to Pele. You have had nine clubs. Is this finally your chance to show your soccer?

“Yes. The reason why it looks like I played for so many clubs is because, when I was 18 years old, I went to Benfica and Benfica is a very big club. They need to win right away, so I was loaned to different teams. They just wanted me to go out and get games and get better. It’s not all Benfica’s fault. It’s also my fault. I take some of the blame because I was young, I was inexperienced, and I was living in a different country for the first time in my life without my family and friends. It was difficult to adjust. But now, I am a little older and wiser, a better person, a better professional, more mature. This is a great chance for me and I intend to take advantage of it.”

Let this be a lesson to any young footballers who may be reading – develop while you’re young, compete when you’re older.

That article assumes Freddy Adu was harmed by early exsposure, Another perspective is that Freddy Adu is a very average player who became a millionaire and given oppurtunities his talent did not merit because he lied about his age. He'd probably be working in Mc Donalds now.

Sonny Pike is a student doing part time in Sainbury's.