Adu starts two-week Man Utd trial
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American teenage prodigy Freddy Adu has started a two-week trial with Premiership leaders Manchester United.
Adu, 17, was allowed to attend by MLS club DC United, but will not be able to play in a competitive match as he does not have a work permit.
Chelsea are reported to have rejected the chance to sign Adu, who is the youngest-ever USA international.
Despite his reputation, Adu trained with United's academy players at their Carrington training ground.
Ghana-born Adu was 16 when he made his international debut for the USA in a friendly against Canada.
United are thought to be keen to arrange a match behind close doors at some point during Adu's stay.
Earlier this month, boss Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed United would be keen on signing Adu if he could prove himself.
Ferguson said: "I think we would be interested, he's only young but we have known of him for a long time.
"We tried to get him here some years ago but he signed for DC United and that stopped the progress of us keeping tabs on him."
Earlier this year Adu's agent Richard Motzkin claimed he had held talks with both United and Chelsea.
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It's a good thing that Adu comes to United for trials.
He's no doubt a rare and young talents and very experienced for his age.
I hope United signs him.
Cheers.
C.K -
Really good meh? Haha..
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look at the guy standing beside him, i think its the trainee or what
adu quite small size -
Adu is damn fast. Should go see his videos at Youtube. Lightning speed!
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I think it'd be good. And it'll be about time that an up and coming star went to Manchester United instead of Chelski.
I mean look at Robben and Essien, weren't they supposed to be done deals for united? One is not bench warming at Chelski while the other is...good, but playing for the wrong side. It'll genuinely amaze me if Adu goes the path of Obi-Mikel and chooses to warm the bench at Chelski. Sure, Abramovic may be rich, but the benches there surely aren't that comfortable are they?
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the latest report had it that coach of Adu's club DC United has warned him that he should not join Man Utd feeling that he might not progress as well as what it will be if he would be in Ajax or PSV, both with tradition of raising young players to fulfill their potential..
lets hope the guy dun listen to him... -
I think the advices given to Adu are sound.
he should go to leagues like Holland or French where it is more technical.
and not to EPL, where goons will elbow you off the ball, and chop you down from behind while you are still developing.
so while he is dipping his feet into the EPL, a sound advice will be to join Dutch League. -
Adu's coach is wrong
man u do give young players a chance, just look no more than scholes, becks, neville, brown and o shea
I hope fergie sign Adu, as this kid got talent -
he is not saying MUFC doesn't give chance but the flavour of the league.
in EPL, it is more running and chasing, where in Dutch, it is more technical.
and I tend to agree with him. -
Ice is speaking from his head while Marc is speaking from his heart.. while i'm having an internal fight between my head and heart as to who to agree with
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and one last thing, Adu is not a robinho or a rooney.
he is just one player who promises much, but has not delivered yet. -
never mind, sign him first, if he no good or cannot adapt to epl, then later sell or release him larOriginally posted by iceFatboy:and one last thing, Adu is not a robinho or a rooney.
he is just one player who promises much, but has not delivered yet.
I rather fergie sign him now, or if later he proves to be a top top player, fergie will rue he did not sign Adu when he has the chance to do so -
FREDDY ADU has four days left to convince Alex Ferguson he can be a star of the future. The American teenager is coming to the end of his two-week trial from Major League Soccer team D.C. United.
The Ghanaian-born midfielder has impressed the Reds coaching staff but they are still to decide whether the club should buy him. Landing him would be a real coup for a United side locked in a head-to-head battle with Chelsea for the Premiership title.
The Reds have kept tabs on 17-year-old Adu since he was just 14 and made the first step in securing him permanently 10 days ago. He is a sensation in MLS but success in the land of the hotdog does not necessarily mean he can cut the mustard here.
If it was based on ambition alone, United would have snapped him up on day one. Adu said: “I’m hoping this all leads to a transfer offer. My aim was to show flashes of the kind of player I can become.
“This was always going to be a test for me so I can gauge where I am by training with these guys. “To go to one of the world’s biggest clubs and get a chance to train is an honour and a privilege. But even if I play well, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll sign me.
“This is a chance for me to see what English football is all about and see what it takes to get to that level. “MLS has been great. I’ve enjoyed my time with D.C. United and I’ve really grown as a professional — but to see a huge change in my abilities I need to go to Europe. “That’s where all the best players in the world play.”
Adu has been thrilled to train with Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo and he aims to play alongside the pair full-time. He said: “Wayne and Cristiano are two of my favourite players. Training with them is unbelievable.”
Adu is fifth-highest earner in MLS on £400,000 a year. An attacking midfielder, he is left footed yet can also play wide on the right. Adu has one year left on his contract with D.C. United and would cost United around £8million if they try to get him in the January transfer window.
Adu said: “If I go in January I wouldn’t be able to play in England until my 18th birthday on June 2, next year. “Those are the rules. But hopefully this leads to an offer in January or in the summer window next year. That would be awesome.
“I’d love to go to Europe as soon as possible. Then again, I have a contract to honour with MLS, so we’d have to work that out.” Adu is clearly impatient. He added: “I want to be in a situation where I’m playing and I want to learn faster. I don’t respond too well to being brought along slowly.”
But his mentors at D.C. United are anxious that his talent is nurtured and he is not pushed too hard, too early. They are even urging him to go elsewhere believing he will not develop well enough at Old Trafford.
D.C. United coach Peter Nowak said: “I think he should go to PSV Eindhoven or Ajax or somewhere where they have a tradition of raising young players.
“At a place like Ajax the young kids come through together and they grow up together; the team is shaped around them. “In the biggest environment at the club with the biggest budget it will be hard for them to wait for him to develop.”
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Fergie has been boosted by news that both Park Ji-Sung and Ole Solskjaer will return to training today. Park has been sidelined since damaging his ankle ligaments during the victory over Tottenham in September. Solskjaer pulled a hamstring in the closing moments of UnitedÂ’s 1-0 defeat in Copenhagen.
Ferguson said: “It is great news for us. With the hectic December period coming up it’s great we’ll have those players available.” Ferguson also hopes to have Alan Smith fully fit again soon. Smith has made an unsuccessful return since breaking his ankle last season.
Ferguson offered him the chance to go out on loan to Cardiff in a bid to get his match-fitness back. But Smith refused, preferring to keep up a special training programme devised for him at United’s Carrington training complex. Ferguson said: “Alan is coming along fine. We’ve changed his fitness programme with the first team. “He’s doing special training to aid his speed.
“He’s responding well and is enjoying it. He realises that there is a lot of hard work involved but he’s putting everything into it.” -
Adu has to wait on Man Utd future
Teenager Freddy Adu must wait until June to find out if Manchester United will try and sign him, after completing his two-week trial at the club.
The USA midfielder impressed boss Sir Alex Ferguson, but under UK employment law he cannot make an offer until Adu reaches his 18th birthday next year.
"Freddy has done all right," said Ferguson. "He is a talented boy.
"He'll go back to the US and we'll keep a check on him. When he is 18, we will have to assess what we can do next."
Adu, who was given the nod by his MLS club DC United to attend the trial, has been training with United's academy players at their Carrington training ground.
"What we did was to bring him here to give him an idea of what United was like so he could see the place and see how comfortable he was with it," said Ferguson.
"He is a very confident and good, young boy but there is nothing we can do about him."
The Ghanain-born Adu already enjoys a high profile in the US, where he became the youngest player to represent the national side.
The teenager, who is keen to test his mettle outside the US, has also attracted interest from Chelsea and Reading.
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chelsea interested too!
