American teenage soccer star Freddy Adu has reached an agreement to play for Portuguese club Benfica, pending the results of a medical test. "It's a done deal," a club official said Tuesday, ahead of an official announcement. The official said details of the agreement, including the length of the contract, would be announced at a later date but could not say when.Adu joined the rest of the Benfica squad at a training session Tuesday, a day after arriving in the Portuguese capital to negotiate personal terms, and was undergoing medical checks, the official said. There were no immediate plans to introduce the player to the media.
The American wonderkid had a trial at Manchester United. Spurs and Chelsea were both believed to be interested, but Adu chose Portugal to futher his career. Major League Soccer and Benfica agreed last week to a £1.2 million ($2 million) transfer fee for the 18-year-old attacking midfielder, who was captain of the U.S. team at this month's under-20 World Cup in Canada.
Adu has been one of the highest-profile stars of MLS since he signed with D.C. United in November 2003 at age 14, becoming the youngest player in the league's history. Real Salt Lake acquired Adu from D.C. United last year knowing that when he turned 18 last month he would become eligible under FIFA rules to move to a foreign club.
Benfica has traditionally been one of Europe's stronger clubs, but has been unable to match the spending of teams in wealthier leagues such as England, Italy and Spain. Benfica finished third in the Portuguese league last season behind Porto and Sporting Lisbon.
Benfica will start play in the European Champions League in the third qualifying round on Aug. 14 or 15.