Freddy Adu could well be joining a new club, but the manager does not want him there.
The former Football Manager wonderkid Freddy Adu, who once spent two weeks on trial at Manchester United in 2006, was tipped for big things as a youngster but his career has seen quite the fall from grace.
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And now Adu, who has been capped 17 times by the United States, is on trial with Polish side Sandecja Nowy Sacz in what is another bizarre move for a player who had so much hype surrounding him back in the day.
Image: PA
Back in February, after leaving Tampa Bay Rowdies, it emerged that he failed to secure a move to MLS side Portland Timbers after an unsuccessful trial.
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Commenting on the failed move to Oregonlive, Timbers coach Caleb Porter said:
"Freddy is no longer with us. He had two weeks and we were up front and honest with him about where we're at. More than anything, you look at the depth, there's just not going to be a spot."
He's now looking to secure a contract with Sandecja, who will play in the Polish top flight next season. Should he put pen to paper, it would be his 14th club and ninth country but you wouldn't bet on him getting signed up judging by the manager's comments.
That's because boss Radoslaw Mroczkowski has slammed the decision to take the well-travelled player on trial, and claims he didn't even know anything about it.
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"It's a joke," Mroczkowski told Polish website Sportowefakty.pl, via Sky Sports.
"I read in the media about his trial. I asked the sporting director why he did not tell me anything [about Adu]. After all, he sent me a text message that there 'will be a player on trial' and that they all knew.
"Marketing knew, the staff at the club knew... only the coach did not know who the trialist was. Whoever invited him, let him trial him. What is the point of having such a player?
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"The CEO says that it's marketing. We may as well have Janusz Chomontek [a Polish football freestyler]."
The Daily Mail have also quoted Mroczkowski as saying:
"This is not my idea, so let's face it, the man who wants to have Frank [sic] Adu on the team, I do not accept this, it was not consulted with me.
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"I will not test it, as someone else wants, and they can do it. In my opinion, the club is so ridiculous. Instead of building a team in a sensible way, we are looking for old vacuum cleaners."
It's another bizarre twist in a topsy-turvy career for Adu.
After scoring four goals as a 14-year-old at the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship, Adu had scored 11 goals and 17 assists in MLS between 2004 and 2006. He was just 16-years-old.
Being nominated for the coveted FIFPRO Young Player Of The Year in 2005 proved that he was recognised as one of the most promising youngsters in world football and a trial with Manchester United a year later added to the buzz surrounding him as expected. Him being an absolute don on Championship Manager and Football Manager back in the day probably earned him rave reviews, as well.
It looked promising when he signed for Benfica in 2007 but after loan spells at Monaco, Belenenses and Çaykur Rizespor, he moved back to the MLS after scoring just two goals for the Portuguese side.
Philadelphia Union offered him the opportunity to get back on track but it just didn't happen. When he was involved in a swap deal to Bahia, which saw former Manchester United flop Kleberson head the other way, it was probably an indication that his career was a far cry from what it promised to be back in his youth.
A further three moves did absolutely nothing for him and now at 28 he's on trial at a club where the manager doesn't even want him.
Image: PA
The Freddy Adu story just keeps rolling on.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Football Manager, Football
