Altidore, reset and rekindled

Photo credit: twitter feed

It wasn't long ago that New York area fans watched with optimism as their teenage sensation, Jozy Altidore, scored his first goal for the Red Bulls against Columbus after just weeks since playing his first match for the team. The future looked bright and their young star was ready for the stage. He scored in the playoffs in 2006 and continued to be a stalwart for the Red Bulls until 2008, amassing 15 goals in 37 league games.

Altidore not only looked good in MLS action. He also excelled on the international stage. He broke through to the national team in February 2008 when he scored against bitter-rivals Mexico in a friendly match. After that, Altidore would be a permanent fixture in the forward rotation for the Stars and Stripes.

Success internationally also brought him a lucrative contract with Spanish giants Villarreal. His transfer was the most expensive in MLS history at $10 million. But he was low in the pecking order with the "Yellow Submarine" and only managed 1 goal in 6 appearances in his first semester with the Spanish team. A crippling loan to Xerez of the Segunda Division gave him no playing time during the winter-spring of 2009. But he did score with the national team--including a hat trick in World Cup Qualifying.

Things seemed to change overnight for Jozy when he scored against Spain at the Confederations Cup. He also forged a formidable striking force with Charlie Davies. This gave him another loan opportunity with Hull City. He scored for the English Premier League team once in Cup competition and once in league action. But his sparse scoring and diminished playing time took its toll on the youngster. He entered the 2010 World Cup with a degree of trepidation and many fans and soccer media started to think of him as another failed young star.

But let's give credit to what he did do at the World Cup: his header-pass to Michael Bradley against Slovenia meant the score was tied and a vital point was given for the United States. His low center pass to Dempsey at the end of the game against Algeria eventually led to Landon Donovan's iconic goal in stoppage time.

Jozy returned to Villarreal and began to score for them in Cup competition. He enjoyed a few games in the Europa League but it was clear that he was too far down in the pecking order to be a starter. Another loan--this time to Turkish side Bursaspor--changed his surroundings and gave him more playing time. He only scored for them once, however.

Altidore returned to the national team during this past summer's Concacaf Gold Cup and scored twice before going down with an injury. It was the Jozy of old and it looked like we had him back. Soon after, it became known that he was joining AZ Alkmaar of the Dutch Eridivisie on an actual transfer.

AZ was what Altidore needed. He scored as a substitute in his first league match and scored twice more in league action. More importantly, he scored 4 goals in 4 games in Europa League play, helping his team advance to the group stage. That's 7 goals in just two months. Our prodigal striker is back.

Josmer Volmy Altidore is a different kind of player. He's a tall, fast striker that can hold the ball and can use his significant physical attributes to control his game. He may have joined the wrong team at the wrong time when he became a Villarreal player. Lack of playing time at just 18 is difficult to shake. A depletion in talent at the forward position for the United States also didn't aid in helping him regain confidence, as most of the pressure was on him to produce.

It was a series of unfortunate events in his soccer life that spurred Jozy's intermittent development. For Adu, young stardom came at a price. For Altidore, learning from past mistakes enabled him to overcome obstacles. And yet he still struggled abroad. But by continuing his play for the US national team and by finding an environment suitable for his skills, the 21-year old has finally found his place. Here's to a few more years in Holland. Here's to at least two more World Cup cycles with our star striker. Here's to you, Altidore. This is why we wear your jersey to soccer games.

Chicharito versus USA

It was an interesting conversation on twitterworld today: why doesn't the US have a Chicharito (Javier Hernandez). Someone that scores for a big-name team (Manchester United). Someone that scores for the national team (11 goals in 20 appearances). Someone that has done these things by age 22. This conversation came out of an impressive goal that opened the scoreboard for Manchester United in Premier League play today and was followed, nearly simultaneously, by Mexico-hating and Altidore-hating and the depreciation of US Soccer.

But is this truly the case? US soccer journalists argued that Altidore, for example, is someone that made the jump to Europe at a very early age to one of the more successful teams in the Spanish Primera. "Jozy" Altidore set up two of the more significant goals for the USA at the World Cup (passes to Bradley versus Slovenia and Donovan (versus Algeria). He scored once in his inaugural season for Villarreal and was subsequently loaned (without playing) to Xerez (spring 2009) and then to Hull City of the Premier League for the 2009-2010 season. There, Altidore scored twice in Cup competition and once in league play. Keep in mind that Hull City was relegated the same season and that were limited in scoring opportunities. Also, at Villarreal, Altidore has to contend with Borja Valero, Rossi, Nilmar, and Jefferson Montero. He will nearly always be on the bench when paired against Rossi and Nilmar. For Chicharito, the main contenders are Berbatov, Rooney, Owen and Macheda. Owen and Rooney have been injured quite often this season and Macheda isn't as experienced as Chicharito. Hence the increased playing time. Also, Rooney can double as an attacking midfielder in a 4-3-1-2 scheme or as a center forward in a 4-3-3 scheme.

But this wasn't only a comparison against Altidore, it was a comparison against the US development of strikers. Young forwards such as Kenny Cooper, Eddie Johnson, Charlie Davies, Freddy Adu haven't made a good impression in Europe or have seen their careers derailed by injuries (Cooper, Davies). Can we fault them for that?

Then there's the standout stars that often score but are not taken into consideration when Chicharito Hernandez scores: Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey. Donovan is on vacation but he's a prolific goal-scorer internationally (record-holder, possibly unbeatable in the foreseeable future) and in Europe (with Everton). Dempsey scored a goal today just a half hour or so after Hernandez' tally. "Deuce" Dempsey is likely to see a move out of Cottage Craven at this point and only the sky is the limit. Oh, and the ascent of Stuart Holden with Bolton is also impressive (2 goals this season and a Premier League best 11 of the fall 2010). Not a forward, but a goal-scorer and playmaker making a difference in the top league in the world.

The future holds promise also: Agudelo, Salgado, McInerney, Luis Gil, Perry Kitchen, Bunbury and so on. Who's to say they can't have a breakout year and make the jump to Europe by the end of 2011? Who's to say they can't be selected to the Gold Cup and impress with their skills?

So here's the point: Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez is an incredible player with impressive talent, but the US has experienced goal-scorers and young lads like Altidore (contender for a starting position in La Liga) and Agudelo (impressive performance with the Red Bulls and scoring in his first national team appearance). It will be USA vs Chicharito at the Gold Cup this summer and it's too early to come to conclusions.

Altidore scores his first Premier League goal

Perhaps it was only fitting that after all the criticism, personal afflictions, and group play in his team. Jozy Altidore finally scores in the English Premier League after playing for Hull City in 18 games. It is a result that brings confidence to his game, relief for US soccer fans, and perhaps more importantly, temporary safety for Hull as it climbs out of the relegation zone.

The past few months have been a rollercoaster for the 20-year-old. From no participation whilst on loan to Xerez of Spain during the spring season, to a hat trick versus Trinidad and Tobago in World Cup qualifying, to a stellar performance in the Confederations Cup, to the announcement of his loan to Hull, to tragedies with Charlie Davies and his ancestral home-Haiti. Indeed, enough events for a young man like himself.

Altidore last scored for Hull during his second-ever match for the team in Carling Cup play against Wycombe Wanderers in August 2009. He has been a hard-working forward, however, winning balls, setting up goals and winning free kicks and penalties. The press hasn't wasted time acknowledging him, though. Perhaps it's time for impatient US soccer fans to let the man breathe and play his game. He is a star player, and he proved it yesterday.

His goal:

Altidore to the Premier League: what it means to the player, the team and US Soccer

Yes, it was confirmed by Jozy Altidore himself on his twitter site. The 19-year-old American phenom is moving to the English Premier League's Hull City. In it, the team's manager has assured Jozy that he will be a starter throughout the season. This is excellent news for the player, the US national team and American soccer in general. Where Freddy Adu has not been as much of a factor in the international scene, Jozy has picked up the role to become the next chapter in a rapidly evolving American soccer scene.

It began with an intrepid, stealthy and lethal combination of skill, size, and overall treatment of the ball by Altidore. He showed it at 16 in his first season with the New York Red Bulls by scoring important goals. He continued this form in 2007 and 2008 and was signed by Villarreal for an MLS record $10 million. Time in Spain was limited due to depth at the striker position with Rossi, Nihat, Franco and Llorente but he played 6 games scoring once. Even though his loan to second division Xerez saw no playing time, the man still lit it up in qualifiers for the US national team with 4 goals. And then there was the Confederations Cup, an excellent game against Egypt setting up Davies's play and the score-opener against Spain in the tournament's biggest shock. Winning that semifinal game and entering a FIFA final versus Brazil cemented his place in the big scene.

So what does this move to the EPL mean? To him, a chance to play regularly and to blossom as a player. This so-called relegation-bound team is just what a young American player needs. Look at what it has done for Dempsey in Fulham and Michael Bradley at Monchengladbach. They became starters, they scored goals, and they exploded internationally.

To Hull City his move means having a firecracker for a player. Someone with enough poise and subtleness in play to take on the Ferdinands, Terrys and Lescotts. A youg player with a hunger for playing time and a nose for goal. It is also a player looking to impress and attract attention from bigger clubs. This is how small clubs survive.... and profit.

To the US national team it means great depth in the attack. It means a star for another 3 World Cup rounds. It means attention and respect from other teams. And it means that we can answer the Dos Santos and Velas that our Mexican foes have in their arsenal.

And for fans it means fantasy and magic.