LISBON - American teenage soccer star Freddy Adu has agreed to play for Benfica and trained with the Portuguese club on Tuesday.
LISBON - American teenage soccer star Freddy Adu has agreed to play for Benfica and trained with the Portuguese club on Tuesday.
The 18-year-old attacking midfielder, who has been one of the highest-profile stars of Major League Soccer, arrived in Lisbon on Monday to negotiate terms.
MLS deputy commissioner Ivan Gazidis told Associated Press that Adu's agent Richard Motzkin had confirmed the deal.
"Freddy, when we signed him, was one of the most talented young players in the world. I think, today, he still is one of most young talented players in the world," Gazidis said.
"What we've struggled with is the expectations, not that we've placed on him, but that the media has placed on him."
MLS and Benfica agreed last week to a $2 million (about R14 million) transfer fee for Adu, the US captain at the Under-20 World Cup in Canada in July.
Besides the transfer fee, MLS will gain a percentage of any future transfer of Adu from Benfica to another club, Gazidis said.
Adu signed with DC United in 2003 at age 14, becoming the youngest player in the league's history. Real Salt Lake acquired Adu from DC. United last year knowing that when he turned 18 last month he would become eligible under Fifa rules to join a foreign club.
"Freddy's been very devoted to working hard, being a contributor," Gazidis said. "He became a better and more mature player. He's still only 18. When we step outside the world of MLS, and put him with his peers on a world stage, Freddy has progressed." - Sapa-AP
Adu agrees terms with Benfica
LISBON - American teenage soccer star Freddy Adu has agreed to play for Benfica and trained with the Portuguese club on Tuesday.
LISBON - American teenage soccer star Freddy Adu has agreed to play for Benfica and trained with the Portuguese club on Tuesday.
The 18-year-old attacking midfielder, who has been one of the highest-profile stars of Major League Soccer, arrived in Lisbon on Monday to negotiate terms.
MLS deputy commissioner Ivan Gazidis told Associated Press that Adu's agent Richard Motzkin had confirmed the deal.
"Freddy, when we signed him, was one of the most talented young players in the world. I think, today, he still is one of most young talented players in the world," Gazidis said.
"What we've struggled with is the expectations, not that we've placed on him, but that the media has placed on him."
MLS and Benfica agreed last week to a $2 million (about R14 million) transfer fee for Adu, the US captain at the Under-20 World Cup in Canada in July.
Besides the transfer fee, MLS will gain a percentage of any future transfer of Adu from Benfica to another club, Gazidis said.
Adu signed with DC United in 2003 at age 14, becoming the youngest player in the league's history. Real Salt Lake acquired Adu from DC. United last year knowing that when he turned 18 last month he would become eligible under Fifa rules to join a foreign club.
"Freddy's been very devoted to working hard, being a contributor," Gazidis said. "He became a better and more mature player. He's still only 18. When we step outside the world of MLS, and put him with his peers on a world stage, Freddy has progressed." - Sapa-AP
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