Is Real Madrid a good fit for Jozy Altidore?

By: Bob | November 16th, 2007

One of the things I have always enjoyed about sports is finding a player early on in his career and watching his develop as he gets older. It’s like watching a child grow up without having to deal with the potty training and teenage years. It was 13 months ago that Jozy Altidore’s name first appeared on this site. He was a young kid just barely getting his start in Major League Soccer. Since then, he has established himself as a solid striker in the league and earned a call up from the US national team. Today, he has been linked to Real Madrid. I feel like a proud poppa.

Granted, news of Real’s interest in Altidore comes from the Spanish daily AS, which seemingly provides an endless supply of unconfirmed rumors that never come true, but nevertheless it is exciting to see a young player from MLS being mentioned in the same breath as one of the world’s big clubs. It is a recognition of his talent and a recognition that talent can come from just about anywhere in the world, even from a league that is merely a blip on some people’s radar.

At the same time as an unofficial father, I find it a bit concerning. Concerning in the sense that Altidore could be scooped up by Real Madrid and then lost in the shuffle, buried in the depth charts behind talented forwards from all over the globe. A kid that young needs to play and I don’t see that happening if he transfers to Real Madrid this very moment. You could argue that just by being part of their club and by playing with their reserve team he will develop quicker than he would if he stayed in MLS, but I’ve always believed that a player needs to see first team action or eventually they will grow frustrated.

A smaller club with more of an immediate opportunity might be the better move for Altidore, but damn, Real Madrid, that is pretty freaking exciting even if it means he’ll have to get hitched soon.

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Category: MLS, Spain La Liga, World Football

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NMY

I dont think this idea of him going to Real makes any sense. if Altidore went to Real Madrid, he would never play for Castilla (the reserve team), as Real would never sign American (or foreign) players to play for Castilla. The B teams in Spain are usually for local homegrown players or players that they poached at a much earlier age, say 13. Non-EU players wouldn't be allowed to play in Segunda B anyways. As well, Altidore would never get a match for Real, at least not now anyways. He'd probably barely get any matches for "second grade teams" like Sevilla or Atletico, to tell the truth. My guess is, he'll end up in some crap Premier league club battling relegation every year.
paul

he has to prove he can play in the big games. i think he is still too young to know for sure. even if he did go to a big club like that, he wouldn't see real playing time for another year or two. that would not be good for him as a young player still learning. what would happen is he would end up on loan for some rubish club that don't have his best intrests in mind and he would get lost in all of the player options real madrid already have. he should go to a second grade team like sevilla or atletico.
ETucker

I am torn.

On the one hand, Jozy could go to a UEFA Cup team in France, Holland, or Portugal, where he would get lots of first team action with very little media scrutiny.

However, the chance to train daily with Real Madrid and to learn from Ruud Van Nistelrooy (who is a great goalscorer, even if his holdup play leaves something to be desired) would be fantastic.

Bottom line is this: Jozy needs to go to Europe at the next available chance with a good club (NOT Derby or any other bottom dwellers...playing with bad players in a good league does not make you better). I love and follow MLS, but if he turns down clubs, he may not get another look (Remember Eddie Johnson and Benfica?).
Corey

Castilla, Real's junior team which doubles as the reserves, is in the Segunda C, which is basically a regional league. They dropped out of the Segunda A last year because half of the team was injured or was called up to the first team (De La Red, Torres, Mata and Adrian) while some important players like Balboa and Soldado were on loan. The current Castilla squad is not the best Real has ever had, and it wont be in the future based on the EPL Teams picking off our 15 year olds. But, Altidore would not be in the Castilla team unless he did not make the playing squad for a match. Real would like him to shadow Ruud for two years, so he would be training with the first team and making the occasional appearance, but definately playing most of his games with Castilla. As the Real Madrid writer is resident, I speak for all Real fans when I say this is a good move, especially with Schuster on board.
bluemeanies

If he is going to a big CL club better in Spain, Italy or Germany than England. In England the reserves are either loaned out or get very few games but the other three leagues have their 'b' teams in the lower leagues. It wouldn't be horrible for him to play a while in La Liga B.
Chris Murphy

It would help boost the MLS' profile in the EU. So that is a definite plus. And the training he would get would be fantastic, but I feel he would spend all of him time in the B squad which is way down, I think.