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soccer retard
| playername = Freddy uda
| image = [[Image:FreddyAdu 20060614.jpg|200px]]
| fullname = flipper ofer nuber
| dateofbirth = {{birth date and age|mf=yes|1989|6|2}}
| cityofbirth = [[Tema]]
| countryofbirth = [[Ghana]]
| height = {{height|ft=5|in=8}}
| currentclub = [[AS Monaco FC|AS Monaco]]
| position = [[Attacking midfielder]] / [[Midfielder|Winger]] / [[striker|Forward]]
| clubnumber = 11<!--30-->
| youthyears = 2002&ndash;2003
| youthclubs = [[IMG Soccer Academy]]
| years = 2004&ndash;2006<br />2006&ndash;2007<br />2007&ndash;<br />2008&ndash;
| clubs = [[D.C. United]]<br />[[Real Salt Lake]]<br />[[S.L. Benfica|Benfica]]<br />→ [[AS Monaco FC|AS Monaco]] (loan)
| caps(goals) = 87 (11)<br />11 {{0}}(2)<br />11 {{0}}(2)<br />{{0}}9 {{0}}(0)
| nationalyears = 2002&ndash;2003<br>2003&ndash;<br />2008&ndash;<br />2006&ndash;
| nationalteam = [[United_States U-17 men's national soccer team|United States U-17]]<br>[[United States U-20 men's national soccer team|United States U-20]]<br />[[United States U-23 men's national soccer team|United States U-23]]<br />[[United States men's national football team|United States]]
| nationalcaps(goals) = {{0}}? (16)<br>33 (16)<br />{{0}}5 {{0}}(4)<br />12 {{0}}(1)
| pcupdate = 7 December 2008
| ntupdate = 19 November 2008
}}
'''Fredua Koranteng "Freddy" Adu''' (born June 2, 1989 in [[Tema]], [[Ghana]]) is an American [[football]] ([[Soccer]]) [[striker|forward]] or [[attacking midfielder]]. He plays for [[AS Monaco FC|AS Monaco]] on loan from [[S.L. Benfica]].

==Childhood==
Adu grew up in the port city of Tema, where he played football against men three times his age. <ref name="si2003">{{cite news | first=Grant | last=Wahl | url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/si_online/news/2003/03/03/freddy/ | work=[[Sports Illustrated]] | title=Who's Next? Freddy Adu At 13, America's soccer prodigy has the world at his feet | date=3 March 2003 | accessdate=11 May 2008}}</ref> When he was eight, his mother won the [[Diversity Immigrant Visa|Green Card Lottery]], and he and his family moved to the Rockville, MD area and attended Sequoyah Elementary School, and in 2003 he became a U.S. citizen. Soon after arriving in the United States, he was discovered by a local association football coach and began playing with boys several years older. Adu attended [[The Heights School]], a private school in [[Potomac, Maryland|Potomac]], [[Maryland]], for several years.<ref name="si2003"/> At the age of twelve Adu helped the Heights School's varsity soccer team win the Maryland state championship in the fall of 2001 in a sudden-death penalty kick finish that saw him injured in the last two minutes of play. Adu had skipped two grades, jumping from 7th to 9th, thus qualifying for varsity at such a young age.

While playing with the U.S. Olympic Development Program in an under-14 tournament against the youth squads of such traditionally strong Italian teams as [[SS Lazio|Lazio]] of Rome and Turin’s [[Juventus]], Freddy’s team won the competition, he led the tournament in scoring, and he was named MVP.<ref name="si2003"/><ref>{{cite news | work=[[The Washington Post]] | url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A59390-2001Aug24 | title=A 12-Year-Old's Amazing Feat | date=24 August 2001 | last=La Canfora | first=Jason | pages=A01}}</ref> Adu was noticed by Italian football clubs, including [[F.C. Internazionale Milano|Inter Milan]], who discussed a six-figure offer for him that was turned down by his mother on the advice of his agents. He was only 10 years old at that time.

At age 12 in January 2002, Adu joined the [[IMG Soccer Academy]], [[United States Soccer Federation|U.S. Soccer's]] full-time residency program in [[Bradenton, Florida|Bradenton]], [[Florida]]. He made his professional debut in [[Major League Soccer]] in early 2004, at just 14 years of age.

==Professional career==
===Signing with the MLS===
At the age of 14, Adu became the youngest American athlete in over 100 years to sign a major league pro contract in any team sport when he was chosen by [[DC United]] as the number one overall pick in the [[2004 MLS SuperDraft]]. He won the [[MLS Cup]] title with them later that same year. In order to allow Adu to play close to home, MLS assigned him to [[D.C. United]] on November 18, 2003, working a deal with the [[FC Dallas|Dallas Burn]], who owned the top pick in the [[2004 MLS SuperDraft]]. Dallas was compensated with a player allocation. Having already signed with D.C. United, Adu effectively became the first player selected in that draft, two months before it officially took place. D.C. United had previously signed American youngsters [[Bobby Convey]] in 2000, aged 16, and [[Santino Quaranta]] in 2001 at 16 years and four months — each at the time the youngest MLS player.

===D.C United===
[[File:Freddy Adu in action.jpg|thumb|Adu in action against [[Charleston Battery]] in 2006]]
On April 3, Adu came on in United's first game of the 2004 season against the [[San Jose Earthquakes]] as a second-half substitute, making him the youngest player to appear in United States professional sports since 1887 (the next youngest was fifteen-year-old [[Joe Nuxhall]], who played [[Major League Baseball]] in [[Cincinnati, Ohio|Cincinnati]] in 1944). On April 17, at the age of 14, Adu scored his first professional goal in the 75th minute of a 3-2 away loss against the [[MetroStars]]. He became the youngest player in MLS History ever to score a goal. Although, a footnote on that record is that he had also scored for DC United in an earlier, preseason tournament, the [[Carolina Challenge Cup 2004]], on March 20 against the [[United Soccer Leagues]] club [[Charleston Battery]]).

In his first season as a pro, Adu finished the year with five goals and three assists, while playing in all 30 regular season games. Although briefly a starter, Adu was relegated to a substitute when D.C. United acquired central midfielder [[Christian Gómez]] mid-season, and it was in this role that he appeared in United's [[MLS Cup]] victory. He played in three of DC's four playoff games, coming off the bench each time; he tallied one assist in the postseason.

Adu was criticized from a number of different angles in his first season as a professional. Some soccer commentators have suggested that Adu was too young to be playing professionally and that he needed more time to develop mentally and physically amongst players his own age. In his second season, he was suspended for one game<ref>{{cite news | date=2005-10-21 | url=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/soccer/mls/2005-10-21-united-fire_x.htm | title= Fire, Adu-less United go scoreless in playoffs opener | publisher=usatoday.com | accessdate=2007-07-07}}</ref> after he complained about his playing time in the media.<ref>{{cite news | date=2005-10-18 | url=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/soccer/mls/united/2005-10-18-adu-frustration_x.htm | title= Upset over playing time, Adu hints at leaving United | publisher=usatoday.com | accessdate=2007-07-07}}</ref> However, his first two years in MLS were also punctuated by notable accomplishments, including being awarded player of the week and goal of the week multiple times. Continued development, especially of his defensive skills, helped Adu become a starting midfielder during the 2006 season. In addition, Adu had been chosen to take spot kicks during DC United's two penalty shootouts and did not miss.<ref>{{cite news | date=2005-05-11 | url=http://dcunited.mlsnet.com/MLS/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20050511&content_id=29379&vkey=news_dcu&fext=.jsp&team=dcu | title=Looking back: Unforgettable in every way | publisher=mlsnet.com | accessdate=2006-09-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | date=2005-08-24 | url=http://fc.dallas.mlsnet.com/MLS/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20050824&content_id=40892&vkey=news_fcd&fext=.jsp&team=fcd | title=FC Dallas use shootout to boot out D.C. | publisher=mlsnet.com | accessdate=2006-09-27}}</ref> He was selected to the MLS All-Star team twice, once as a commissioner's choice and once as the coach's. He was selected to the MLS 2006 semifinals [http://www.socceramerica.com/article.asp?Art_ID=562138071 Best XI] by SoccerAmerica magazine. In 2005 he was nominated for FIFPRO Young player of the year.<ref>{{cite news | date=2005-08-18 | url=http://www.fifpro.org/index.php?mod=one&id=14287 | title=FIFPro Young Player Award nominations announced | publisher=fifpro.org | accessdate=2007-05-16}}</ref>

===Real Salt Lake===
On December 11, 2006, D.C. United traded Adu and goalkeeper [[Nick Rimando]] to Real Salt Lake in exchange for a [[Allocation (MLS)|major allocation]], goalkeeper [[Jay Nolly]], and future considerations.<ref name = "rsl_acq">{{cite news | date = 2006-12-11 | url = http://real.saltlake.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20061211&content_id=80226&vkey=pr_rsl&fext=.jsp&team=t121 | accessdate = 2006-12-12 | title = Ready for Freddy! Real Salt Lake acquires teen phenom Freddy Adu from D.C. United | publisher = mlsnet.com}}</ref> Adu made his debut for Real Salt Lake on April 7, 2007, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2-2 draw with [[FC Dallas]].<ref>{{cite news | date=2007-04-07 | url=http://web.mlsnet.com/scoreboard/game.jsp?match=04072007_DALRSL | title=Match Tracker: FC Dallas v. Real Salt Lake | publisher=mlsnet.com | accessdate=2007-04-12}}</ref> He scored his first goal for the club on May 20, 2007, converting a [[penalty kick]] in the 68th minute of a 2-1 loss to [[FC Dallas]].<ref>{{cite news | date=2007-05-20 | url=http://www.mlsnet.com/scoreboard/game.jsp?match=05202007_RSLDAL | title=Match Tracker: Real Salt Lake v. FC Dallas | publisher=mlsnet.com | accessdate=2007-05-20}}</ref> Adu went on to score his second goal with Salt Lake from another penalty in a 1-1 draw in an exhibition against [[Boca Juniors]].<ref>{{cite web | title=Freddy Adu still in Benfica's sights | url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2007/07/25/mls-soccer-rsl-adu.html | date=25 July 2007 | work=[[CBC.ca]] | publisher=[[Associated Press|AP]] | accessdate=17 December 2008}}</ref> Adu was also captain of the [[United States U-20 men's national soccer team|U-20 United States men's national team]] in the [[2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup]]. After the conclusion of that tournament, [[S.L. Benfica|Benfica]] of the [[BWINLIGA|Portuguese Liga]] secured Adu's rights from MLS for a transfer fee of [[United States dollar|US$]]2 million.

===S.L. Benfica===
On July 28, 2007, Adu opted out of playing for Real in their regular-season match, and later that day, boarded a plane to Portugal to negotiate with [[S.L. Benfica|Benfica]]. <ref>[http://www.mlsnet.com/news/mls_news.jsp?ymd=20070730&content_id=109014&vkey=news_mls&fext=.jsp Major League Soccer: News: Article<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> On Monday, July 30, Benfica issued an official statement announcing that Adu had been transferred to their club.<ref>http://web3.cmvm.pt/sdi2004/emitentes/docs/FR14469.pdf</ref> The following day, the signing was completed and he trained with the team in [[Lisbon]].<ref>[http://sdmlsproject.com/adulationbenfica.html Adu is going, going,...GONE ! (to Portugal)]</ref>

On August 14, 2007, Adu made his debut with Benfica against [[FC Copenhagen]] in a [[UEFA Champions League]] qualifying match, coming into the game in the 37th minute as a substitute. It was reported<ref>[http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news?slug=ro-stockreport090407&prov=yhoo&type=lgns The soccer stock report - World Soccer - Yahoo! Sports<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> that Benfica's coaching staff was impressed with Adu's skills and attitude in training and were planning to increase the young American's exposure during the autumn.

However, after a promising start (3 goals scored in the first half of the season), he failed to settle in a regular place in the team, with only 11 games played in the whole season.

===AS Monaco===

In July 2008, Adu joined French club [[AS Monaco FC|AS Monaco]] on a season-long loan, with an option to join the [[Ligue 1]] club permanently at the end of the loan.

==International career==
Adu has played for the United States in five international youth tournaments: the 2003 [[FIFA U-17 World Cup|FIFA U-17 World Championship]] in Finland, the [[2003 FIFA World Youth Championship]] in the [[United Arab Emirates]], the [[2005 FIFA World Youth Championship]] in the Netherlands, the [[2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup]] in Canada, and the [[2008 Summer Olympics]]. and now plays for the [[United States under-23 men's national soccer team|United States Under-23]] and [[United States men's national soccer team|senior men's]] national teams.

Adu was called into the national team's training camp by coach [[Bruce Arena]] in January 2006 for a [[Exhibition (sport)|friendly match]] against [[Canada men's national soccer team|Canada]]. Adu was capped in that game on January 22, becoming the youngest player to debut with the U.S. national team when he replaced an injured [[Eddie Johnson (American soccer player)|Eddie Johnson]] in the 81st minute at the [[University of San Diego]]'s [[Torero Stadium]] in [[San Diego, California|San Diego]], [[California]].

In January 2007 Adu captained the [[United States U-20 men's national soccer team|United States U-20 men's national team]] as it qualified for the [[2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup]] in Canada. By playing in the 2007 tournament finals, held from June to July, Adu became only the second player in the world to play in three [[FIFA U-20 World Cup]]s.<ref>[http://www.fifa.com/u20worldcup/news/newsid=545987.html#pato+adu FIFA.com - Pato and Adu on top<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> On July 3, 2007, Adu scored a [[hat-trick]] in USA's 6-1 victory over [[Poland u-20 national football team|Poland]] in the group stage of the tournament. This accomplishment made him the first player to ever score a hat trick in both the U-20 and [[FIFA U-17 World Cup|U-17 World Cups]]<ref>[http://fifa.com/u20worldcup/news/newsid=544785.html#goal+feast FIFA.com - Goal feast in the east<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>. In the following 2-1 victory over [[Brazil national football team|Brazil]] Adu assisted on both USA goals by [[Jozy Altidore]].<ref>[http://www.ussoccer.com/articles/print.jsp_1409031.html The Official Site of U.S. Soccer<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

Adu was invited by the general secretary of FIFA to participate in the [[FIFA World Cup]] Preliminary Draw as the North American representative on November 25, 2007, in [[Durban, South Africa|Durban]], South Africa. However, the ceremony conflicted with his Benfica game schedule and he was not able to attend.<ref>[http://freddyadu.com/athletestyle/wpmu/freddyadunews/2007/11/09/congratulations-freddy/ Wasserman Media Group<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

Adu made his first start for the senior international team in a friendly against [[South Africa National Football Team|South Africa]] on November 17, 2007.

Adu helped lead the [[United States U-23 men's national soccer team|U-23 men's national team]] in its [[2008 CONCACAF Men's Pre-Olympic Tournament|campaign to qualify]] for the [[2008 Summer Olympics]] in [[Beijing, China|Beijing]], China. He scored two goals from free kicks in the USA's 3-0 win over [[Canada men's national soccer team|Canada]] in the semifinals of the tournament, which ultimately qualified them for the Olympics along with [[Honduras national football team|Honduras]]. He scored four goals in total in the three games in which he played, leading all players in scoring, and was selected to the tournament Best XI.<ref>[http://www.concacaf.com/view_article.asp?id=4128 Concacaf<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

Adu appeared as a substitute in a international friendly against [[England national football team|England]] on May 28, 2008, which resulted in a 2-0 loss. The following week, on June 4, Adu started against [[Spain national football team|Spain]] in a game the US lost 1-0. Adu then appeared as a substitute in the USA's game against [[Argentina national football team|Argentina]] at [[Giants Stadium]]. Adu played in both legs of the [[2010 FIFA World Cup qualification - CONCACAF Second Round|2nd round qualifiers]] for the [[2010 FIFA World Cup|2010 World Cup]] against [[Barbados national football team|Barbados]] on June 8 and June 22, 2008, starting in the latter. He provided the assist on [[Eddie Lewis]]' goal, the lone goal in the 2nd leg of the United States 1-0 victory (9-0 aggregate) in [[Barbados]].

On July 15, 2008, Adu was named to the 18-man squad that represented the [[United States under-23 men's national soccer team|United States]] in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.<ref name=FootballMen'sRoster>[http://www.ussoccer.com/articles/viewArticle.jsp_7962632.html 2008 U.S. Olympic Men's Soccer Team]</ref> Adu played in the first two games of group play against [[Japan national football team|Japan]] and [[Netherlands national under-21 football team|Netherlands]]. He assisted on a [[Sacha Kljestan]] goal in the Netherlands match, but he, as well as teammate [[Michael Bradley]], was then suspended for the final game of group play against [[Nigeria national football team|Nigeria]] after each player earned his second [[Penalty card|yellow card]] of group play late in the Netherlands match.<ref>{{cite web | title=U.S. Ties Netherlands 2-2 Forcing Pivotal Match Wednesday Against Nigeria | url=http://www.ussoccer.com/articles/viewArticle.jsp_8814594.html | date=2008-08-10 | work=[[U.S. Soccer]] | accessdate=2008-09-04}}</ref> The US team was eliminated from the Olympics after falling to Nigeria.<ref>{{cite web | title=Down to 10 Men After Three Minutes, Valiant U.S. Effort Falls Short as 2-1 Loss to Nigeria Knocks Them Out of 2008 Olympics | url=http://www.ussoccer.com/articles/viewArticle.jsp_8945664.html | work=[[United States Soccer Federation|USSoccer.com]] | date=2008-08-13 | accessdate=2008-09-04}}</ref>

Adu scored his first international goal as a member of the full US National squad on a free kick in a November 19, 2008 World Cup qualifier against Guatemala.

===International goals===
<!---DO NOT DELETE REPEAT ENTRIES!!! REPEAT ENTRIES REPRESENT SCORING MULTIPLE GOALS IN A GAME!!!--->
{| class="wikitable"
! # !! Date !! Venue !! Opponent !! Score !! Result !! Competition
|-
| 1. || 19 Nov 2008 || {{flagicon|USA}} [[Dick's Sporting Goods Park]], [[Commerce City, Colorado|Commerce City]], [[Colorado]] || {{fb|GUA}} || 2-0 || 2-0 || [[2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF)|2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifying]]
|}

==Titles and awards==
===With DC United (2004-2006)===
*[[MLS Cup]] Champions 2004
*[[MLS Supporter's Shield]] 2006
*[[MLS All-Star 2004]]
*[[MLS All-Star 2006]]

==Career statistics==
{{Football player statistics 1|NN}}
{{Football player statistics 2|USA|NN}}
|-
|[[2004 Major League Soccer season|2004]]||rowspan="3"|[[D.C. United]]||rowspan="4"|[[Major League Soccer]]||30||5||||||||
|-
|[[2005 Major League Soccer season|2005]]||25||4||||||||
|-
|[[2006 Major League Soccer season|2006]]||32||2||||||||
|-
|[[2007 Major League Soccer season|2007]]||[[Real Salt Lake]]||11||2||||||||
{{Football player statistics 2|POR|NN}}
|-
|[[Portuguese Liga 2007-08|2007-08]]||[[S.L. Benfica|Benfica]]||[[Portuguese Liga]]||11||2||6||3||17||5
{{Football player statistics 2|FRA|NN}}
|-
|[[Ligue 1 2008-09|2008-09]]||[[AS Monaco FC|Monaco]]||[[Ligue 1]]||9||0||||||||
{{Football player statistics 3|3|USA}}98||13||||||||
{{Football player statistics 4|POR}}11||2||6||3||17||5
{{Football player statistics 4|FRA}}9|0|||||||||
{{Football player statistics 5}}109||15||||||||
|}

==Personal life==
Adu dated American pop/R&B singer [[JoJo (singer)|JoJo]] from May 2005 until September 2006 <ref>{{cite news | date=2006-06-02 | url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/01/AR2006060102250.html | title=Freddy Adu Celebrates a Sweet 17 | publisher=[[Washington Post]] | author = Argetsinger A, Roberts R | page = C03 | accessdate=2006-11-06}}</ref> A ''Washington Post'' article in November 2006 reported that the couple split after one year. JoJo mentioned on [[American Top 40]] with [[Ryan Seacrest]] that she and Adu were still good friends.<ref name="split"> {{cite news | title = Kramer's Tirade, Adding Insult to Inaccuracy. Love,etc. | author = Argetsinger A, Roberts R | publisher = ''The Washington Post'' | url = http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/21/AR2006112101886.html?nav=rss_opinion/columns | date = 2006-11-22 | accessdate = January 23}}</ref> Adu is also sponsored by [[Nike, Inc.|Nike]] [[Nike Total 90|Total 90]]. Adu's younger brother, Fro Adu, currently plays soccer for [[George Mason University]].<ref>{{ cite web | url=http://gomason.cstv.com/sports/m-soccer/mtt/adu_fro00.html | title=Player Bio: Fro Adu :: Men's Soccer | work=[[George Mason Patriots]] | publisher=[[CBS College Sports Network]]}}</ref>

Adu's favorite team as a child was [[Tottenham Hotspur]], and he has expressed a desire to join the team in the future.<ref>{{Citation |last=Bailey |first=Richard |title=Adu reveals Spurs wish |url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_4589542,00.html# |publisher=[[Sky Sports]] |date=2008-12-04 |accessdate=2008-12-04}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [http://ussoccer.com/bio/index.jsp_8590.html Bio on USSoccer.com]

{{United States squad 2008 Summer Olympics}}
{{AS Monaco FC squad}}
<!--{{SL Benfica Squad}}-->

{{Persondata
|NAME=Adu, Freddy
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
|SHORT DESCRIPTION=Footballer
|DATE OF BIRTH=June 2, 1989
|PLACE OF BIRTH=[[Tema]], [[Ghana]]
|DATE OF DEATH=
|PLACE OF DEATH=
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adu, Freddy}}
[[Category:1989 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States]]
[[Category:Ghanaian-Americans]]
[[Category:Tema]]
[[Category:American soccer players]]
[[Category:D.C. United players]]
[[Category:Major League Soccer players]]
[[Category:Real Salt Lake players]]
[[Category:S.L. Benfica footballers]]
[[Category:Portuguese Liga footballers|Portuguese Liga footballers]]
[[Category:Expatriate footballers in Portugal]]
[[Category:AS Monaco FC players]]
[[Category:Ligue 1 players]]
[[Category:Expatriate footballers in Monaco]]
[[Category:United States men's international soccer players]]
[[Category:Footballers at the 2008 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic soccer players of the United States]]

[[de:Freddy Adu]]
[[es:Freddy Adu]]
[[fr:Freddy Adu]]
[[ko:프레디 아두]]
[[hr:Freddy Adu]]
[[is:Freddy Adu]]
[[it:Freddy Adu]]
[[he:פרדי אדו]]
[[nl:Freddy Adu]]
[[ja:フレディー・アドゥー]]
[[no:Freddy Adu]]
[[pl:Freddy Adu]]
[[pt:Freddy Adu]]
[[ru:Аду, Фредди]]
[[simple:Freddy Adu]]
[[fi:Freddy Adu]]
[[sv:Freddy Adu]]
[[tr:Freddy Adu]]
[[zh:弗雷迪·阿杜]]

Revision as of 18:32, 28 January 2009