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Hyndman signs extension with Fulham

EmersonHyndmanFulham1 (FulhamFC)

By DAN KARELL

After a season starring for the Fulham Under-18’s, Emerson Hyndman has been rewarded by the club for all his work.

The grandson of FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman has signed a contract extension through the end of June 2016, just three months after signing his first professional contract with the club. The diminutive (5-foot-3 inch) midfielder has played with the U.S. Under-15s and Under-17s in the past, though wasn’t part of the failed qualifying effort for the Under-17 World Cup.

Hyndman joined the Fulham Academy in 2011, leaving his hometown of Dallas and the FC Dallas youth scheme behind. The 17-year old made his return to Dallas last March, playing with Fulham in the Dallas Cup.

This past season, Fulham Under-18s won their second consecutive U-18 Premier League title, defeating Reading in the final, 3-0. Hyndman had one assist in the final.

What do you think of this news? Do you see Hyndman as a future star on the U.S. Under-20s?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. His height doesn’t bother me. He won’t be winning any balls in the air, obviously, but if he’s agile enough he can easily beat bigger players to the ball on the bounce, and when he’s on the ball he’s apt to face forward and (do that thing where he kicks the ball to teammates, a word that for some reason is blocked by the mod software on this blog). It’s not as if every player needs to be plowing through defenders in the box or rising up on set pieces.

    This is actually what held US Soccer back for so many years–this idea that soccer is about being bigger, stronger, and faster than your opponents. Sure any or all of those things might help you in a 1v1 fight for the ball, but the game is about movement and understanding. A small player, if they’re quick and mentally sharp, can run right by a bigger player, or (do that thing) around him, and take his size out of the game completely. I wouldn’t want a whole team of littler “waterbug” type players, but we’ll never get better unless we see the whole game and learn to cultivate a game that takes advantage of more than physical size and strength.

    That said, let’s not put unfair expectations on him. He’s developing in a youth system, let’s not worry about giving him the “approve” or “reject” stamp just yet.

    Reply
  2. His height doesn’t bother me. He won’t be winning any balls in the air, obviously, but if he’s agile enough he can easily beat bigger players to the ball on the bounce, and when he’s on the ball he’s apt to face forward and (do that thing where he kicks the ball to teammates, a word that for some reason is blocked by the mod software on this blog). It’s not as if every player needs to be plowing through defenders in the box or rising up on set pieces.

    This is actually what held US Soccer back for so many years–this idea that soccer is about being bigger, stronger, and faster than your opponents. Sure any or all of those things might help you in a 1v1 fight for the ball, but the game is about movement and understanding. A small player, if they’re quick and mentally sharp, can run right by a bigger player, or pass around him, and take his size out of the game completely. I wouldn’t want a whole team of littler “waterbug” type players, but we’ll never get better unless we see the whole game and learn to cultivate a game that takes advantage of more than physical size and strength.

    That said, let’s not put unfair expectations on him. He’s developing in a youth system, let’s not worry about giving him the “approve” or “reject” stamp just yet.

    Reply
  3. Fulham Football Club U-18s page lists him at 5’4 and 116 lbs. 5% and 10% percentiles for 17 year-olds. Jeez. I do hope that he gains a bit back!

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  4. RSL super sub, Joao Plata is 5’3′
    USMNT LB Corey Ashe is 5’4′ (this is what Emerson is listed at according to Fulham)
    One of the greatest free kick takers and LBs in history, Roberto Carlos was 5’6′

    He will be fine if he is technically gifted, has a good first touch and decent speed/positioning…

    BTW, Fulham has one of the best academies in England, and this kid got a3 yr contract extension. He has already shown more than most 17yr olds in the world…

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  5. Dude better take some growth hormones, or have that radical leg surgery where they break your legs so you grow taller.

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    • He is 5’3 and only 17 years old. Most men don’t stop growing until their 20s. He needs a few more inches and he’ll be just fine.

      Xavi, Iniesta and Messi are all 5’7. Tall midfielders are actually quite rare as there is little need for height in the middle of the park.

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      • On average, men stop growing around 21-22. I’ve known people who had unusually late growth spurts though, including one who was really short (5’1″) and suddenly grew 5 inches at 24-25.

    • Exactly, a 5’3″ teenager’s career is over. If Barcelona was smart, they would have done the same thing with 5’7″ Messi.

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      • The kid is good as a 5’3 17 year old. Cool beans bros. But if he doesn’t sprout up, then he isn’t going to go anywhere. If he was 5’3 and considered the best 17 year old in the country, playing for the best youth team, then it’s a different story.

        But a 17 year old who stood in for Frodo Baggins in last year’s blockbuster movie “The Hobbit”, just doesn’t impress me.

        Now who’s hungry?

      • Muggsy Bogues didn’t play professional soccer Reeses Pieces. So you’re argument, while I do understand the point you were trying to make, is invalid because you just compared two different athletes in two different sports.

        But if that was too hard to follow, let me hold your hand on the swings as I break it down for you: You just compared apples to oranges.

        BOOM SON

      • Actually, his argument is valid because basketball is a sport where height matters more than soccer. Additionally, being two inches shorter than one of the best players of all time (maradona is 5’5) with time to grow another inch or two is fine with me.

      • Also worth noting is that, if Emerson Hyndman were to sign with a MLS team right now, he wouldn’t be the shortest player in the league. That would be 5’2″ Joao Plata. He’s also taller than Paul Dougherty, who had a few seasons with the Tampa Bay Mutiny and the Metrostars in the late 90s and a few years later played a starring role in the USL Pittsburgh Riverhounds’ US Open Cup run.

    • You must be using sarcasm because I can’t believe someone could be this astonishingly ignorant. Just in case: you ever heard of Sebastian Giovinco? He only plays for the Italian National Team and starts for Juventus. And depending on the source, he’s stands anywhere from ‘5″3 to ‘5″5.

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      • Lol yeah I’m being sarcastic lol. But some people treat this comment section like a try out for a journalism job. All you negative nancy’s can suck it

  6. The kid is small but sure has game – technically gifted and very talented. Check out this clip where he scored a hat trick for Fulham’s U18 team last fall.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOklKbSHrqE
    He’s the smallest one out there (#6 in white). There is a good chance he is your central midfielder for the US in the 2015 U20 World Cup in New Zealand.

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  7. WOW. Messi is a giant (5’7″) compared to this cat! Well, you heard it here first:

    Let’s start calling him “the American Messi” cuz every other soccer nation has one.

    😉 (kidding! But I love how easily the American hype machine starts). Regardless, good luck to him!

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  8. His grandpa’s an MLS coach, seems like he wouldn’t be passed over for lack of connections to US Soccer. Just a guess, but I’d bet there were other reasons he wasn’t on the US U-17s.

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  9. Emo will be a star. He has good soccer and athletic ability in his bloodline and a great mind for the game. Had some trouble getting around the field but once he conquers that problem he will be fine.
    He is great at piecing passes together and playing through balls to the forwards. He and Michael Bradley are two examples of kids who’s technique is good from doing repetitive training and being in great pickup games as youngsters. Wish him the best, great kid.

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    • Size doesn’t matter. A 1,000+ players will tell you that. Every team has their little person. Glad to see us represent too!

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      • Size definitely matters at the pro level (not your travel team to college level as much). Those little guys can be great players but they are for the most part at a disadvantage. Or they turn their small size into an advantage (like Messi and Maradona who are built with incredible centers of gravity). But those cases are obviously rare. If you’re very small, you have to make up for it in other areas.

        It’s not impossible to be very small and be a good pro but it’s not “size doesn’t matter”.

  10. Please stop telling me stuff like that–please.

    I don’t want to know that the starting midfielder of the EPL U-17 champions didn’t make our failed U17 squad over some highschool kid the coach’s friend knows.

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    • Seriously.. It else I’d line to know how/why that happened. They agreed to let him keep playing for his club?

      He better be a xavi type at that height.

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      • One real point is that CONCACAF U17 qualifying isn’t on the FIFA calendar. Fulham had no obligation to release him.

    • ehhhhh the English youth system is not that impressive. He wasnt going to start over Junior Flores whos at a better team in Dortmund now so they let him stay at Fulham

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      • Junior Flores was benched in the loss that knocked us out.

        He was benched for Tyler Turner–a defender from some regional team called South Central Premier–who was moved into the midfield.

      • It doesnt matter what happened during the tournament. The staff thought he wasnt going to start over Flores so they left him in England per Fulham’s request instead of flying him over here. In the end it doesnt really matter. The U17’s in this country are such a cluster f*ck. Most of the kids that stand out at this level dont amount to much

      • Tyler Turner is more than just some guy from South Central (which is a USDA club). He was a standout with Emo on the U15 National team and continued to develop and produce after that. He was a legitimate youth national team player.

  11. Hold on. He’s 5’3″!!!! I’ve read about him before, but he must be really talented to be playing at this level at that height. Let’s hope he’s not done growing.

    Reply

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