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Report: Bahia choose not to renew Adu’s contract

Freddy Adu Bahia (Bahia)

By FRANCO PANIZO

Freddy Adu’s time in Brazil is reportedly set to come to a close, leaving the midfielder to ponder where he will head next.

Adu will not have his contract renewed by Bahia at the end of the season and will become a free agent, according to a report out of Brazil. The 24-year-old’s current deal is set to expire in December, but Bahia have already made the decision to not bring him back, citing Adu’s “technical deficiency.”

Bahia director of football Anderson Barros stated in the report that Adu is dedicated to his craft, got along with his teammates, and had no problems off the field. But Barros added that Adu was not rated as highly as other Bahia players, which is why he struggled to see the field for the Brazilian club.

Adu joined Bahia after leaving the Philadelphia Union in April, but has been used seldomly since. The creative midfielder, with 17 U.S. Men’s National Team caps to his name, played a combined 155 minutes in seven appearances across all competitions for Bahia.

Once his contract expires, Adu will be free to sign with any team interested in acquiring him. His next club will mark his 10th different stop since turning pro at the tender age of 14 back in 2004, when he signed with MLS and D.C. United.

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What do you make of this development? Surprised that Adu could not break into Bahia’s lineup? Where should Adu head to next?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

    • Spot on …

      Not my opinion, just from what I’ve heard from reliable sources.

      1) I’m a Benefica supporter and am quite close to the gent that runs the US supporters group. Adu was constantly late for sessions and he had a rep as a party guy in Portugal. He did not practice as a pro.

      2) In Greece, he was let go because he constantly missed team buses / flights and had a generally poor attitude in practices.

      3) I used to play for Delco in Philly and know many in the Union Academy. It was common knowledge that Adu had a terrible work rate. He’d do something nifty in training and then jog for 20 straight minutes.

      In general, look at his body from his when he played at the U20 Wcup to know. He gained weight … and looks top heavy. His legs look completely undefined now. At the U20s, he was quick and full of energy … dribbling circles around the Brazilians. Now, he ZERO pace, very average quickness and no endurance.

      If he doesn’t do a complete 180 when it comes to being a true pro, he’s done. Just my two cents …

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  1. What position did Adu play at for Bahia? On the wing? Look at his strengths and weaknesses: he is not very fast, not very defensive, but can pick pocket players, so it that defense too? He has vision in passing and shooting. He plays with skill at speed. Hmm….sounds like a forward in a two forward system or an attacking midfielder just behind the forward(s) and let him poach. Put him on the wing with no speed and we have a more skillful version of Zusi. Adu fits, but at the right position: forward or withdrawn forward.

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  2. I think, perhaps Freddy wasn’t 14 when he said he was 14 and he may have been several years older. Which could explain why his dominance as a youth never translated to senior level play.

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  3. First, he was over-hyped in the sense that a lot of fans were expecting him to be the next Pele or some great world player. That’s over-hype. But he was clearly exceptionally skilled.

    Second, he has always had huge holes in his game that he’s never filled. He wants to play for glory clubs in glory leagues but isn’t willing to pay the price necessary to do that, or even be successful in modest leagues.

    Third, the argument that he’s being penalized for not being a defender or willing to get “stuck in” misses a point: if you’re going to be a Valderama/Riquelme kind of A-mid (i.e.: not a great athlete, not fast, no ball-winner, no defense) then you need to be a difference-maker as an a-mid. Adu has always been an A-mid or player who can hit some sublimely weighted balls, is unselfish, has nice skills….but drifts in and out of games–just disappearing for 20 minutes at a time (a huge problem if you’re supposed to be an A-mid), makes terrible decisions tactically (again, bad news if your’e supposed to be an A-mid), is mediocre at regulating the pace of the match (again, a problem if you’re an a-mid). And yeah, his conditioning has always been such that he can’t give you 90 strong minutes at an international level. In short, he’s a mediocre A-mid even if all you ask him to do is be around the ball and create with it. And there’s no way you’d really want to play him at any other position other than A-mid.

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  4. He should go back to DC United as a replacement for DeRo. DC United is the team that ruined him in the first place. He should have gone to A/C Milan academy instead of signing with DC. Back then DC United had no proper structure for a 16 year old pro.( I think Santino Quaranta would agree) Consider a reunion a penance for both club and player.

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    • ‘DC United is the team that ruined him in the first place.’

      false. if anybody ‘ruined’ him, it was mls, for forcing dc united to play him when he needed to be brought along slowly. nowak did a good job fighting back against mls, which is why freddy left.

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  5. Very strange. In the 1 game he played in he was clearly the best player on the field for Bahia. Sure most were reserves, but apparently 6 of those players made it to the bench and Adu did not. A few articles in Brasil also stated his good form. Weird. I’m going to start thinking maybe he has a party problem and the coaching staff kinda sweeps under the rug and says he’s just not ready for game matches. I personally have witnessed Adu play on the USMNT with solid players and clearly make the top 3 player of the match in just about 90% of the games. The kid has talent, it’s hard to say he’s garbage when clearly he is not when he is on the field. On all his loan spells he did solid in the few games he played in, and yet at on the bench. He did great at Benfica, then got benched and soon shipped to another team. In the only game he played for Monaco it was him who saved the day. He did a better job than EJ Turkey yet got no call up. I watched every match and clearly he was the difference maker. I guess we will never figure out why Adu doesn’t get on the field. It’s not because he’s garbage, because I’ve witnessed him play. So let’s stop the bashing and hope him the best. We can use his skill on out NT… Puebla in Mex would be a great place for him

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    • To me he was garbage in the Olympic trials. His selfish play cost the US. He looked like he was auditioning for a pro tryout, not playing for a team trying to win a tournament.

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    • “I guess we will never figure out why Adu doesn’t get on the field. It’s not because he’s garbage, because I’ve witnessed him play”

      Maybe YOU won’t figure it out.

      But don’t worry. A lot of professional coaches already have. And they have decided that other players make the team better so they get on the field over him.

      Ten years, eight teams, countless coaches, refuse to enable Fredinho, unlike you.

      Reply

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