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Yedlin joins Tottenham for $3.5 million; will remain with Sounders for 2014

YedlinTottenham

By RYAN TOLMICH

Since the moment he stepped off the field following the U.S. Men’s National Team’s final World Cup contest in Brazil, every question surrounding DeAndre Yedlin has centered around what his next move might be. However, it appears that the Seattle Sounders fullback finally has his answer.

The 21-year-old has finalized a move to England’s Tottenham Hotspur, with the Premier League side paying a fee of $3.5 million. Yedlin has signed a four-year contract with the club, but is being allowed to stay with to the Sounders for the remainder of the 2014 season.

“Did I have any doubts when I first came back (from the World Cup)? I think when I first came back because where I am right now is back home, so I’m comfortable,” Yedlin said in an exclusive interview with Goal.com. “But I think it’s a good time to step out of my comfort zone and challenge myself on a different scale and that’s what I’m looking to do at Tottenham.”

Yedlin now moves to Spurs, former team of his national team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann, who featured for the London club in 1994-95.

“I’ve talked to (Klinsmann) a lot about this move and he supports it,” Yedlin said, “which was one of the big reasons behind the decision.”

Yedlin, who featured three times for the U.S. during the team’s time in Brazil, has played in 52 first team contests for the Sounders since signing out of the University of Akron as the club’s first homegrown player.

The completion of the deal could lead to Yedlin featuring for the MLS side as early as Wednesday, when the Sounders take on the Chicago Fire in the U.S. Open Cup semifinals.

What do you think of the move for Yedlin? Is $3.5 million a fair fee? How will he fare when he eventually makes his way to Tottenham?

Share your thoughts below.

 

Comments

  1. wonder if he’ll play fullback or winger. With Julian Green and Joe Gyau we suddenly have a lot of speed on the flanks. this is happy thing.

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  2. I can’t believe all of the people on here who HATE Spurs…. As an American Spurs supporter, I have to ask: Why?

    I started liking Spurs mainly because of Jermain Defoe and have just stuck with them ever since. What rubbed you the wrong way? They haven’t won anything since 2008.

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  3. The writing on this website is so poor sometimes:

    “The completion of the deal could lead to Yedlin featuring for the MLS side as early as Wednesday, when the Sounders take on the Chicago Fire in the U.S. Open Cup semifinals.”

    You mentioned in the PREVIOUS paragraph that Yedlin had already played for the Sounders 52 times.

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  4. Yedlin and US soccer fans have JK to thank for this chain of events. Many of us pointed fingers JK for Yedlins inclusion in the WC squad.

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      • Wow….come on now…u dnt have to like JK ..but give him credit…no one saw the reasoning in taking Yed to WC. Highly questioned move. JK takin Yed was meditated by his part not luck as ur comment implies.

  5. why didn'[t they sell him to ROMA for 5 million?

    i don’t get why US players are so under-valued?

    we should be a proper feeder league to the EPL and yet they lowball us? when will someone break Jozy’s 2008 10 million dollar transfer? will there ever be a 20 million dollar transfer from MLS to the EPL?

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      • Friedel, Howard, Keller, Dolo, Claudio, McBride, Dempsey, Beasley, Bradley, Boca, Gooch, Stewart, and others beg to differ. Americans may not have contributed to winning the league Championship in the big 4 leagues, but they have Captained European Clubs, Played deep into Europa & Champion’s League Tournaments, Kept their teams from Relegation, and other things of VALUE in Europe.
        Not bad for a country that just 20 years ago fielded College players as part of their Sr. National Team.
        Right now we are a cheap way to get mid level to good talent for clubs that are financially weak. In the next 20 years the US will become a source for real talent across the 4 major leagues (top to bottom). What has limited us has been the poor coaching at youth levels (U-10 to U-20). As more former US National Team & Professional players go into coaching this will change. As this changes the players will only get better, and top clubs/leagues will be more willing to sign & play US Players.

  6. I think it was great for Yedlin that Klinnsman inserted him as a wing midfield player in a couple of those WC games, and he subsequently proved that he could play that position effectively. I would guess he will be mainly a substitute early on in his Spurs career, and having two positions he can slot into late in matches rather than just one might increase his chances of immediate playing time. Plus, coaches drool over speed/recovery speed like he has; many things can be taught in sports, but that cannot.

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    • He is probably better at as a wing midfield since his defensive positioning needs work. I still don’t get how people (in SEA) were critical of his play before the WC, he has a couple decent games, and comes out like a golden child. I guess nobody saw him play before the WC.

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  7. He needs to win the MLS Cup first.

    He is not going to win anything for four years, unless he can get out early. His next goal after this year is to move to a ‘bigger’ team.

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  8. I’m confused. How could this deal be done now? If he’s signed with Tottenham, they can’t loan him back now (outside transfer window) so is this more of a pre-transfer agreement? Who’s paying him, Tottenham or mls?

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    • delayed transfer starting in 2015 is the way Adrian described it. summer of 2015…hopefully with the Sounders until then.

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  9. I hope Kyle Walker is in a mentoring mood, because he’s the perfect player for Yedlin to learn from. Walker was basically the same player as Yedlin 3-4 years ago, but has developed a lot in the past few years.

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    • Walker is there to play not mentor. He’s 24, Deandre is 20. Walker has a lot of his own growing to do yet before he starts teaching his replacement how to do his job.

      It’s also worth mentioning that Walker has been out since March with a “pelvic injury” so who knows how he will be when and if he comes back from that.

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  10. Props to JK for having the vision to bring Yedlin along to the wc against popular opinion. Most of you killed him for that move.

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    • We didn’t expect it, but we didn’t kill JK for it. Knowing fabian and cameron were always available, most of us weren’t too tied up in the chandler-parkhurst-evans-yedlin race.

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  11. Is the Latvian passport thing real? I think this is a good move for Yedlin but I’m thinking the work permit could be an issue. Latvian passport would be a handy way to circumvent. I don’t think he would be loaned out, Spurs aren’t exactly loaded at right back.

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    • Apparently his mother is a Latvian*. I’m betting DaY has a grandparent (or two?) that fled the Third Reich or Stalin – possibly as a child. Independent Latvia restored citizenship to those who were exiled between 1940 and 1990. It was just a matter of paperwork. After that, it’s jus sanguinis and more paperwork.

      (* SRC: noshortcorners and king5.com)

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  12. I think 4 million US is way to low for a guy that made an impression at the World Cup and is very very young…. Europe really thumbs their noses at US players…. the guy could easily become as good as Kyle Walker….Walker is listed to be worth 19 million Euros….

    He is not 6 times better than Yedlin…

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    • There’s a couple important pieces missing in your statement. Walker is British ergo he is massively overpaid in England, so it’s not really a great comparison. If Walker was, say, French, he’d have a considerably lower salary.

      Also, if Yedlin’s goal was to go to Europe, then he wasn’t going to re-sign with Sounders/MLS. He’ll be two years into his contract by the end of this season, so his value is only going down the closer he gets to free agency.

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    • “… could easily become as good as Kyle Walker…”

      Right but not as good as kyle walker is now. So how much did spurs pay for kyle walker before he became as good as kyle walker? In the neighborhood of 4M pounds (9M combined fee for walker and naughton).

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    • Walker is a “homegrown” player and under the EPL quota rules that adds to his value to Spurs.

      He also has 148 league appearances in EPL league games and 10 caps for England. He is a young, proven veteran.

      Yedlin is 3 caps for the US and has 0 appearances in the EPL and may never have one.

      So at this time Walker is a lot more valuable than Yedlin to Spurs. Hopefully, DeAndre will change that. As for the 6 times thing, that is not how it works.

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  13. Just 2 years ago this month a 23 year old Spurs’ player changed his number from 3 to 11 because he was “no longer a left back.” Known for his blazing speed, he is now one of he best in the world plying his trade at the Bernabeu Stadium. Mirroring Gareth Bale’s rise should be one of young Mr. Yedlin’s goals. Criticism of his 1-on-1 defending is very similar to what we heard about Bale during his White Hart Lane days.

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    • You should go easy on the Bale comparisons. He was always about a lot more than just speed.

      Bale was a bit further along than Yedlin at the same age and had a nose for goals, from the run of play and from free kicks, that Yedlin has yet to show.

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      • +1 GW

        I like this kid as much is the next USMNT supporter, but even in that article linked above (grantland—in comments), even Porter says that DeAndre has a ceiling in midfield. He may even be saying that he isn’t technical enough to play as a midfielder.

        Any comparison to Bale is wishful thinking. And though Ihope he develops, I don’t know that he develops that far.

  14. I think it’s a good move for Spurs. With Yedlin finishing this year at Seattle he can likely get called in a few more times for the National team (Which should solve the work permit issue), he can then basically use the second half of the primer league as an extended preseason at worst, and if by then Spurs are out of the champions league race (which they likely will be because Spurs are just not that good) he can start getting minutes, Then he can compete for a full spot during Spurs off season. If he makes it on the team Spurs can either sell him for a good profit or keep him as their young really good right back.

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  15. I think this is sort of how it will feel when the “Kevin Love to the Cavs” trade is announced, insomuch that everyone who cares will have known this has been a done deal for a of couple weeks.

    That said, I like Yedlin’s quoted remarks, and think the fee is fair.

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  16. He is going to have to work his ass off more so than ever before. Now he will be playing with the big boys. Good luck to him.

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    • True — such an incredibly different atmosphere. I’ll be surprised if he ever breaks through at Spurs, though I hope that he will. This is a team with constant turnover and incredible internal competition, to put it mildly. I agree with the guy who said he’s likely to have a couple of loans then be sold for a profit.

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  17. With all the money sounders, give them a new playing surface or stadium, where the Seattle sonics wanted to make a new arena or remodel the stadium where Seattle reign play.
    A nice 50, 000 seater would be nice for Seattle.
    Forget about the bars and details, Seattle will always have support and Seattle is a small city, where everything is close.

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      • Latvia? I guess he wasn’t going to break through to their Senior Team so USMNT was a second choice…

    • Yedlin will have a much better case then Agudelo after taking the field in a knock out game in the World Cup. I don’t know if Agudelo really had any national team caps in the year before going back to the Russia friendly in 2012.

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    • Dont worry he wont ever play a game for them he cant get a work permit he has less games than agudelo. He will be loaned to the champioship in january. Do well enough to get another loan there and then get sold to aston villa once he qualifies for a work permit.

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      • Not nearly that simple, my friend. First, WC games are weighted considerably more than friendlies, thus his 3 caps in 4 games alone may get the permit. Second, there are several international dates between now and when he would play for Spurs, so the additional 4-5 games would likely be sufficient.

        That being said, I too hate the spurs, and and very conflicted.

      • wait, forget about the permit for a minute…is he good enough to see game time come January at Spurs. I hate Spurs too, BTW.

      • Disagree, he may miss the auto criteria of 75% caps but regular recent appearances for the Nats lately including at Brazil should establish special case “on appeal.”

        Agudelo by contrast is a mere pool guy who didn’t make the Brazil team.

      • NM. If he gets a Latvian passport he’s in. One EU passport good as another for work/immigration purposes. His work permit creds then moot.

      • I hope he makes it on playing criteria for the US, and not by EU passport…. that would be set and example for future young players.

      • Sly,

        The work permit is to play in the UK. Since all the Championship teams I am aware of are also in the UK, then he can’t play for them w/o a work permit either.

      • You can argue the criteria for the work permit better defend the lower rungs because short of being Jay DeMerit and having an EU passport and trying to make something from nothing, your usual elite American (or other international) who is in the neighborhood of work permit quality would be looking for a level of play and wages that would only start at Championship level. The sort of American who would be willing to play Conference or League Two for 25 thousand pounds or even a semi-pro wage would not likely be of the quality to get a work permit, and would be there on some sort of grandfathered passport “in.” It’s a small set of Americans who can play at the level to get the work permit, and also find someplace they can be signed at a good wage. In theory you could take the permit and play for Barnet, but what are the chances Tim Howard does that? It kind of pushes the serious international Americans into a particular bandwidth of the pyramid.

        Point being, the permits actually protect the lower rungs most effectively. But it’s the erosion of Englishness in the top rungs that has weakened their national team.

      • It’s the poor UK academy set up, player development and the refusal of UK players to play on the continent (and thus find the the best league/team where they would be regular starters) that has eroded the English National Team.

        That being said, owners have to do a better job of developing youth players and bring them through the 1st team. Even when teams develop some players, the teams stack their first team with so many developed players that the youth players have no chance. They are rarely loaned abroad or if they are lucky, they are loaned out to lower tier Championship team. The CIES Football Observatory in Switzerland, did a 2013 survey and placed England at 55% foreigner with Belgium at 53%, Italy at 52%, Germany at 46%, Spain at 35% Netherlands at 34%. To put it all on the percentage of foreign players is a cheap excuse on the part of English fans and the English FA. Germany and Italy are at comparable levels/percentages, but that has not hurt their success (this was bad tournament for Italy, they did much better in Euro 2012).

      • Anthony, Imperative Voice,

        “But it’s the erosion of Englishness in the top rungs that has weakened their national team.”

        There has never been that much “Englishness” in the top division of English football.

        It’s a little involved with England. Before the Premiership, when English teams like Manchester United, Liverpool, Leeds, Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and so on were doing well in Europe, those teams were stacked with foreigners.

        Scottish, Irish,Welsh and Northern Irish players were foreigners in the eyes of FIFA and almost all of those English teams were dependent on such players to a greater or lesser degree.

        So, as far as I can tell the England team has about as many talented players as they have ever had but the biggest thing for the national team is that they haven’t had a really top class manager who worked well with the player pool since Sir Bobby Robson.

        And the FA ,which runs the national team, is in a subordinate position relative to the Premiership so the national team suffers a bit in comparison. As MLS grows think about that in relation to the USMNT.
        Hodgson would kill to have half of JK’s clout.

        Put it this way, swap the England player pool for the US player pool for the 2014 World Cup (and for those who despise JK do the same with the 2010 World Cup) .
        Then give the USMNT manager the whole qualification period with those players and same clout over them as they have over the US players and JK / BB would have taken that team farther than Capello/Hodgson actually did.

        .

      • Coach Lasso is gonna use Yedlin as a Center-Half Back to run the screen pass to defeat the other teams blitz. Because no one in the Barclays Premier League will expect Leicester (phonetically Lie-Ches-ter) to have such good ball handling. You just wait and see!

      • Maybe that’s how he’ll be used a few years down the road, but right now I just see Yedlin on special teams.

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