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Canouse becomes latest American to sign pro deal at Hoffenheim

Canouse

The American influence at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim continues to grow. 

According to Fox Soccer, 16-year-old U.S. youth national team midfielder Russell Canouse signed a professional deal with the Bundesliga side and will join the club's U-19 side this coming season after spending one year in the club's youth academy. He emerged as a standout defensive midfielder for Hoffenheim's U-17 team, earning academy Player of the Year honors.

Canouse, a Pennsylvania native, was most recently a part of the U.S. Under-18 men's national team that participated in the Lisbon International Tournament. He joins Daniel Williams, Fabian Johnson and Joe Gyau as U.S. internationals under pro deals at Hoffenheim.

"Russell is one of our top prospects in the academy. He has adjusted quickly to our environment and requirements," Alexander Rosen, Hoffenheim's academy director, told Fox Soccer. "He has a true professional attitude on and off the field and he has a bright future if he continues to work hard."

What do you think of this development?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Fulham never had so many Americans coming through their academy though. It’s nice to have a European club with American nationals playing in their first team and young americans in their 2nd team, and youth team.
    Hoffenheim also has a great track record of turning academy players into first team players and playing them; should be a great place to develop.

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  2. woah this is great this is the 4th american to sign at hoffenheim and the next…. christian albelo is already on his way he has a article on topdrawersoccer

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  3. I’ll simplify: to the extent SBI is rahrah about this accumulation of Americans at Hoffenheim, Williams and Johnson were at Hoffenheim before being “Americans” in the soccer sense — they in fact arguably got converted/called up from among the set of soldiers’ kids for being at such a high level German club already — whereas Gyau and Canouse were “Americans” before they were Hoffenheim signees. I don’t think treating it as an undifferentiated pool of Americans at Hoffenheim is quite apt. It’s not like EJ and Dempsey and whatnot at Fulham for that period.

    I also think it matters that part of the reason “we care” is because they are on the high level team already, this is no longer the 90s era of calling up college players and such where merely being in the B.2 or worse like Mason and Wagner were once is all that special. In that sense, again, half the reason we give a hoot is it’s Hoffenheim. In which case I think it matters that they were German pros before they were American callups, to the extent we talk about this undifferentiated pool of “Americans” on the books.

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  4. Yah. Seems like we have so many 16-19 year olds in similar situations right now. Hopefully the numbers game plays out in our favor on a couple of them.

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  5. Wow! Hearing this makes me feel really old. This kid was born in 1996. Here is what else was happening in the soccer world the year Russell Canouse was born:

    -MLS came into existence
    -Tim Howard was a 17 year old amateur
    -John Harkes was captain of the US national team
    -David Beckham was entering his 4th year at Man United
    -Ronaldo was the “next big thing” as a 19 year old Brazilian
    -Messi was 8 years old

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  6. Good on him. Hope to see him making strides for Hoffenheim and the US youth teams. I am sure he will make the jump to the U-20’s very soon.

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  7. Feather in his cap, that he’s being signed out of the Academy is probably an order of magnitude stronger than being signed off the street, but it bears reminding that both Gyau and Renken (noticed he wasn’t on the list!) once signed there and one is maturing into a young Hoffenheim professional while the other is playing for the Timbers reserves. Even if it’s not a Peterlin/Arnoux stunt it’s no guarantee.

    I also think Gyau and Canouse present a different type of story than Williams and Johnson, who’ve lived in Germany their whole lives. Williams and Johnson are a couple of many servicemen’s kids playing in Germany, with their virtue for selection likely being that they had already demonstrated talent for an important team. They have gained their American place and fame from Hoffenheim, whereas Gyau and Canouse are conversely earning Hoffenheim as their trophies of a sort. If that makes any sense.

    Not knocking Williams and Johnson I’m just saying there’s been a leap from the days of Wagner and Mason and if Williams and Johnson were plugging away in the B.2 or below, one of the random U23s we tried out this winter, we wouldn’t be as enthusiastically claiming them as Hoffenheim americans….talk to Zimmerman. Just saying. Part of their virtue is we cherry picked them…

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  8. Credit needs to be given to Red Bull Academy for giving him his start. Hopefully we will see more stories like this. The European Academies are better because they have residencies and shorter school days. However, the MLS academies are good places for players to start.

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  9. Ithink ths is great. Hoffenheim is becoming what Fulham was in England at one time, Team America. They seem to be developing some young talent that could serve them well over the next 5-10 years.

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