By FRANCO PANIZO
A change of address might be in Bobby Wood’s near future. At least, he is hoping so.
Currently well out of the picture for first-team minutes at TSV 1860 Munich, Wood is looking to find a new club by the end of the current winter transfer window. The 22-year-old striker has been limited to just six appearances in the 2. Bundesliga this season, with only two coming since the end of August, and he was reportedly sent down to train with the reserves after frustrating head coach Markus von Ahlen in October.
The lack of playing time has not stopped U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann from calling in Wood regularly since the end of the World Cup, including for this month’s January camp. But the youngster will likely need a move that earns him more consistent minutes in order to remain in the picture ahead of this summer’s CONCACAF Gold Cup.
“Hopefully something will change,” Wood told reporters on Monday. “That’s what I’m trying to do right now but we’ll see. It’s hard to say right now.”
Wood has been with Munich his entire professional career. In total, he has 50 league appearances and three goals for the club in Germany’s second division since making his debut in January 2011.
Klinsmann has given the youngster a handful of looks in the friendlies that followed last summer’s World Cup. Wood has shown some positives in those appearances, but has lacked sharpness and clinical finishing in the final third.
“Right now it looks most like that (TSV 1860 Munich is) ready to release him,” Klinsmann told reporters, “basically if the right offers are coming in and the right clubs wants to have open discussion.”
Just last week, one of Wood’s U.S. teammates struggling for regular playing time at the club level secured a move to MLS. Fellow forward Jozy Altidore left Sunderland in pursuit of more minutes on Friday, signing as a Designated Player with Toronto FC.
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Where do you think Wood should go next? Think MLS is a good option for him? Prefer to see him stay in Europe?
Share your thoughts below.
truly hope a club in the Eredivisie is interested. or even another 2.Bundesliga club. he’s not a bad option since he would be free and is only 22.
I really hope an MLS team snags him. I think Portland or Seattle could be very good spots for him.
He should stick it out in GDR. He is not a MLS DP and needs to be in a very challenging environment. If he can get out of coaches dog house he will be in perfect place for his development. If not move to another German club.
He’s not playing there and when we give him a chance he does 80% of what he needs to then botches the finish. That is not preparing him to succeed. That’s preparing him to join a long list of guys who never quite ignited.
The problem is he’s in a challenging environment right now and isn’t good enough. We are just overrating this kid.
i think that’s harsh. if you look at the reports, it seems there was a beef with him and the assistant coach.
FCD could use him on the left now that Escobar is gone…I’d like to see that actually. We have a DP slot open now and maybe one more if we cut short the Texeira DP contract. I really want to see what the new CBA is going to have in store for player wages and DPs, etc., teams will have the opportunity to completely rethink what’s possible in terms of acquirable personnel.
Wood isn’t worth a DP contract, IMHO – I like his movement, I like his super-positive first-touch, I like his size…and I hate his finishing. He gets himself into position to finish repeatedly, and then somehow fluffs it. He’s definitely got the yips, but considering how frustrated his coach in Germany obviously is with him, it’s an endemic thing that’s been going on a LONG while now.
Because of that I wouldn’t give him a DP slot, or even consider it – but if I were an MLS GM I might be willing to risk $150,000K or so on him. If he fizzles you’re not out the farm, but he’s obviously got the goods to be a 15-goal-guy in MLS if he gets over the yips and starts finishing the chances he creates.
More than that? No. Unlike Altidore, he doesn’t have a pile of goals for the USMNT and an even bigger one in the Eredisivie to establish his current yips are not a permanent condition as opposed to a simple current lack of confidence.
^ This. If he’s on an acceptable contract (i.e. non-DP, $150 – $225K range), he’s a great upside addition for an MLS club looking for wing/forward help. I think it would be a disservice to both Wood and MLS if they bring him in on a bigger DP deal. If he does come in as a DP, the weight of the contract, plus the spot in the allocation order (which I’m assuming he’d be subjected to) would all amount to clubs looking for him to produce, and produce substantially, right away. Just don’t think that’s where he is right now. He needs time to work out whatever is going on with his finishing. Plus, while Wood seems like a great kid, it’s a lot to ask a 22 year old guy to go from being a bit-part role player on a second division club to being “the guy”, or at least one of “the guys” in a league where salary plays such a huge role in team composition.
Now, all that does beg the question of why a guy we’re discussing in these terms is in the national team picture…. but hey, that’s different topic for a different day.
I’m not even sure he would be an MLS starter if he came here. He could definately get a contract.
Time to come home and get grossly overpaid.
No MLS team is overpaying for this scrub.
that ‘s what I thought about Altidore and Mixx. I’m not sure we’ve reached the bottom yet.
I’m becoming more of a fan of these guys just playing in MLS and forget Europe. Let’s make the USMNT stars here and make the overseas guys come scout if they really want to have American players on their team. Seems like USMNT players overseas are just marketing ploys by ownership that the coaches don’t buy into anyway. Let’s import some European coaches to help build better infrastructure and stop exporting the talented American players to sit at the end of the bench because they grew up playing a different way.
Sure, we will copy russia, thats working out well for them.
yeah…don’t forget Italy, France, Spain, and Germany. When their countries won the world cup, I believe most of their players placed in their own domestic league.
Yes, MLS is comparable to the German, French, Italian and Spanish leagues.
France’s 1st team almost entirely played in Italy(with a couple in EPL & la Liga). Going back to France ’98, the last 5 champions include Brazil ’02, whose 1st team was pretty much entirely playing in Europe.
What people are willing to forget is that the World Champions usually have players that are playing in the top leagues. If MLS was one of the top 3/4 even 5/6 leagues, I would say bring the entire starting USMNT back. However, we are not even close. We are better than the Nordic countries, but not much better. As such, I believe our best USMNT players should be playing at the highest level they can against the highest competition — not sitting the bench at least. The level of player in the MLS is NOT high enough, yet. We would need AT LEAST 5 or so players/team on average.
A strong domestic foundation is important, is what MLS provides, and is why we routinely qualify now. All else fails we have a solid league producing people good enough to get us in the next tournament and the next. You look at England and I don’t think it helps how cosmopolitan the league has gotten because come tournaments they’re calling up second division players.
But having players worthy of bigger leagues, and having people getting that experience, is important to us being special. Do I think it’s the end all be all? No. I think some people live vicariously through the players and the leagues they are in validate their interests and viewing habits. Players need to be playing for form, confidence, and fitness, and it does them no good to sit someplace big rather than play a rung down. But if they can play, more power to them.
Some of the comments that follow basically reflect league quality and the level of affordable talent. Russia keeps people home and doesn’t do much. Italy has a better league and does well by it. It’s overdetermined to say it helps or hurts. I think it matters how good the situation is.
Good thing we have a solid domestic league to come back to for players in need of PT. Make the smart choice for your career Bobby. MLS is a legit stepping block to getting (back) to Europe.
Is that true? How many US players have played in Europe, come back to the MLS, then returned to Europe?
not from what I have seen.
Holden, Cooper, Donovan…….there are some.
Also Friedel and McBride.
“Holden, Cooper, Donovan… Friedel and McBride”
If the definition is “played regularly” in Europe then these guys don’t actually fit.
Holden never actually played for Sunderland before he went to the Dynamo.
Cooper never got a first team game for Man U. He did a loan at Oldham before getting back to Dallas FC and when he went back to Europe it did not go well.
Landon did not get into Leverskusen’s first team which is why he forced a loan to the Quakes and when he went back in 2005 he only last 7 games and did not do well and got sold back to LA. He did well with the Everton loans but that is not exactly what we are talking about there.
Friedel did do well but he is a keeper and I would submit that they are a different breed.
McBride did well in MLS, got loans at Preston and Everton where he impressed Moyes, went back to MLS and then came back to Fulham. I’d say he is the best and maybe only example of an outfield player who did well in Europe , then came back to MLS ,did well and then went back to England and did even better.
I don’t doubt it can be done but it would not be very easy to do and money probably would be the key hold up.
Clint and a rehabilitated Jozy could do it if they found the right club in Europe and were willing to take a pay cuts.
Where are you getting “played regularly” from? The question clearly asks “How many US players have played in Europe, come back to the MLS, then returned to Europe?” If a guy was playing regularly, he probably wouldn’t be coming back to MLS.
kid is barely 22. Go to Eredivisie if they want him.
I agree, he’s very young and needs more time.
He reminds me of Harry Kane from few years back when Spurs where touring here, and mostly played 10-15 mins near the the end of matches.
Had a lot of intelligent runs, and got into good spots but never was able to finish.
Look how far Kane has come in the past 6 months.
Would (no pun intended) anyone have guessed Kane would be this good in a span of 6 months? At best, I thought he could be a decent sub and then make his name somewhere else as most Spurs academy players have done in the past.
Harry Kane is younger than Wood and is dominating the Premier League while Wood is playing in the reserves in the 2.Bundesliga so I think any similarities are pretty superficial.
How many here even know who Harry Kane was before August 2014? Where was he? Reserves or bench.
Why would an Eredivisie club want this guy?
Because he has basically the same strike rate as Altidore… meaning he should be good for 20 a season in the Eredivisie 😉
3 goals is 50 games?
and he gets MNT invites?
Wood needs to come home and play MLS.
If all appearances are as a sub, though, that’s about 500 minutes which equals about 6 full matches.
San Jose or Houston
i remember a man by the name of ching who repped hawaii and had himself a decent career
I also think he might prosper by the Scandinavian route. But he needs to drop down, get the playing time, and earn the prospect-ness a little.
Gotta be a club in the Netherlands that could use him. With the amount of chances he generated with the USMNT, surely he could do the same (and maybe put some in) against Eredivisie defenses.
sooooo you’re saying he has a worse strike rate in Europe than Jozy…….???………