Image Credit: United States Soccer Federation
For those fans of a certain vintage, the phrase ‘USA wonderkid’ brings a certain name to mind.
Freddy Adu was touted as the man to take over from Pele when he burst onto the global football stage in the mid 2000s.
The worlds biggest football clubs were after Adu once he became the youngest player in history to sign for any professional USA sports team when he joined MLS side DC United.
Record breaking for Adu didn’t stop there.
Freddy Adu soon became the youngest player to play for a professional sports team in USA history when he appeared as a substitute for DC United against San Jose Earthquakes in 2004.
By this point, the hype machine was firmly building up for the young attacker and it didn’t take long for Manchester United to take notice.
United invited the youngster to join the club on trial in 2006.
Adu spent two weeks in Manchester where he connected with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick.
Even Sir Alex Ferguson was impressed with the youngster and commented on the bright future he had.
Despite that time at United, the club couldn’t get a work permit and Adu went back to the United States.
And that trial was the peak of his career.
Despite spells at the likes of Benfica and Monaco, Freddy Adu was never able to fulfil the potential that he had showcased in his early career.
He ended up having a nomadic footballing journey that took him to the likes of Bahia in Brazil, Jagodina in Serbia and KuPS in Finland.
Not the stellar list of names that was once expected to be part of his football CV.
Freddy Adu’s tale has been a cautionary one of putting too much into a youngster from the United States of America.
However, since then there have been several players from the USA that have garnered a level of success in the football world.
Christian Pulisic, Antonee Robinson and Malik Tillman have all been exciting prospects from the land of hope and glory.
In fact, it has been reported that United have made enquiries for Tillman already.
Today, the calibre of player from the USA is of a much higher standard than the early 2000s.
So when the club is linked with the next USA wonderkid, it’s not quite the same level of apprehension that comes with the Freddy Adu situation.
In this case, Manchester United are set to bring a talented United States youngster to the club next week.
According to GiveMeSport, Charlotte FC and USA youth international forward Nimfasha Berchimas will join the club to train in Manchester.
Berchimas, who is just 16, is viewed as one of the top young talents in his age group in America and has been garnering attention in Europe.
The publication states that United have been following his progress and an official transfer bid could follow in the future.
Charlotte FC have already given the youngster three first team appearances in the MLS, making him one of the youngest players in history to play in the competition.
Over this past summer, the Manchester United hierarchy spent a lot of time investing in their academy.
The marquee signing of Chido Obi-Martin was seen as the crown in that recruitment drive.
Bringing Nimfasha Berchimas to the club is seen as another extension of that focus on having the best future talent at the club.
Bayern Munich hosted the youngster at their club back in 2022, when he was still 14 years old, but United may steal a march on the Germany giants by bringing him to the club at this stage.
This is one to look out for in the coming weeks and months.
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