Adu, 15, Is Spot On for U.S. Team
He is only 15, but when it comes to penalty kicks, Freddy Adu is the man.
Twice already in regional qualifying play for this summer’s FIFA World Youth Championship in the Netherlands, Adu has scored from the spot. He did so against Trinidad and Tobago on Wednesday night and he did so against Panama on Friday night.
The two goals helped propel the U.S. under-20 soccer team to 6-1 and 2-0 victories and earned it a place in the June 10-July 3 world championship.
Today, the U.S. plays Costa Rica in the final qualifying match, and if a penalty kick is called against the Ticos, they can be certain it will be Adu who will step up to take it.
Coach Sigi Schmid has no qualms about relying on his youngest player even in such nerve-racking and frequently decisive situations.
“In the first game we played when I started coaching this team, we got a penalty kick against Honduras,” Schmid said after training Saturday afternoon at the Home Depot Center. “Freddy was the one who was fouled and he just stepped up and grabbed the ball.
“I’ve always been a big believer in penalty kicks being about confidence. It’s a matter of who wants it. If a player wants it, his chances of scoring are greatly increased....
“He took the next one against Mexico in a pressure situation late in the game to win the game for us. He’s always stepped up and taken them.”
Going one on one against the goalkeeper from 12 yards with the world watching can cause butterflies in even the most experienced of players, but Adu takes the kicks in stride.
“For me, here’s the thing,” he said Saturday. “When I step up, I don’t care if I make it or miss it. If you put too much pressure on yourself, that’s when you start thinking too much. I don’t think too much.
“Before I even pick up the ball to put it down, I have already picked out the spot I’m going. Before the game even starts, it’s like, ‘If we get a PK, I’m going here.’ And when we get a PK I’m going to go to the same place, I’m not going to change my mind at the last second.”
Having thus dealt with indecision, Adu similarly dismissed arguments over whether penalty kicks should be about placement or about power.
“It’s both,” he said. “You’ve got to pick a spot and you’ve got to hit it with power to that spot. Sometimes the goalkeeper is going to guess right, but if you hit the ball with power to that spot, he has no chance of getting it.”
Trinidad and Tobago goalkeeper Hasely Holder found that out Wednesday, when Adu fired the second U.S. goal high to his right. Panama goalkeeper Jose Calderon found it out Friday, when Adu banged the shot high to his left.
“Freddy’s usually a little bit higher with his shots, but he was able to mix it up [and] go to a different side, and that’s important,” Schmid said. “Good penalty takers are able to mix it up.”
Adu, the only player on the team who also played in the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship in the United Arab Emirates, where the U.S. lost in the quarterfinals to eventual champion Argentina, values Schmid’s confidence in him but is not shocked by it.
“No, I’m not surprised,” he said. “Not at all. I might be the youngest player on this team, but I’m also the most experienced....
“For me, I don’t care how young or how old you are. If you can make it, just go ahead, step up and take it.”
Today’s doubleheader begins with Panama needing to defeat Trinidad and Tobago to stay alive. If it does so, and by enough goals, Costa Rica will have to at least tie the U.S. to also earn a spot in Holland this summer.
