Altidore: He Shoots, He Scores!

Coming off a strong Premiership debut in Hull City’s 1-0 win over Bolton, Jozy Altidore has opened up his scoring account with his new club in their League Cup match against Southend.

Taken down 20 yards from the Southend goal in the 41st minute, Altidore took the free kick himself, sending a laser blast into the bottom left corner and into the back of the net. His goal helped Hull emerge victorious with a 3-1 win.

Two games; one goal, one assist – not bad for a 19 year-old from New Jersey.

Check it out here:

Hull Ready To Match Fulham Offer For Altidore?

Is a bidding war starting for American striker Jozy Altidore? The UK’s Daily Mail thinks so.

If this pans out, it looks like Jozy’s value has already jumped by $2 million since last summer.

Special thanks to LFV reader Marc Sarchet for digging up this nugget.

Update: Altidore To Olympiakos?

Word from reliable sources indicates this one is not yet a done deal. Stay tuned.

Greek media are reporting that young American ace Jozy Altidore may be spending the next year with Olympiakos. The 19 year-old Villarreal striker, after turning more than a few heads in the recent Confederations Cup (including scoring against Spain), is still facing the prospect of not breaking into the Yellow Submarine’s starting 11.

Last year, Altidore, after making six appearances for Villarreal and scoring one goal, was loaned to second division side Xerez where he sat on the bench for five months. Recent statements attributed to the New Jersey native indicate he wants to find a situation where he can play every week.

The deal being reported in Greece indicates that a loan deal with an option to buy may be near and take Altidore across the Mediterranean to Olympiakos, where the young forward will have the opportunity to play in the Champions League.

What do you think? Could this be a good opportunity for Jozy or is he better off elsewhere?

Methinks any chance to play every week for a good club and get some Champions League action can’t be a bad way to get ready for the World Cup.

Jozy Loaned To Xerez

After much speculation and a couple of false starts, Jozy Altidore’s loan deal from Villarreal to Xerez is now complete. The 19-year old American will join the Spanish second division side the rest of the year after scoring once in six appearances for the Yellow Submarine. His new team is currently first in Spain’s second division standings and looking for Altidore to add the spark they need to stay on track for promotion to the Primera.

“This is a good opportunity for me because I will be able to get more playing time which will help me adapt to this country and continue to develop my career,” said Altidore according to the club’s web site.

Eduardo Salvio: The Next Big Thing?

While Arsenal courts Zenith for Andrei Arshavin, Real Madrid begs and pleads for Cristiano Ronaldo, and other clubs are going after the hottest players in the game, there is still a wave of scary talent coming forward from the youth ranks. One in particular is 18 year-old Argentine wunderkind Eduardo Salvio who has already scored 4 goals in 14 appearances for Lanús, including putting two past Boca Juniors. He is also working his way up through Argentina’s highly competitive youth system, recently shining in the South American U-20 championship. Just three days ago, he led his Argentine team to a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Peru, scoring the winning goal.

“I can play anywhere, inside or outside, but it does not frighten me to go one-on-one with the goalkeeper,” said a confident Salvio to Gazzetto. “My mirror player plays in another position, and he is Juan Román Riquelme.”

Salvio is a combination of fast, clever, and very technical and with his diminutive 5’5” frame, nothing but trouble for defenders once he has the ball at his feet. He is already being hailed as the next Lionel Messi and Ezequiel Lavezzi (who are both mentioned as the next Maradona) in the great tradition of Argentine supporting strikers such as Carlos Tevez, Messi, Javier Saviola, and others.

Now, teams like Roma, AC Milan, Inter, Napoli, Fiorentina, Juventus, CSKA Moscow, Genoa, Sevilla, Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Villarreal and Atlético Madrid are hot on his trail.

So, it is no surprise that in today’s La Gazzetta dello Sport, we see that Juve’s management are making their move by sending chief scout Renzo Castagnini to Argentina to work out a deal before another club gets there first. They’ll be hard pressed to trump Napoli, which has always been a second home for Argentine players on the continent, including Maradona, Lavezzi, German Denis, and others. That said, Juve’s deeper pockets would probably carry the day.

According to Gazzetto, to seal the deal Juventus is ready to ante up with at least €8.5 million and plans to finance it through the sale of forward Vincenzo Iaquinta to an interested Russian club Zenit St Petersburg (which also indicates they are resigned to losing Arshavin).

But any deal may not happen until summer since Lanús president Alejandro Marón, has a stated policy that the club’s youth players must play a full season before any transfers are allowed.

Meanwhile, Juventus has reportedly approached Chelsea to discuss a loan deal for French winger Florent Malouda. Malouda has not fared well since the arrival of Chelsea boss Felipe Scolari but his old Chelsea coach Claudio Ranieri, now at Juventus, thinks he can help the team challenge Inter for the Scuddetto.

Everton Eyes Altidore

According to the UK’s Sky Sports network, Premiership side Everton is interesting in acquiring Villarreal’s American striker Jozy Altidore. Check out the story here.

According to the article, manager David Moyes has no money to so they may have the idea to take him on loan for the second half of the season.

Alas, injury issues at the Yellow Submarine and Altidore’s early season form have led the club to spurn the Toffee’s offer – for now.

And watch this space because Altidore’s growth in Spain is not just being noticed by Everton – FIFA just named him as one of the young players to watch in 2009.

Jozy Starts Against Huelva

American striker Jozy Altidore made a rare start for Villarreal against Huelva tonight in a 2-1 win to put the Yellow Submarine in second place behind Barcelona. Altidore caused trouble for the Huelva defense early, creating a chance of his own which was stopped by keeper Riesgo.

Ironically, Recreatico Huelva was the destination for a possible January loan for Altidore but such talk died down in mid October. Now, having seen the goods, perhaps Huelva will be interested again, provided Villarreal boss Manuel Pelligrini can spare this young talent for six months.

Fellow New Jersey native Giuseppe Rossi started and was substituted in the 90th minute while Altidore was replaced by Edmilson in the 78th with the team up 2-0.

Happy Birthday Jozy!

Villarreal’s American attacker Jozy Altidore turned 19 today just a few days after becoming the first American to score a goal in the Spanish Primera. Chances are good that he’ll suit up for this Sunday’s match against 11th place Almeria and try to score his second.

As LFV (not to mention our readers in a recent poll) have mentioned previously, chances are strong that Altidore may be loaned out to another club in January (probably not Huelva). That said, given nagging injury problems in the squad, don’t be surprised if he stays on for the entire year.

Either way, he has earned his way to the most golden opportunity any young American player abroad has seen in years (if ever); the chance to make a meaningful contribution to one of Europe’s top clubs before he even reaches 20. All the while, he’ll be able to keep sharpening his shooting boots on the way to becoming the USA’s target forward of choice. It hurts not to see Brian McBride on team USA these days but every time I see Altidore in action, I know the pain won’t last for long.

Altidore Scores In Villarreal Romp Over Bilbao

Young forward Jozy Altidore became the first American ever to score in the Spanish top flight yesterday, opening his scoring account last night in a 4-1 romp over cellar dweller Bilbao. His fellow New Jersey native Giuseppe Rosssi opened scoring for the Yellow Submarine in the 22nd minute before Bilbao managed to equalize five minutes later, a score which stood until the half.

Second half goals by Robert Pires and Santi Cazorla put Villarreal on top 3-1. Altidore came on in the 89th minute a scored not even a minute later to make it 4-1. He told Spanish sports daily Marca: “I am very pleased with the goal and with the victory for my side in such a difficult place as San Mamés.”

Americans In Action All Over Europe This Weekend

American Jozy Altidore was named to the squad for tonight’s match against Primera newcomer Numancia. Given that coach Manuel Pelligrini is without three starters due to injury and is just coming off a midweek Champion’s League draw with Manchester United, and Altidore’s encouraging debut last week against Deportivo, there is a good chance that Altidore will see more playing time this week.

Villarreal’s current predicament is exactly the reason Pellegrini decided not loan out Altidore at the beginning of the season. If the young American can make a positive impact in the coming weeks, it will reduce the chance that he is loaned out in January – the club’s current plan.

Playing center-left midfield of a 3-5-2 for Brescia, Danny Szetela went the distance again in a 2-1 win over Ascoli this afternoon. Meanwhile, Gabe Ferrari and Perugia are set to take on Pescara tomorrow in Lega Pro (Serie C) action. Elsewhere in Italy, Napoli reserve team player Vincenzo Bernardo picked up an injury while training with the first team and missed the last two reserve matches. Nonetheless, his performances in training with the first team has seen his stock rise, leading some locals to speculate on a future role with the senior squad.

Hannover got a spanking at BayArena as they fell to Bayer Leverkusen 4-0 on Friday night. American Sal Zizzo came on the 50th minute for Hannover with the team already down 2-0 while Steve Cherundolo did not play due to injury. Neven Subotic and Borussia Dortmund take on Bundesliga newbie Hoffenheim on Sunday. Heath Pearce went the distance for Hansa Rostock as they drew Rot-Weiss Ahlen 2-2. Ahlen’s Grover Gibson did not play due to a nagging injury.

Also in Germany, Borussia Monchengladbach dropped its second straight match, this time to Hertha Berlin 1-0. Michael Bradley made his Bundesliga debut as started and played a solid 65th minutes but was not able to convert any chances for the Foals. Bryan Arguez did not play for Hertha.

Up in France, Carlos Bocanegra and Rennes will be looking to earn a much-needed three points tonight against Nancy while word out of Monaco is that Adu may have a larger role in tomorrow’s match against arch rival Marseilles.