Jozy Altidore entered Major League Soccer with a bang, scoring a blistering late-season goal from long distance to help the New York Red Bulls make the 2006 playoffs.
Major League Soccer immediately took notice and, somewhere along the way, so too did Villarreal CF of Spain's La Liga. On Wednesday, MLS and Villarreal agreed in principle to terms on a transfer fee for the 18-year-old forward who has also proven himself in international competitions.
Altidore still must agree to personal contract terms and pass a physical with the La Liga runners-up before the deal is complete and wouldn't join Villarreal until July 1, when the European transfer window opens.
Once the deal is completed, the Red Bulls are expected to receive an allocation and a portion of the transfer fee.
Altidore will address the media in a pregame press conference Thursday night at Giants Stadium before the MLS match between the Red Bulls and Chivas USA. Altidore suffered a left ankle contusion in training Monday in a collision with Juan Pablo Angel and missed training Tuesday and Wednesday.
Altidore started to garner European interest last year when he scored four goals for the United States in the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Canada. He also made his full national team debut and scored his first goal in a 2-2 draw against Mexico in Houston February 6. For the Red Bulls, the 6-foot-1 forward also finished second in goals scored with nine.
Altidore has scored 15 goals in 37 games for the Red Bulls and, at age 16, became the youngest player ever to score an MLS playoff goal when he struck against D.C. United in 2006.
He is also a member of the U.S. under-23 national team and is likely to be selected by Peter Nowak to play in the Summer Olympics in Beijing in August.
Dylan Butler is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
