Freddy Adu's latest stop in the quest for a new club has landed him in a spot that has seen plenty of Americans ahead of him find a happy ending – AZ Alkmaar of the Dutch Eredivisie.
The club released this tweet on Sunday:
Altidore enjoyed one of the best seasons ever for an American player in Europe with AZ in 2012-13, the final year of his two-year stay there.
Altidore's US World Cup teammate Aron Johannsson also currently plays his club soccer with AZ, while the club's technical director, Earnie Stewart, earned 101 caps for the USMNT and appeared for the team in the 1994, 1998 and 2002 World Cups.
In addition to the American connection, AZ recently appointed legendary Dutch striker Marco van Basten as coach, giving Adu a valuable resource for his stay in the Netherlands.
Adu, 25, has been out of contract since an unsuccessful six-month spell with Brazil's EC Bahia in 2013. He had previously spent two years with the Philadelphia Union after a four-year spell in Europe from 2007-2011 that saw stops in Portugal, France, Greece and Turkey.
With 17 USMNT caps to his name, Adu last appeared in the 2011 Gold Cup, immediately prior to the hiring of Jurgen Klinsmann as the program's head coach. Once one of the most-lauded prospects in American soccer after signing with D.C. United at age 14, in 2004, Adu will hope the team that has shaped so many other Americans' careers can help him revive his.
