David Beckham isn't the only player going to play in Europe after MLS Cup.
Real Salt Lake's Yura Movsisyan is also heading abroad. At 21 years old, the striker has made the decision to test the waters in Europe.
Skilled, quick, and powerful, Movsisyan has all the traits needed to grow into a game-changing striker. His coach just wishes he would stay in Major League Soccer to do it. RSL coach Jason Kreis, a striker himself during his playing days, believes that he could help Movsisyan unlock his full potential.
"It's very, very difficult to see him go. I would love for him to stay here," Kreis said. "I would love to continue developing Yura.
"I don't think that Yura is close to his potential, to be honest. He has a whole lot more to learn. If he does that, if he gets close to his potential, I think he'll have a very successful career in Europe."
Hoping to pursue a career in Europe, Movsisyan signed a contract with Randers FC of the Danish Super League in July. The Danish league is commonly known as a stepping-stone league, a place for players to get discovered by the bigger leagues in Europe. After flying over to visit the club, he believed it would be a good fit for his future ambitions.
"Hopefully in the future, I can move on from there and go to a bigger team," Movsisyan said.
Randers, who are struggling to avoid relegation in the Danish top flight, attempted to get Movsisyan in July. However, Kreis and Real Salt Lake general manager Garth Lagerwey wanted to keep Movsisyan. According to Lagerwey, they did not want to lose a player who could be "a big part in our future success."
Movsisyan, after all, had almost singlehandedly authored Real Salt Lake's amazing late-season run in 2008, scoring seven goals in the final 11 games of the regular season. Disappointed by the failed transfer, the young striker started to become disillusioned. Kreis and Lagerwey had to pull Movsisyan aside to refocus the youngster.
"He's a young kid. He's 21 years old. Does he start thinking about something besides winning the next game this weekend? Yeah," Lagerwey said. "And he was hurt at that time, so I think it's a lot of things for a young player to handle. But I bet he would tell you that he learned from it, grew from it, and emerged a better player on the other side."
This season, Movsisyan has notched eight goals in 19 starts this season and has been a key member of Real Salt Lake's attack. After starting Fabian Espindola alongside Robbie Findley in the first two playoff games against Columbus, Kreis reinstalled Movsisyan up front with Findley for the Eastern Conference Championship against the Chicago Fire. The striker might also start against the Galaxy -- Kreis loves his ability to pick apart defenses with a well-taken shot or pass.
"We've gotten a lot of good work," said Kreis of Movsisyan's contributions. "I don't think goalscoring-wise he's been as steady as he has in other stretches but to me he looks very dangerous all the time. ... He's a dangerous forward and he makes defenders stand up and take notice."
Andrew Winner is a contributor to MLSnet.com
