File this one under "Rossi," or maybe "Subotic." Or maybe nothing at all.
As first reported in Bosnia, and later confirmed by TopDrawerSoccer, RBNY Academy forward Ismar Tandir signed with Sochaux of Ligue 1 last month.
"Ok," you're thinking. "That's going to happen from time to time as academies start producing better players."
And you'd be right.
But here's the thing: It looks like Tandir may not just be leaving the Red Bulls behind, but according to the player himself, he could be done with US soccer as a whole:
It's worth remembering that, even if he plays in an official game with the U-19s, he wouldn't be completely cap-tied. That only happens for official full senior national team games.
Of course, there's no guarantee that US soccer is missing out on anything here. They hadn't called Tandir in yet at any level, and it's not like there's a dearth of quality young attackers coming through the pipeline. Plus the elephant in the room is that he was born in Germany, and if he turns out to be really good... well, generally speaking, players play for the best team that puts them on speed dial.
