Jozy Altidore's club situation is yet to be settled, but an interesting thing happened over the weekend; the American striker scored for his current club, Villareal, against his rumored future club, Besiktas.
The transfer window may be closing shortly, but Jozy's ultimate fate could go down to the final hours. His goal, admittedly in a pre-season friendly, could either encourage Besiktas to consummate their acquisition of him, or give Villareal pause about letting him go. One goal won't be the deciding factor, but it would be wrong to ignore it as a an element. The fact that Jozy scored in a game involving his current club and one said to be interested in him is interesting to say the least. But rather than simplify his future, it might have complicated it.
Assuming Villareal has any interest in keeping Jozy around. Most reports indicate that he's superfluous to their needs, or that his abilities are a poor fit for their system. If that's true, Altidore is better off elsewhere, where he can contribute on a regular basis and continue his growth as a player. To this point, only Jozy's loan to Hull has benefited him as a player since Villareal purchased him from MLS in 2007, and even then perhaps moderately so. Altidore's progress, despite his importance to the USMNT, has been slow.
Of course Altidore wants to prove himself in Spain, and justify Villareal's investment in him. As noble as that desire is, and as much as it gives me reason to believe Jozy is committed to turning himself into a high-caliber player, he seems better off moving to another club where playing time is more certain.
American fans just want the kid to play, especially ahead of a meaningful Gold Cup next year.
Last season carried more weight in the development of Altidore because it fell directly ahead of a World Cup year. Jozy needed to get better quickly because the thin American striker pool meant he would be heavily relied upon. Despite the modicum of US success in South Africa, Jozy's play was largely disappointing. For the Americans to take the next step, goal scorers are desperately needed, and with Charlie Davies' future even more uncertain, Altidore will continue to carry most hopes.
When Robbie Findley, Edson Buddle, and Herculez Gomez are the best Bob Bradley can scrounge up for a high-profile (60k+ attendance high profile anyway) friendly against Brazil, the imperative for Altidore to get better is obvious. He won't do that at this stage of his career without regular playing time. If he's given the choice to stay at Villareal with his role uncertain and Besiktas, where he could be a first choice player with the right attitude, Jozy need to get to Turkey ASAP.
Altidore has shown us all enough to be excited about his future and convinced he can be a great American player, and he certainly has the natural talents. 2010-2011, with the right situation, needs to be a corner turned.
