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Hudson: Go easy on Adu
There's a saying in England that goes, "If you're good enough, you're old enough."
It's a saying Ray Hudson learned first-hand when he debuted for Newcastle United at age 17.
Now 48, Hudson may get to test that maxim again as coach of D.C. United, where he could be the one who decides whether 14-year-old prodigy Freddy Adu is good enough to play in MLS in 2004.
Adu signed a four-year contract with a two-year league option with MLS on Tuesday, reportedly becoming the league's highest-paid player. The landmark day for the Ghanian-born, naturalized American also included an appearance on the Late Show With David Letterman and his addition to the United States under-20 team that will play in the FIFA Youth World Championship that begins next week in the United Arab Emirates.
Hudson, meanwhile, still isn't sure he'll be coaching D.C. next season. He's in the option year of a three-year contract and expects management to resolve his status after Thanksgiving. For now, however, Hudson is Adu's coach and the prospect of mentoring the gifted forward is something he welcomes, though he's wary of expecting too much too soon.
"It'll certainly be an enjoyment and a great challenge to move the boy along," Hudson said. "But let's face it, he's been playing go-cart soccer and he'll be in with Formula One boys now. People have really got to wake up to the fact that he'll be amongst men for the first time.
"We've had glimpses of his ability and he seems to be able to fit right in. If he's good enough I wouldn't hesitate in putting him in regardless of his age. But that's not the intention here. The intention is to polish the diamond and maybe cut it into an even better piece than it is right now."
After the U-20 tournament, Adu will train with the U.S. under-17s in Bradenton until he graduates high school in the spring. He'll have turned 15 when he joins D.C. United and is placed in a media fishbowl that no American soccer player has ever experienced. That fishbowl will include his coach and teammates.
Hudson said D.C. United "cannot put a halo around" Adu and shield him from the attention and the combative nature of the pro game. He added, however, that the best way to see if the teenager is ready is to let him play.
"When I took the field [for Newcastle] at St. James against Stoke City, it was dreamland stuff. My game naturally came out," Hudson said. "There's got to be a time where we have to take the training wheels off the bike and let the kid go. He may be wobbly at first, but when he gets the hang of it he'll be turning wheelies."
Hudson is cautious not to let all the hype get the better of Adu and D.C. United. Still, he said Adu proved at recent training sessions that he has the talent and the temperament to play in MLS.
"He demonstrated plenty of verve, poise and real good decision-making in an uncomplicated manner," Hudson said. "He never showboated until right up to the last day when he started to have a little fun and started to take our breath away. That's how smart the kid was. He wasn't going to come in and stand on the rooftops and proclaim himself.
"Up to now the story has been a fairytale and it's been achieved by his own tremendous talent. The next chapter begins on the practice fields at D.C. United. Then things become extremely interesting."
The question for Hudson is whether he'll be part of that next chapter.