The big question that remains unanswered so far is where will Jozy play next season. Will he stay with Villarreal in the top flight La Liga or will they loan him out again to a Segunda B side, like Xerez? Or will an EPL or another European side pick him up? At just 19 years of age Jozy has tons of potential, and his play in the Confederations Cup has only helped boost his value.
One player that might not want to see Jozy back in Spain is Villarreal teammate Joan Capdevila: who Jozy beat for the first goal in the United States surprise win, as they beat Spain 2-0. Capdevila and Altidore exchanged text messages prior to the match: “Yesterday he sent me a message and told me that we had to be careful. But his Spanish is not so great, so I think he made a mistake.”
Jozy also told Charlie Davies that Spain weren’t quick, and they could beat them with their speed. Jozy used not only his speed but also his size and strength proved too much for Capdevila on the first goal.
If there’s a United States player who has a Lebron James like charisma it’s Jozy Altidore. It’s possible that he could be an endorsement king if he has a successful World Cup in South Africa in 2010. In the interview below he’s smart, humble, funny and down to earth – even calling Healy buddy and man a few times. Or maybe he was just nervous. But Jozy does have a good nature about him, you want him to succeed and do well.
Jozy had a good debut for Villarreal and scored a goal later in the season. They may just want to keep him.
Update: Jozy Altidore has had a long professional career for a 25-year-old. Including his fair share of ups and downs. However it has been his self belief, instilled at a young age from his mentor Josef Schulz and nurtured by his family, that has gotten him scoring goals for Toronto FC and the U.S. National Team. The latest episode of MLS Insider takes you back to the early days of Jozy Altidore’s childhood in Florida, where he attended Miami Fusion games as a kid, and it reveals the chance meeting that eventually led him all the way to MLS and a World Cup with the USA.