5 players who had the biggest falls from grace

#4 Freddy Adu

The informed consensus these days is that Freddy Adu’s fall from grace was really not his fault. Deemed by many as a victim of over-bearing expectation and the pressures of the increasing commercialisation of American soccer, Adu was never going to stand a chance as a naive teenager who just wanted to score goals and play with fun.

When he became a professional, it was so easy for everyone – including himself – to dream of how big a star he could become. The early signs painted promising tales of his future greatness as he became the youngest-ever Major League Socer debutant and the youngest goalscorer at the time of his first season. If the razzmatazz was eye-popping, Adu was doing his best to live up to it all.

A pin-up for what MLS could achieve, he was the genuine poster boy but it took a while before his potential became viewed as nothing more than an over-hype star. Yes, he had good technical ability, but a combination of incorrect club destinations as well as the real possibility that his sponsors and exaggerators didn’t have his best interests at heart, combined to make life difficult for him.

Now 26 years of age, Adu is on the books at Tampa Bay Rowdies in the NASL. The nomadic ex-superstar who has played for 12 pro clubs has certainly tumbled along way since the days of being touted as “the next Pele” and despite how well-known his downfall has been, it’s still sad to think about how much things have changed for the worse.

On the plus side, age is on his side and he has never given up on forging a living from the game which really should be applauded more than it is.