{"id":3896,"date":"2023-10-04T12:31:13","date_gmt":"2023-10-04T10:31:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/?p=3896"},"modified":"2023-10-04T12:42:43","modified_gmt":"2023-10-04T10:42:43","slug":"amerikai-cserediak-copy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/bekeffy-gabor-cikkek\/amerikai-cserediak-copy\/","title":{"rendered":"Discussion avec Mr Roger Vanden Stock, President du RSC d’Anderlecht."},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Seventeen-year-old American Jacob Labovitz navigates Europe in search of a pro soccer career<\/strong><\/p>

Former Langley forward Jacob Labovitz, right, scored eight goals during a 10-game span in the Netherlands in March. (Photo from Marbella United FC)
His scoring barrage spurred local dominance, helping Langley capture its first soccer state championship last spring. His motivation, as it turns out, drew sustenance from a more global vision: Jacob Labovitz wanted to thrive in Europe.<\/p>

Labovitz explored the idea with his family as a 16-year-old sophomore last winter, just weeks before he spearheaded a 20-win season that granted the Saxons soccer supremacy. The precocious striker had heard about Marbella United FC, an American-run soccer academy in southern Spain that competes in premier amateur league play and participates in professional tours around Europe. He wanted to take a risk. He wanted to get better.<\/p>

\u201cPretty much all of my life, just watching everyone on TV in Europe, it\u2019s just very appealing,\u201d Labovitz said. \u201cIf you want to go pro, that\u2019s the way to go.\u201d<\/p>

And off Labovitz went last summer, equipped with a student visa that granted him temporary stay in Spain. He was set for daily training and online classes at Marbella United, an extension of the US Soccer Academy LLC established by Richmond Kickers founder Bobby Lennon.<\/p>

Labovitz wasn\u2019t Langley\u2019s only soccer prospect to pack his bags for Europe. His friend and Loudoun Soccer Club teammate Sam Golan signed a two-year scholar contract with Brighton & Hove Albion FC last August. Golan, a sophomore center back for the Saxons last spring, plays for the BHAFC U18 squad in the Barclay\u2019s U18 Premier League, England\u2019s highest level of academy football for the age group.<\/p>

While Golan moved to England\u2019s southern coast with his parents, Labovitz trekked to Spain\u2019s southern coast by himself. His would be a more peripatetic journey, one marked by trials in five different countries.<\/p>

\u201cI knew my family wanted what was best for me, and I was trying to go pursue a dream,\u201d said Labovitz, a first-team All-Met who scored 26 goals for Langley last year. \u201cIt makes it a lot easier knowing that they want it for you, too. It definitely was extremely hard, but you know it will pay off one day.\u201d<\/p>

In Marbella, Labovitz began each day with flexibility and agility training, then completed a two-hour morning session of soccer drills. Online classes through a University of Nebraska High School curriculum followed, and the day would finish up with either another soccer session or strength training.<\/p>

Those evenings in the weight room added considerable bulk to Labovitz\u2019s frame, while periodic games against other youth academies around Spain enhanced his skill beyond measure. The Iberian juggernaut has long cultivated some of the world\u2019s sharpest players, a reputation burnished by its 2010 World Cup triumph and victories in each of the last two UEFA European Football Championships.<\/p>

\u201cBeing in Spain, the technical aspect and how comfortable they are on the ball is second to none,\u201d Labovitz said.<\/p>

Labovitz, who turned 17 in September, used to lament being one of the youngest players in his age group growing up. Even as he thrived in club competition, the prolific attacker knew he would be even more dominant if he were born just a couple months later.<\/p>

But that experience of facing older opponents proved useful in Europe, where Labovitz was the youngest player at nearly every stop. Players generally ranged from 17 to 23 among the Spanish academy teams he faced, and the opposition was often much older during his tour in Hungary last month.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/p>

Jacob Labovitz threads a shot through traffic for the game-winning goal in a 2015 state semifinal matchup against Oakton. (Pete Marovich \/ For The Washington Post)
Labovitz enjoyed a productive March playing against academy teams in the Netherlands, though it was his one-week stint with Debreceni VSC, a professional Hungarian team based outside Budapest, where the young American made his most meaningful impact. Like his previous stops, Labovitz wasn\u2019t able to play in games without a European passport, but his impressive showing while training with Debreceni\u2019s reserves piqued the club\u2019s interest in his future services. Even against some former first-team players who competed on Debreceni\u2019s 2010 UEFA Champions League squad, Labovitz held his own and showcased his uncanny nose for goal.<\/p>

Not bad for a teenager living alone in a strange country and without a firm grasp of the language.<\/p>

\u201cGetting lost is just the worst,\u201d Labovitz said. \u201cYou\u2019ll end up in a place where a tram doesn\u2019t come back for another hour and you\u2019re just kind of stuck there. So that\u2019s probably the most confusing. You take one bus and it leads somewhere else.\u201d<\/p>

Hungary could represent Labovitz\u2019s best avenue to a more permanent stay in Europe. His great great grandfather was Hungarian, giving him the chance to obtain a Hungarian passport that would grant clubs based in the EU the opportunity to sign him. Labovitz returned to the States earlier this month, but he continues to study Hungarian with the hope of demonstrating intermediate fluency on the citizenship test sometime in the coming months.<\/p>

[At 17, Christian Pulisic does what no one has with U.S. Soccer and in the Bundesliga]<\/p>

Obtaining that passport is key for many American soccer players aiming to hone their craft overseas. More and more players see it as the best path to make the U.S. men\u2019s national team, especially since national team Coach Jurgen Klinsmann has repeatedly emphasized his preference for players enduring the grind of top European competition over players sticking to the less demanding rigors of Major League Soccer. It\u2019s no coincidence, then, that one of Labovitz\u2019s top aims is to someday suit up for his country.<\/p>

\u201cMy goal is to be on the national team in a few years,\u201d he said.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/p>

Labovitz was an All-Met last spring as a sophomore for the state champion Saxons. (Jonathan Newton \/ The Washington Post)<\/span><\/div>

The European fast track to national team stardom is currently being blazed by Christian Pulisic,\u00a0the 17-year-old American phenom making waves at Borussia Dortmund<\/a>, the second best team in Germany\u2019s top flight. Pulisic, who last month became the youngest player ever to score two goals in the Bundesliga, has a grandfather who was born in Croatia. He signed with Dortmund after his Croatian passport arrived last July.<\/span><\/p>

Labovitz, who spent a week earlier this year training with third-division club VFL Osnabruck in the outskirts of Dortmund, is four days older than Pulisic. He played against the standout midfielder once during an Olympic Development Program tournament in Pennsylvania about four years ago.<\/span><\/p>

Sports Daily newsletter<\/strong><\/p>

Sports news with a focus on D.C. area teams.<\/p>

\u201cThat kid\u2019s amazing,\u201d Labovitz said. \u201cIt\u2019s just his technical awareness, and his speed on the ball is amazing.\u201d<\/p>

Labovitz doesn\u2019t reach Pulisic\u2019s soaring quality, but his scoring instincts rank him among the best to come through Northern Virginia in recent years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

\u201cHe has a tremendous work ethic, a real positive attitude, and then just goal-scoring,\u201d said Loudoun 98 Red Coach Mark Ryan, who coached Labovitz during the three years before he went to Europe. \u201cHe can score 35-yarders, headers, volleys, tap-ins. So he has the ability to score a range of different types of goals. He\u2019s always done that wherever he\u2019s played.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

Labovitz trained with D.C. United\u2019s U23 squad for a couple days when he returned home earlier this month. He\u2019s also playing for the U19 team at Annandale United FC, the club run by Langley Coach Bo Amato. He doesn\u2019t know how long he\u2019ll be home or whether he\u2019ll return to Europe at all. The only thing clear to him now is his dream.<\/span><\/p>

\u201cI\u2019m not sure what will happen,\u201d Labovitz said. \u201cI just want to go pro as soon as I can.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

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Seventeen-year-old American Jacob Labovitz navigates Europe in search of a pro soccer career Former Langley forward Jacob Labovitz, right, scored eight goals during a 10-game span in the Netherlands in March. (Photo from Marbella United FC)His scoring barrage spurred local dominance, helping Langley capture its first soccer state championship last spring. His motivation, as it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":975,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"0","ocean_second_sidebar":"0","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"0","ocean_custom_header_template":"0","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"0","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"0","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"0","ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"off","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bekeffy-gabor-cikkek","entry","has-media"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3896"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3896\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/975"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bekeffyfootball.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}