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Jonathan David

Vince193

By Vince193
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Do you ever stop? Whether you think you have a point to make or you're trying to make an awful joke, what kind of person are you to even say something like that? Come on man, cut it out.

frmr
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Here's the translated article:   Jonathan David (Lille): “I wasn't ready” Jonathan David, the Canadian center forward from Lille, scorer of three goals in his last four matches, talks abou

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Kent Grand Master

Kent

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3 hours ago, RS said:

The 1980s?

I've heard this stated a lot, and I got curious how pronounced this "Canada was better than the USA" era was. 2 wins and 3 draws against the USA in the 80s. In the 70s we had 2 wins, 2 draws, and 2 losses.

The only time we ever beat the USA in the USA was in 1957!

Sorry for the tangent.

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Kent Grand Master

Kent

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I think probably a lot of guys don't take that audacious first touch and instead turn their body to the ball to receive it and end up having a defender or two goal side of them. They might lay it off to someone or wait for help, or just lose the ball trying to get around the defender.

Not as fun as the original post about what other players would do, but that's probably the reality. The more I watch that goal the more I love it. I'm not sure what the best part is though. That first touch? Or the hesitation before the shot with the cool head to let the defender so close to the ball while not touching it.

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Obinna Grand Master

Obinna

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13 minutes ago, BrennanFan said:

Is David's goal the most beautiful goal in the history of the CanMNT?

Not the biggest goal. Not the most important, and not the best. But I can't remember a prettier finish. 

It's right up there, but Dwayne DeRosario scored an absolute rocket against Costa Rica in a friendly at BMO (2007/8?)

 

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Snowcrash Collaborator

Snowcrash

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He's scored goals like this for Gent where he's in the box and the ball comes to him and you think the natural reaction would be to one-time it but he holds the ball waiting for the keeper or defenders to react and then slots it in. 

It's like the play is developing in slow motion for him while the defenders are on fast forward.

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Kent Grand Master

Kent

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22 minutes ago, CanadaFan123 said:

I’ve always thought that goal was overrated tbh.  De Jong v Ghana in 2015 was class.  

Gerba v Guatemala in the 2007 Gold Cup though.. what a team goal.

That's the goal I was trying to think of, thanks.

About the 3:50 mark of this video which looks like it was filmed in the 1700's.

 

It was a nice goal, but not as good as I had remembered it. It's not often we score good team goals like that. David's is right up there though. De Jong's blast was great too. Edgar had a good volley or two. The one against Jamaica was a bouncer with eyes if I remember correctly, but his other one (in Toronto I am sure, I think in 2012 qualifying?) was probably the better of the 2.

Those are all pretty recent history though. I don't have a vivid enough memory of Bunbury or Peshesolido, etc., and anything before those 2 was from before my time.

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Obinna Grand Master

Obinna

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24 minutes ago, CanadaFan123 said:

DeGuzmans second against Costa Rica in 2007 was awesome and with his left too!  Gerba against Mexico in 2008 (home game) and against Jamaica in 2009 (volley) were great goals.

Also this is hilarious but Hume’s free kick against Honduras in THAT game was actually the nicest FK I’ve seen us score and we’ve only scored one since!!

De Jong had one against Jamaica at BMO a couple of years ago. Just as nice imo

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Snowcrash

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David starting to get noticed in the rest of Belgium:

Jonathan David: from amateur to star in a year
and a half Jonathan and David played soccer at amateur level in a soccer desert in Canada. After a successful international and European debut, he can call himself one of the heroes of an emerging football nation.

When Jonathan David spends some time in his hometown of Orléans, a suburb of the Canadian capital of Ottawa, he is guaranteed to kick a ball in the Millennium Sports Park. The 34-hectare complex, including fifteen football and American football pitches, has over the years become the meeting point for all sports enthusiasts from the wider Ottawa area. Would David think back to the training he had to complete on a parking lot or basketball court due to a lack of financial resources? "If the makeshift fields were covered with snow carpet, they would walk until the white powder had melted," laughs Hany El-Magraby, David's seven-year trainer at Gloucester Hornets and Ottawa Internationals. 'In March it can still be bitterly cold in Canada. Everyone trained inside, except us. Renting an indoor hall or gym costs a lot of money. The boys were not very happy at home and I did not want to put more pressure on the parents' finances. "

David had met El-Magraby in 2011 during a trial at Gloucester Hornets and that encounter would be crucial to his development as a youth soccer player. El-Magraby had to give up his dream of becoming a professional football player and he saw a little player in David who could possibly make it. David's team mates quickly realized that he was the trainer's favorite. "Jonathan was clearly favored," says Sami Ben Moussa, who experienced David's entire trajectory up close. 'It was intended that everyone was given about the same amount of playing time. But who could always come in when we were losing? Jonathan! In order not to make it look suspicious, the coach brought in another player at the same time. '

David's preferential treatment was not appreciated by everyone, and when some parents openly complained, El-Magraby was called up by the youth education director. The discontent was not so much directed at David - everyone knew he was by far the most important player in the team - but they mainly wanted to sue the system. "Jonathan was just beyond the rest," said Ben Moussa. 'At the age of eleven he could do incredible things with and without a ball. I remember a training where the emphasis was on technology. We had to juggle and most of them had difficulty reaching twenty. The coach stopped the training and we all had to stand around Jonathan. He then held the ball seventy or eighty times high. That was the moment when everyone realized that he had something special. But he was always modest. I remember that he was called up for an internship with the national team and on his return we asked him who was the best player of the team. He immediately answered Alphonso Davies. A teammate who was also selected shook his head: "Don't tell nonsense, you were clearly the best."

Paradoxically, David was playing football with a different attitude during that period. El-Magraby had to talk to him. To show him that he had to cultivate good habits and have a good attitude to become a professional footballer. He finally made the click around the age of sixteen. The dressing room reacted with great disbelief when he returned his PlayStation 4 to El-Magraby just before the start of the summer to have no distractions during the holidays. He wanted to concentrate 100 percent on football. "There were too many moments in the beginning when he wasn't motivated to train," says El-Magraby. "But he managed to turn the knob. He started to work like a madman on training - nobody paid more attention than him.

BLUE IN AUSTRIA
At Gloucester Hornets they sat on a mountain of gold for a long time. In addition to David, Haider Kadhom, Benson Fazili, Montther Mohsen and Augustin Muhima were regularly selected for the national and provincial youth teams. But in the absence of real prospects, El-Magraby made a drastic decision in 2016: he and all his talents went to fellow-team member Ottawa Internationals and had his 16-year-old boys take part in a competition for U18. The following year they actually participated in the championship for players older than 18 years. The opponents who met David year after year wondered why he was still playing at the same amateur club.

In a concluding competition match against low-flyer Hellenic Ottawa, he once scored seven goals. The title of top scorer was at stake that day, but he was in such a generous mood that he let two penalties pass him by. "Jonathan was the cement of the team," says Ben Moussa. 'I have to think back spontaneously about a phase in a match that ended in 3-3. Jonathan got the ball at a short kick. He dribbled five players and gave the assist. As idiots, we started celebrating that goal and everyone hurried to Jonathan to congratulate him. While the goal scorer was moping a little further on. That boy is still angry today that nobody has walked to him ... "

The offers came in from the age of fifteen. Vancouver Whitecaps, Impact de Montreal, Toronto FC, Ottawa Fury ... They waved a big contract or reserved a place for David in their elite teams with the youth. Initially David saw the move to one of the top clubs in Canada, but his mentor El-Magraby allowed him to come to different insights. The two had mapped out a route years ago that should not be deviated from. El-Magraby: 'At the age of eleven, it was his dream to become a professional football player in Europe. I reminded him of that statement. We had not worked hard for seven years to eventually keep him in Canada. His parents had blind faith in me and they also advised him to wait patiently for another opportunity. "

David was pressured by the coaches of the national youth teams to register with a club from the MLS. But his entourage was afraid that he would be trapped in the system. "In Canada, a policy was pursued to place players as much as possible in Canadian clubs from the MLS," says Nick Mavromaras, David's broker for years. 'The MLS is not a bad competition in itself, but that is not a good environment for young players with great potential. The MLS is tailor-made for players aged 23, 24 or 25 who have no ambition to play football in Europe. An additional problem is the lack of visibility. Once you have made minutes in Germany, the Netherlands or Belgium, your value will rise much faster than in the MLS. "

For David, he was waiting for a liberating phone call from his broker Mavromaras, who would introduce him as a test player at a number of West European clubs. Three clubs picked up: RB Salzburg, Stuttgart and KAA Ghent. At RB Salzburg he made a good impression on Marco Rose, the current trainer of Borussia Mönchengladbach, but the Austrians only wanted to get foreigners who were better than players from their own academy. The timing was not right at Stuttgart. The club was in transition and the U21 coach didn't even take the time to come and see David. Mavromaras cannot remember that his pupil was affected by the second blue that he got in Germany. "He had even returned with a good feeling from his trial period in Stuttgart. That test has strengthened him in being able to make it in Europe. He had the drive to break through. "

Boundless trust
Gunther Schepens gave David the decisive push to embark on his European adventure. "Why Ghent? I have offered Jonathan to various Belgian clubs, "says Mavromaras. 'Anderlecht was certainly one of them and I think I also contacted Club Brugge. Ghent responded as the only one and after a meeting with Schepens, Ghent agreed to let Jonathan fly over. Bart Van Renterghem then coached the U21 and after a few training sessions he realized that Jonathan was a player who could make a difference. He initially kept it to himself, but after a few days he had told me on the phone: "Jonathan is great."

In the spring of 2017, the David and Ghent clans reached an oral agreement, sealed with a handshake between Michel Louwagie and Mavromaras. In January 2018, the day of his 18th birthday, the attacker would sign a minimum contract and be placed with U21. For Ghent, the countdown could begin and it came down to keeping David under the radar for as long as possible. Nick Mavromaras: 'I received continuous calls for six months from Carl Robinson, the trainer of Vancouver Whitecaps. He had devised the same project for Jonathan as for Alphonso Davies. But my position was clear: I wanted to find a club for Jonathan where he would play in the A-team as quickly as possible. So it didn't matter to me that he could earn four times more at Barca B, Real Castilla or the U21 in Manchester City. I once asked him what his ultimate goal is. He said shortly: I want to become one of the best attackers in the world. You don't hear that often from the mouth of a 16 year old. At that age you are reluctant and you mainly hope to get playing minutes here and there. Jonathan was different in that respect: he had boundless confidence in himself at a young age. "

With the years, Mavromaras noticed a special characteristic with David. Just like his father, he has full control of his emotions. Such as the one time at Ottawa Internationals when a sore teammate threw a ball full in the face of David. Everyone got ready for a fight, but David looked straight at his assailant and calmly stepped away. It is no coincidence that Canadian coach John Herdman calls him iceman because of his cold-bloodedness on and off the field. Ben Moussa: 'When I had to say goodbye to Jonathan after his last match in Canada in 2017, I was quite emotional. He remained stoically calm. "

TAPED LOGO
At Canada, David is now part of an over-talented class with prodigy Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich), Ballou Tabla (Barcelona B), Liam Millar (Kilmarnock), and the slightly older boys like Cyle Larin (Zulte Waregem) and David Hoilett (Cardiff City). They are all offensive players whom Canada could only fantasize about in the past, claims Mavromaras. "It's a good time to play for Canada. In 2026 we organize the World Cup together with Mexico and the US and in principle we are automatically placed. But David's first goal is Qatar in 2022. "

Not that they will suddenly go crazy in Canada. Release Davies and David in CanMNT training suit in Montreal, for example, and the question is how many people will stop for a selfie. David, on the other hand, is not waiting for a horde of groupies to tear him off. When he had to travel to Canada last week, he stuck the logo of Ghent on his football bag with tape so as not to stand out at the airport in Zaventem. 'In Belgium, Eden Hazard and Vincent Kompany cannot just walk on the street. We are not nearly ready for that in Canada yet. Maybe if David ever played Barcelona for his favorite team ... I would be happy if he made a career as Didier Drogba. Remember that he is still young.

Superhero in Haiti
Even before the people in Canada know his name well, Jonathan David shoots himself in the history books of his country by being the first player to score twice in his debut against the US Virgin Islands. And in July of this year, David can call himself the discovery at the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the championship for countries from North and Central America and the Caribbean. His two hits against Martinique make David the youngest scorer in an opening match of the Gold Cup and a week later, around 60,000 spectators at the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte see David score a hat-trick against Cuba. And guess what? David again crowns himself as the youngest player to reach such a milestone. With six goals he eventually wins the Golden Boot Award and is in the team of the tournament.

Due to the elimination in the quarterfinals against Haiti, the land of his parents, David will look back on the event with mixed feelings. The days before the match, David is the topic of conversation in the poverty-stricken land of the Caribbean Sea. "It was a special week for Jonathan," admits his broker Nick Mavromaras. "But he has tried to focus entirely on football. I know what Haiti means to him, but he was there primarily to represent Canada. "

The 19-year-old striker gave Canada the lead, but The Canucks lost 3-2 to Haiti. "Out of respect for his parents, he did not celebrate his goal. It has earned him even more appreciation in Haiti. Afterwards he went to the dressing room of Haiti to congratulate the players one by one. Doesn't that testify to class? He knows a number of players personally and some Haitian internationals even consider him an example. "

It hadn't mattered much if David, who was born in Brooklyn and therefore American, had played for Team USA. He hesitated because the US enjoys more prestige in the football world. Mavromaras: 'In addition to the US, Haiti also polled Jonathan. I presented him with the three options and he was allowed to choose his entourage without any pressure. I know many players had chosen the US, but he wanted to remain loyal to Canada. He wanted to give something back to the country that his family had taken care of. Once he had made his choice, there was no turning back for him. In the summer of 2018 he dropped an internship with the U20 of the US to participate in the Tournoi de Toulon with Canada. In October, Canada and the US play against each other in the Nations League and I am sure he will cheer if he scores. In the end, there is little that binds him to the US. "

'Learn to cook with colleagues from the B-core'
Jonathan David once missed a few medical tests at Ghent because he had not heard his alarm clock and he overslept. That stupidity was heavily charged to him by his broker Nick Mavromaras. "At the club, some people thought that he had sunk heavily during the night. While he just loves sleeping very much, "says Mavromaras. "But it never happened to him again."

Apart from that incident, David is known in Ghent as a serious and independent boy. After staying for a few months in the Lepelbed hotel, he went to live in an apartment of the club. "Jonathan was unable to cook and that was a problem," says Bart Van Renterghem, former U21 coach at KAA Ghent. 'I visited a student restaurant in Ghent with him and we had lunch together there after the morning training. Students can buy a varied meal at student prices. Jonathan was not a student and since he was not interested in registering for one or more courses, this solution turned out to be expensive. I managed to get the chef, Marc Van Camp, to surrender surplus players from the A-team to a driver, who then dropped it off at the youth complex on Warmoezeniersweg. So Jonathan could occasionally enjoy a decent meal. He then learned to cook with fellow players from the B-team. That typifies the evolution that Jonathan has undergone in a few months. "

 

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red card Grand Master

red card

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4 hours ago, Snowcrash said:

David starting to get noticed

 

I assume this was a translated version ? Do you have the link? It took the foreign press to produce the first definitive article on David while Cdn press basically produce cookie-cutter profiles.

And they got new details about the Cdn system - national youth coaches pressuring players to play for MLS academies (maybe that's why nearly all youth players selected are from MLS) & Whitecaps pursuit of David. He wasn't as unknown as the Cdn press makes it out to be but instead missed because he wasn't part of MLS system like Davies.

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Snowcrash

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1 hour ago, red card said:

I assume this was a translated version ? Do you have the link? It took the foreign press to produce the first definitive article on David while Cdn press basically produce cookie-cutter profiles.

And they got new details about the Cdn system - national youth coaches pressuring players to play for MLS academies (maybe that's why nearly all youth players selected are from MLS) & Whitecaps pursuit of David. He wasn't as unknown as the Cdn press makes it out to be but instead missed because he wasn't part of MLS system like Davies.

https://sportmagazine.knack.be/sport/ma ... 07637.html

 

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