AC Milan looks to bolster their defense with the recent signing of American defender Oguchi Onyewu to a three year contract. Onyewu, who currently starts for the U.S. national team, must have impressed football critics worldwide with his outstanding performance in the recent international World Cup warmup tournament, the Confederations Cup, which resulted with the U.S. losing in the final to heavily favored Brazil 3-2.
AC Milan will be the fifth club Onyewu has played for in his seven year professional career and Gooch will be the first American player to participate in Serie A Italian football in over ten years. The last Serie A American player to play in Italy was Alexi Lalas who played for Padova from 1994 to 1996.
There is no word yet on whether Onyewu will start, but the key American defender will look to make a significant impact next season regardless of his presence in the starting lineup or as a reserve off of the bench. Onyewu is coming off two strong seasons with Belgium club, Standard Liege, where the team won two straight league titles.
Onyewu, at six foot four, is the tallest American defender in the country’s history and the giant looks to use his great size to block plenty of shots from star players next season. The twenty-seven year old has played in very competetive leagues before including a Premier League loan with Newcastle United back in 2007, but this signing is his biggest opportunity to date.
We here at SATO will keep you posted on how the tall American does this year and wish him the best of the luck in Serie A competition.
