Ex-US int'l Nguyen signs multi-year deal with MLS

[NEP]

Two days ago, American attacker Lee Nguyen tweeted that, “This upcoming season, I will be taking my talents to MLS.”

On Tuesday, the 25-year-old former Dallas-area youth phenom made it official, putting pen to paper and signing a multi-year deal with Major League Soccer.

“Lee is a player that MLS is delighted to sign, with the contract potentially extending through 2015,” said MLS director of player personnel Lino Di Cuollo. “We feel his signing is a testament to the league's commitment to bringing back talented American players. He has done well internationally, having played on multiple clubs in Europe and Asia, and we expect that he will be a terrific attacking option for whichever club he joins."

Despite having previous US national team experience – Nguyen has three caps, all in 2007, including two substitute appearances at the Copa América – the attacker will enter a weighted lottery rather than the allocation ranking customarily used for players with USMNT experience to determine which team will end up with his services.

This will be the Texan’s first foray in MLS. Nguyen, who departed for Europe after a spectacular freshman season at Indiana University, spent two years at PSV Eindhoven and two more at Randers FC before making his way to the Vietnamese league – the first American to play there – in 2009.

Nguyen quickly established himself as a star in Vietnam, where he amassed 14 goals in 29 V-League appearances with Hoàng Anh Gia Lai (2009-10) and Becamex Binh Duong FC (2010-11). Before signing with Binh Duong, Nguyen fielded interest from Chicago, Colorado, Dallas and Seattle, but eventually opted for the Vietnamese side.

Last season, Nguyen, a popular figure in Vietnam, was the highest-paid athlete in the country.

In June, he and Binh Duong FC decided to terminate the player’s contract, freeing him up for a move to MLS.

Người gốc Việt đầu tiên đá banh trong MLS?

[lait]

Congratulated Vietnam

[NEP]

Hy vọng chơi cho Seattle Sounders FC, my home team.

[NEP]

Lee Nguyen, the once highly rated United States youth international, is back in North America and he wants to get back in the US national team picture.

On Thursday, the Vancouver Whitecaps won the MLS weighted lottery for the 25-year-old’s rights, beating out FC Dallas, Houston, Real Salt Lake, Toronto FC and the LA Galaxy. Vancouver had a 47.6 percent chance, the highest of the participating teams, due to the nature of the weighted lottery process.

“I wanted to come back [to North America],” Nguyen told MLSsoccer.com by phone Thursday afternoon after Vancouver secured his rights. “I’m looking for a new challenge. Hopefully [by] coming back here, I’ll get myself back on the US national team radar.”

Nguyen won three caps for the US in 2007 while he was on the books of Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven. However, since moving on to the Danish league and in recent years the Vietnamese V-League, he has been somewhat of a forgotten man.

But regardless of the standard in the V-League, where he played with Hoàng Anh Gia Lai (2009-10) and then Becamex Binh Duong FC (2010-11), he was prolific, scoring 14 goals in 29 appearances.

In Vancouver, Nguyen may be asked to play more of a wing role rather than as a withdrawn striker, the position he played at PSV and in Vietnam.

"[Head coach Martin Rennie] call me earlier and welcomed me to the club," Nguyen said. "We talked a little bit about the club and what he has in store for next season and what he hopes to accomplish. I feel that we're on the same page and he plays a style I'm comfortable with.

“Depending on what formation he decides to play, he sees me as a left or right winger,” Nguyen said. “Or, he said, maybe as a creative midfielder, like an underneath striker, where I played in Holland and Vietnam. I can play either.”

Rennie watched Nguyen play at Indiana University before the player’s move abroad, and the attacker’s versatility factored into the club’s decision to pick him up.

“Sometimes in the past I’ve played 4-3-3, sometimes 4-4-2, sometimes 4-2-3-1,” Rennie said during a phone interview Thursday evening. “With him, the fact that he knows how to play as a winger or a player just off the striker, then that’s an advantage. He understands the role in a [4-3-3] system, either on the left or the right, so I think that’s an advantage.

“In Holland, they coach that system better than anybody, so I’m sure he’ll have learned a lot there.”

Nguyen, who grew up in Dallas, has never been to Canada but has heard good things about Vancouver, even if 2011 was somewhat of a rough start from a competitive perspective.

“I’m excited,” Nguyen said. “I don’t know anyone that has played for Vancouver, but I’ve heard it’s a great city, a great atmosphere and a great club. They didn’t perform too well in the league this year, but they’re bringing in new players and have a new coach, so hopefully we can turn things around next season.”