September 7: Philadelphia Union’s teenage superstar Cavan Sullivan, 16, has scored in his third straight Major League Soccer (MLS) game, breaking a record set two decades ago by former wonderkid Freddy Adu.
Sullivan scored in the 75th minute with a clinical left-footed finish to seal a 2-0 win at CF Montreal on Saturday. It led him to 11 goals on the year, the most by a 16-year-old in MLS, surpassing the mark set by Adu in 2005. He is also now the youngest player in MLS to record a goal contribution in five consecutive games.
In all competitions this season, including the League Cup and the Concacaf Champions Cup, Sullivan has seven goals and 11 assists in 27 appearances.
This isn’t the first Adu album he’s released either. Two years ago, Sullivan became the youngest player to appear for a senior MLS team, making his Union debut at 14 years and 293 days. Months earlier, Philadelphia handed him the largest homegrown contract in league history, a deal that ESPN reported included an agreement to sell him to Manchester City when he turns 18.
However, Adu’s comparison carries its own weight. Ghanaian-born Adu was the great American prodigy whose career never lived up to the hype, despite Pele’s endorsement. Sullivan is sparking the same excitement, with pundits and fans already pushing the youngster for a spot in Mauricio Pochettino’s USMNT squad.
Contact the writer of this story, Nick Webster, at (email protected)
