Soony Saad
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Hassan Ali Saad | ||
| Date of birth | August 17, 1992 | ||
| Place of birth | Dearborn, Michigan, United States | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Sporting Kansas City | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2008–2009 | IMG Soccer Academy | ||
| 2009–2010 | Derby County Wolves | ||
| 2010 | Michigan Wolverines | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2011– | Sporting Kansas City | 11 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2008–2009 | United States U17 | 16 | (0) |
| 2010 | United States U20 | 1 | (1) |
| 2012 | Lebanon | 0 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of July 14, 2012 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of February 29, 2012 | |||
Hassan Ali "Soony" Saad (born August 17, 1992) is a Lebanese soccer player who plays for Sporting Kansas City in Major League Soccer.
Career
Youth and College
Saad set a state single-season record with 76 goals in his 2009 season while concluding his high school career with a state record 172 goals, plus 51 assists; breaking previous state high school single-season goals record of 69 set in 2000, and previous state high school career goals record of 169 set in 1995.[2] He also earned the 2009 Michigan Soccer Coaches Association "Mr. Soccer" Title and was named the 2009-10 Gatorade National Player of the Year.[3]
Saad had a very successful freshman season, scoring 19 goals, smashing the previous record of 14 for most goals by a freshman at the University of Michigan, while setting records for shots and overall points.[4] He played on the team with his brother Hamoody Saad. He helped the team win their first Big Ten Championship and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year.[4] Saad left school after his freshman year to seek a professional contract with a European team.[5]
Professional
Saad opted to leave college early and sign a professional contract with Major League Soccer. On July 5, 2011 Sporting Kansas City won his services in a weighted lottery system utilized by the league to distribute players who sign with the league after the MLS SuperDraft.[6]
Saad made his MLS debut on August 17, 2011, which was his 19th birthday.[7] He scored a debut goal in the 72 minute, just nine minutes after he came on. Soony also logged 2 more goals for Sporting in reserve games against Colorado Rapids and FC Dallas, and scored once in a friendly against Guadalajara on October 12, 2011.
International
Soony Saad received his first callup to join the United States U-20 men's national soccer team in December 2010, and played in one game against Canada, scoring once. [8][9]In 2012 Lebanese coach Theo Bucker sent him a request to join the Lebanese national football team due to his Lebanese descent.[citation needed]
References
- ^ "Soony Saad". MLSsoccer.com. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
- ^ Chad Konecky (2010-07-11). "Soony Saad: Gatorade profile". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2011-02-18.
- ^ Pete Cunningham (2010-05-20). "Michigan soccer commit Soony Saad named Gatorade National Player of the Year". AnnArbor.com. Retrieved 2011-02-15.
- ^ a b "Saad Collects Big Ten First Team, Freshman of the Year at Awards Banquet". CBS Interactive. 2011-11-11. Retrieved 2011-02-16.
- ^ Brian Mechanick (2011-01-27). "Soony Saad leaving Michigan for European professional team". Retrieved 2011-02-15.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|news=ignored (|newspaper=suggested) (help) - ^ http://www.mlive.com/soccer/index.ssf/2011/07/wins_mls_lottery_for_former_michigan_star_soony_saad.html
- ^ Andrew Wiebe (2011-08-18). "It ain't pretty, but Saad happy to log first goal on birthday". MLSsoccer.com. Retrieved 2011-08-18.
- ^ "Saad Selected for USA U-20 National Team Training Camp". CBS Interactive. 2010-12-13. Retrieved 2011-02-18.
- ^ Noah Davis (2010-12-21). "McInerney Strikes in US U-20's Win Over Canada". MLSsoccer.com. Retrieved 2011-02-18.