Reflecting on past mistakes, Freddy Adu says he’ll retire ‘sometime soon’

“Sometimes, having all the talent in the world is not enough”

Freddy Adu has admitted his retirement is coming “sometime soon” as he reflected on some of his past mistakes during an interview with ex-teammate Charlie Davies.

Adu’s most recent professional minutes came in 2018 with USL side Las Vegas Lights, and though he signed with Swedish third-tier outfit Österlen FF in 2020, he would not play a minute for the club.

The onetime prodigy appeared on CBS Sports Golazo Network’s “Morning Footy” show on Friday, and spoke candidly with Davies about some of the poor decisions he made early in his career.

The 33-year-old said as a teenager, he was able to get into bars with his older friends, which went on to eventually impact his performance on the field.

“I was enjoying all that stuff. Rather than focusing on the little things like getting the rest you need, your diet, getting some stretching in, just taking care of your body, I didn’t do enough of that,” he said. “You can get away with it a little bit when you’re younger, but as you get older, those are bad habits.”

Adu was considered a future superstar when he signed with D.C. United at age 14. But nearly 20 years later, he admitted that talent alone wasn’t enough for him to ultimately reach his full potential.

“Sometimes, having all the talent in the world is not enough,” Adu said. “You have to work your butt off to maximize that talent. And guys that aren’t as talented as you, if they work their a—s off, they’re going to surpass you. And it happened in my case.”

Davies would later ask Adu about his playing future and whether he was ready to announce his retirement.

“Sometime soon,” Adu replied. “I’m technically, technically not retired yet.”

Watch the full Adu interview below

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