When you're the cellar dweller in Serie A, you'll look anywhere for talent that can prevent you from getting relegated to Serie B. Italian club Cagliari is doing just that, signing a goalkeeper from, of all places, a high school in San Ramon, California. Sometime in the next two weeks, David Bingham will board a flight to Italy to join one of the top soccer leagues in the world.
Bingham, a senior at California High and a star goalkeeper for the Grizzlies, said Wednesday that he has been offered a contract by Cagliari of Italy's Serie A and will leave school to join the team. He is rushing to finish some crucial classes at California and will complete his schooling via independent study in Italy.
Bingham reportedly turned down full scholarships from 14 NCAA Division I schools to sign with Cagliari, who saw him at a tournament in North Carolina and invited him to Italy for a two-week tryout. Now he'll be an American teenager in Italy, getting paid to be a reserve goalkeeper in one of the top domestic leagues on the planet. Must be nice.
Bingham does not appear to have any caps with any U.S. national soccer teams, which are packed to the gills with goalies. If he manages to crack Cagliari's lineup, though, that might change.
(H/T: The Offside)
Comments (Page 1 of 1)
I am a Cagliari fan. It is an awesome club but quite frankly they suck. Hopefully they can avoid relegation but Sonetti is going to have to work some miracles. Fortin is a decent keeper yet their backline is horrible. The bottom line is that if this kid is any good, Cagliari will be forced to sell him in a couple years to Inter or Roma just like they did Suazo and their other good players. Glad to see they are making an effort to find talent though. What an awesome experience for the kid even if he isnt quite ready for Serie A.
we (washington Highschool, fremont CA) beat them 1 to 0, that goalie is crazy