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Alejandro Bedoya
- DOB April 29, 1987
- Age 26
- Place of birth Englewood, New Jersey
- POSITION Midfielder
- HEIGHT 5'10"
- WEIGHT 160
- U.S. CAPS 14
- CLUB Helsingborgs
- TWITTER @alebedoya17 (52.2K followers)
- ASN 100 Rank 46
- Previous ASN 100 Rank 46
If you had to name the one player most adversely affected by the departure of Bob Bradley and the arrival of Jurgen Klinsmann, it would almost certainly be Jonathan Bornstein. The second name on that list might be Alejandro Bedoya.
Bedoya made his U.S. national debut in January 2010, and Bradley called his name 13 times over the next year and a half. The opportunities dried up abruptly, however. Bedoya has not seen any action under Klinsmann—a sure sign that competition within the American midfield is increasing.
Bedoya’s ill-fated 2011 decision to leave the Swedish side Orebro and move to Glasgow Rangers hasn’t helped his international standing either. A budding star and regular starter at Orebro, Bedoya struggled to secure playing time in Scotland. While his American teammates Maurice Edu and Carlos Bocanegra played nearly every weekend, Bedoya made just five starts for the big club.
In 2012, when Rangers’ financial woes forced the team to leave the Scottish Premier League and join the country’s fourth tier, Bedoya left, returning to the Swedish Allsvenskan. Bedoya’s prospects are now looking better, as he scored in his August 2012 debut with Helsingborgs—a spectacular bicycle kick—and can now embark on improving his game and playing catch-up with the midfielders ahead of him on the U.S. depth chart.
“I think Helsingborgs is a good move,” Bedoya told The New York Times. “It feels a bit awkward to be back, but maybe sometimes you have to take a step back to move forward. The intention is that it would be a short-term deal where I could help the club, maybe get seen for another move that will further my career and help me get back with the national team.”
An energetic, tightly sprung attacking midfielder, Bedoya does not yet possess a great first touch, but he is nothing if not ambitious. He is always willing to take on defenders at any opportunity, but his tendency to give away the ball too easily makes him a defensive liability at times. Steady playing time in Sweden will no doubt provide him the opportunity he needs to refine his game.
If bloodlines matter, Bedoya is covered in that department. Both his father and grandfather played professionally in Colombia, and Alejandro’s younger brother, Santiago, signed with the Vancouver Whitecaps in the 2011 MLS Supplemental Draft, but didn’t catch on with the club.—JOHN GODFREY
