While it isn’t quite the Cinderella story of Leicester City, Stoke’s loyal, blue-collar fans are enjoying their club’s ability to match up with the EPL’s glamorous teams from London and the wealthy northwestern sides in Liverpool and Manchester.
Among Stoke’s rising stars, there’s a 20-year-old left back who grew up down the road in Birmingham. He’s Bobby Moseley, who has played for Stoke’s U-21 team along with national team appearances for Ireland’s U-21 squad.
For this season, he’s taking a trip across the pond to become a member of San Antonio FC.
Moseley signed with San Antonio FC on loan from Stoke City on Wednesday. He marks SAFC’s first loan in franchise history as the club prepares for its first home game at Toyota Field on April 9.
“There’s a lot more on the line for me here,” Moseley said. “I’ve been training with Stoke, but haven’t played with the first team and the younger ages are about development and becoming a men’s footballer. I think coming to San Antonio is going to help me make that leap.”
Moseley made his first start for the Stoke City senior squad in a preseason friendly against FC Porto.
Training with Stoke, he’s been working out next to Stoke’s starting left back Erik Pieters, who is also a star on the Dutch National Team.
Moseley is a creative and attacking back, but he hasn’t been able to get much in-game experience with Stoke battling in the EPL. That’s where San Antonio comes in, so he’ll be ready to perform on any cold and rainy Tuesday night in Stoke.
“He’s getting first-team games where three points are at stake in every match, and it’s hard to replicate that,” SAFC head coach Darren Powell said. “He needs that experience in his development now.”
After a couple of training sessions, Moseley said he could already tell he fits well into Powell’s high-energy style of play. He said the training has been similar to that of Stoke, with an identical “attitude to win” from his new SAFC teammates.
“The way football’s grown in America, it’s getting really big and the level is really high,” Moseley said. “That’s one thing people in England don’t realize yet, is how good the football is out here. In the USL, you have players with loads of games in the MLS or with international experience, and people in England are seeing more and more the quality of players going to the United States.”
This is Moseley’s second trip to America, and the first non-Disney-World-with-family trip stateside.
When he told friends and family of the opportunity, Moseley said everybody was impressed having known San Antonio through the Spurs and for it’s nice weather.
In many ways, the loan will be akin to a Study Abroad for Moseley. He’s rooming with Sebastien Thuriere and adjusting to life on his own.
Whether there will be pressure for Moseley to perform, given his background and resume from the EPL and caps with Ireland, Moseley said he’s looking forward to meeting high expectations.
“I think every player wants to impress the lads and help out as much as they can,” Moseley said. “So that’s pressure in itself, to help make this team the best it can be.”
-Lorne Chan
lchan@attcenter.com
Twitter:@lornechan
While it isn’t quite the Cinderella story of Leicester City, Stoke’s loyal, blue-collar fans are enjoying their club’s ability to match up with the EPL’s glamorous teams from London and the wealthy northwestern sides in Liverpool and Manchester.
Among Stoke’s rising stars, there’s a 20-year-old left back who grew up down the road in Birmingham. He’s Bobby Moseley, who has played for Stoke’s U-21 team along with national team appearances for Ireland’s U-21 squad.
For this season, he’s taking a trip across the pond to become a member of San Antonio FC.
Moseley signed with San Antonio FC on loan from Stoke City on Wednesday. He marks SAFC’s first loan in franchise history as the club prepares for its first home game at Toyota Field on April 9.
“There’s a lot more on the line for me here,” Moseley said. “I’ve been training with Stoke, but haven’t played with the first team and the younger ages are about development and becoming a men’s footballer. I think coming to San Antonio is going to help me make that leap.”
Moseley made his first start for the Stoke City senior squad in a preseason friendly against FC Porto.
Training with Stoke, he’s been working out next to Stoke’s starting left back Erik Pieters, who is also a star on the Dutch National Team.
Moseley is a creative and attacking back, but he hasn’t been able to get much in-game experience with Stoke battling in the EPL. That’s where San Antonio comes in, so he’ll be ready to perform on any cold and rainy Tuesday night in Stoke.
“He’s getting first-team games where three points are at stake in every match, and it’s hard to replicate that,” SAFC head coach Darren Powell said. “He needs that experience in his development now.”
After a couple of training sessions, Moseley said he could already tell he fits well into Powell’s high-energy style of play. He said the training has been similar to that of Stoke, with an identical “attitude to win” from his new SAFC teammates.
“The way football’s grown in America, it’s getting really big and the level is really high,” Moseley said. “That’s one thing people in England don’t realize yet, is how good the football is out here. In the USL, you have players with loads of games in the MLS or with international experience, and people in England are seeing more and more the quality of players going to the United States.”
This is Moseley’s second trip to America, and the first non-Disney-World-with-family trip stateside.
When he told friends and family of the opportunity, Moseley said everybody was impressed having known San Antonio through the Spurs and for it’s nice weather.
In many ways, the loan will be akin to a Study Abroad for Moseley. He’s rooming with Sebastien Thuriere and adjusting to life on his own.
Whether there will be pressure for Moseley to perform, given his background and resume from the EPL and caps with Ireland, Moseley said he’s looking forward to meeting high expectations.
“I think every player wants to impress the lads and help out as much as they can,” Moseley said. “So that’s pressure in itself, to help make this team the best it can be.”
-Lorne Chan
lchan@attcenter.com
Twitter:@lornechan
