MIAMI – Alejandro Bedoya had his fair share of ups and downs with FC Nantes this year, but the US national team midfielder feels like he’s rounding into form just in time for this summer’s Copa América Centenario.
Bedoya bounced in and out of the lineup at the start of the year, missing time in the early stages of the Ligue 1 season due to injuries, a suspension and a nasty illness that kept him out for most of October and part of November. It was a stretch that included the US’s loss to Mexico in the CONCACAF Cup.
He settled in by the start of the New Year, however, scoring five goals in league and cup action since the start of 2016. His latest strike came in Nantes’ penultimate match, a well-taken finish in the 78th minute of his club’s 2-1 loss to Caen on May 7.
Now the 29-year-old Miami native is hoping to bring his solid form to the international stage, where he’ll likely play a key role for Jurgen Klinsmann and the USMNT in the Copa América.
“The second half of the season, I think I hit a good stretch of form and was playing well,” Bedoya told reporters ahead of the US’s first training session of a four-day pre-Copa camp in South Florida. “Hopefully I can bring that into the new season now. We didn’t finish the season how we wanted to over in Nantes, but I think I can definitely bring some of my form from over there back here.”
With 45 international caps and four appearances at the 2014 World Cup under his belt, Bedoya is one of the more senior players at the USMNT’s “transition camp” in Miami. He’ll likely be a major part of the Americans’ setup this summer, with Klinsmann praising his play and leadership on Tuesday.
“I think he had a tremendous year at Nantes,” Klinsmann said. “We are pleased with that process because he stands his ground, he prolonged his contract there and he wants to prove a point – mainly to himself, first of all, but also to everybody else – that he’s a high quality player.
"He’s maturing, he’s getting more consistent. He’s always had a tremendous attitude, positive character and he gives you everything he had, but sometimes his performance curve has been a bit up and down, up and down. But he’s become more consistent now in that and hopefully he can prove that now in such a big tournament like the Copa América.”
Bedoya -- who was linked to MLS last fall and this winter, and has also had his name bandied about by English Premier League and German Bundesliga clubs in the past -- signed a new deal with Nantes in February 2015. It will keep him with the club through the 2018-19 season.
He’s become a bit of a fan favorite at the French club, whose supporters regularly serenade him with the “I Believe” chant popular with US fans. Bedoya himself occasionally leads supporters in the chant after home matches, and even brought his one-year-old son with him to lead a rendition following Nantes’ season finale on Saturday.
While he’s become a part of the club fabric at Nantes, on Tuesday, Bedoya didn’t exactly rule out potentially moving to a higher-profile league or eventually heading back home to MLS, where he’s never played.
“I’ve always been an ambitious person, so of course I’ve always wanted to try to play at the highest level you can,” he said. “France is one of the best leagues, but I think I’d like to try to see if I could maybe make it to a higher level. We’ll see what happens. MLS is also in the back of my mind, there’s no secret about that, but in the meantime I’d definitely like to stay, stick it out in Europe a couple more years.”
For now though, Bedoya is focused on helping the US to a positive finish at this summer’s Copa. True to his positive reputation, he’s bullish on the US’s chances – even if he knows they’re not entering the tournament on a great run of results.
“We know that the last year maybe wasn’t the best year, but we know that when we’re all playing together and we’re all on the same page, we’re a great team. We’ve shown that in the past World Cup,” he said. “This is the biggest tournament here in a long time, so it’s just huge for us to showcase ourselves and for every player this is another window of opportunity to show themselves.”
