Altidore Scores Twice for Alkmaar

It appears Jozy Altidore is starting to find his niche in Europe. The 21 year old striker scored a pair of goals today in AZ Alkmaar's 4-0 win over NEC Nijmegen giving him three goals through the league's first three matches. By comparison, Altidore only scored one league goal in each of his first three seasons in Europe bouncing around on loans after failing to make an impression on Villareal's first team. Altidore's recent success is something to keep an eye on. It's no secret the U.S. is in desperate need of a true goal scorer up top, and if Jozy can finally put it all together, that could be a huge lift for the Americans. Altidore wouldn't be the first striker to use Holland as a jumping off point for international success. Uruguay's Luis Suarez led the Dutch Eredivisie in scoring during the 2009-2010 season with 35 goals and has since turned in tremendous performances in the 2010 World Cup, the 2011 Copa America, and last year earned himself a transfer to Liverpool of the English Premier League. I'm not saying Altidore has turned the corner yet, three games isn't enough to really be able to make that judgment, but the fact that he's on the field and scoring goals is great news no matter how you look at it.

Photo Credit: mlssoccer.com