FOLLOWING his move to the United States of America, Teenage Hadebe has admitted language was an issue during his stay in Turkey.
The former Kaizer Chiefs defender recently joined Major League Soccer (MLS) side Houston Dynamo from Turkish Super Lig side Yeni Malatyaspor for a reported fee of $1,6 million.
The Zimbabwe international believes the move is set to give his family a better life.
“To be honest, first of all my agent asked me if I wanted to play in America. I asked him to give me some time. You know, you don’t have to say yes there and there. You must take your time to go and talk with the family,” he told American journalists.
“Then I talked to my wife. You know in Turkey, sometimes they don’t speak English so my wife and I agreed that it was better for me to come to America, so that our kids can go to good schools. You know in America, life is good, you speak English and I’m sure my kids are looking forward to learning everything.”
Turkey’s official language, Turkish, is of course the most widely spoken language in the country straddling Western Asia and Southeast Europe, but the Marmara Region is also home to Greek, Armenian, Ladino, Arabic, Bulgarian, Venetian Italian, Albanian, Romanian, Georgian, Laz, Aramaic and Persian speakers.
On the other hand, in America the most commonly used language is English and Hadebe is convinced that will work well for his kids.
Hadebe will have to wait for a little longer to make his MLS debut with Houston Dynamo.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
He started training with the team last week but was not part of the match day squad for the game against Seattle Sounders FC on Thursday morning.
With the MLS taking a break this week because of the Concacaf Gold Cup, Hadebe is now set to make his debut either on July 20 against the Vancouver Whitecaps or in Northern California on July 24 against San Jose Earthquakes.
The 25-year-old got Super Lig Team of the Week honours five times during his two-year stint in Turkey, with the first two coming in his first season. He made 53 appearances with his Turkish club, plus some domestic Cup games and UEFA Europa League qualifying rounds.
This past season, he was on target twice also providing one assist. Internationally, Hadebe has 17 caps with the Zimbabwe Warriors. — FARPost
