Bluebirds To Audition Konopka – Yanks Abroad
November 28, 2006
BLUEBIRDS TO AUDITION KONOPKA
Eugene Peysakh for Yanks Abroad
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Providence College senior goalkeeper Chris Konopka will be on trial with Cardiff City of England’s Championship, potentially as early as December 15th depending upon college obligations.
Promotion hopefuls Cardiff City are currently second in the relatively tight league standings behind Preston North End after the November 28th contests.
While potentially playing in the EPL next season is the stuff of dreams, Konopka may find himself on a top-flight English roster even sooner.
Although no trial has yet been set up with Premiership club Aston Villa, team scouts have already observed the 6’5″ netminder and have expressed an interest in taking a closer look.
The hunt for the 21-year old’s signature, however, is in its early stages.
“We haven’t spoken to too many clubs about Chris,” Konopka’s agent, Patrick McCabe, shared with YA. “We have a couple that have expressed some interest quickly.”
“We’re going to explore options in England, as well as Scandinavia and the continent.”
The keeper has access to an European Union passport through a Polish grandparent.
Although the passport has not officially been approved yet, Konopka is currently in the process of getting the document.
“We’re just going to wait and see what happens in the next few weeks because there are a number of clubs in Europe that are looking for goalkeepers and obviously Chris would be attractive because of his passport situation,” McCabe told YA.
The towering Friar started all 17 of his appearances for Providence during the 2006 season, allowing only 16 goals for a 0.94 goals-against-average while making 59 saves.
The Big East conference team earned 11 wins and six losses with Konopka between the posts.
Published in Yanks Abroad
November 28, 2006