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New York Red Bulls fans now have three players to watch for in this year's CONCACAF U-20 Championship. RBNY first-teamer Tyler Adams should see some time for the USA, Academy product Noah Powder is on Trinidad and Tobago's roster, and Douglas Martinez will be playing for Honduras.
Per multiple reports, Martinez is set to join NYRB II in March, once the U-20 tournament is over.
@JuanMapu en Oct te comenté de este chico, seleccionado hondureño Sub 20, firmó con Red Bulls y jugará en la USL, vendrá en el mes de marzo pic.twitter.com/10ZURQhFma
— Eduardo solano (@newguayork) February 15, 2017
The primary source is Martinez himself, who told Diez:
I went in October last year and they told me they wanted me this year with them, I signed my contract for a year with an option to buy, and at the end of March I'll go there.
The 19-year-old has clocked regular minutes for current club Vida. His team is struggling in the Honduran top flight at the moment, but it will have to get off the bottom of the table without the young attacking player - he'll be a Red Bull as soon as he has finished trying to qualify for the U-20 World Cup.
His interview with Diez reveals a determined character. He set his mind to a career as a pro soccer player as a 16-year-old, pursuing that dream effectively alone: hopping a 5:00 am bus to get himself to Vida for an 8:00 am training session; leaving his mother's house to play reserve team soccer for a year and a half while waiting for his chance to break into the first team.
He plans to bring that same determination to New York: "I want to do my best for the team, nothing will be easy. I know I have to fight because I go to a different country with another language. I will do my best to succeed."
He has already impressed RBNY sufficiently to win a contract from a late-season trial last year. Next he will seek to turn a II-team opportunity into MLS minutes by 2018.