‘It was a wow effect’ – Duran catches Chicago’s eye
Pelzer was a German defender who played for several teams in his homeland – plus 18 months at Blackburn.
Sadly his time at Ewood Park was blight by injuries. He managed just one League Cup game against Walsall in 2002.
In December 2019, four years after เล่น UFABET ผ่านมือถือ สะดวกทุกที่ ทุกเวลา retiring from playing, Pelzer got his first job with a club – technical director of MLS side Chicago Fire.
A few months into the job he went to Envigado to scout a defender – who they also went on to sign.
“I was watching our main target Carlos Teran at the time. Jhon got subbed in later on and you could already see how good he was.
“He was a raw talent but you could see his speed and acceleration. In the air he was a handful for the defenders already.
“From my experience in England I knew he had already something for England. That was something where you could have the fantasy he could make it. It was a wow effect.”
But there was a twist – in the form article headlined ‘Next Generation 2020: 60 of the best young talents in world football’ that included Duran.
“A few weeks later the Guardian brought a list out, external and after that it was a race,” said Pelzer.
“We wanted to get him somehow but the clock was ticking. There were so many other teams chasing him as well. We were convince about his qualities.”
Again, Duran’s strong family roots were evident during negotiations.
“During the pandemic we had to be creative,” said Pelzer. “We had to get in touch with the family – that was not that easy. Finally we made it, we got everyone on the same page.
“We showed him how he would progress here. We had a lot of conversations with his family and that was also something that helped a lot in the moment.”
And so in January 2021 a 17-year-old Duran became the youngest international signing in MLS history – for a fee of $2.5m (£1.8m).
But he could not move until he turned 18 – so spent the next year on loan with Envigado.