This time last year, Calum Angus and Dado Hamzagic were prepping for their senior campaigns on the men’s soccer team here at Saint Louis University.
Twelve months later, the two former Billikens have taken their games overseas and are already making an impact.
Angus, a defender from Portsmouth, England, recently penned a deal with GAIS, a soccer club based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Hamzagic is playing for Bosnia’s FK Sarajevo after being drafted by the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer.
Hamzagic and FK Sarajevo are currently in the middle of the qualifying stages of the UEFA Europa League. The Europa League consists of teams unable to qualify for Europe’s most prestigious club competition, the UEFA Champions League. The teams that are knocked out of the UEFA Champions League competition in the early stages then enter the Europa League, which means that Hamzagic and FK Sarajevo could face some imposing competition.
Hamzagic and Angus have already scored for their new teams-Angus with an equalizing goal in regular time against Halmstad BK and Hamzagic with the deciding penalty against Helsingborg.
Freshman Alex Sweetin understands the importance of SLU’s players showcasing their skills on an international level.
“[Playing in Europe] is a great way to judge where you are at as a soccer player. I think it’s good for a program to produce players who can play at the next level after SLU. It shows that the program is doing all the right things, making guys better soccer players,” Sweetin said.
With their moves to Europe, Hamzagic and Angus buttress the already impressive résumé of former SLU men’s soccer players, a résumé that has helped SLU bring in top recruits like Sweetin.
“Without a doubt, it is very encouraging. It shows that any player . has the chance of having a successful career … If those players went through the SLU program, it’s hard to see why any current or future SLU players can’t be successful at the professional level,” said Sweetin, “Overall, it shows that this program has a reputation of providing great soccer players and it should encourage all current and young players to come to SLU.”
Some other notables include:
*Brad Davis, Houston Dynamo-The left-footed midfielder, competing in his second consecutive Major League Soccer All-Star game, scored against England’s Everton FC.
*Vedad Ibisevic, TSG 1899 Hoffenheim-Though he only played one season at SLU, he managed to score 18 goals in that short time. Playing in the German Bundesliga, one of the top league’s in Europe, Ibisevic equaled that total with 18 goals in an injury-shortened campaign.
*Brian McBride, Chicago Fire-After a long stint with Fulham FC in the English Premier League, McBride leads Chicago with 6 goals.
*Kyle Patterson (LA Galaxy), Brandon Barklage (DC United), John DiRaimondo (Colorado Rapids), Jack Jewsbury (Kansas City Wizards) and Tim Ward (Chicago Fire) all are former Billikens that currently play in Major League Soccer.
