Andrew Dampf reports that American midfielder Michael Bradley has earned respect and some nicknames since joining Italian Serie A club Chievoin August. The 24-year-old is known a “General Bradley,” “the Midfield Sergeant” and “the American Marine.”
Bradley is a regular starter for Chievo, which is in 14th place, eight pointsclear of the relegation zone, and he already speaks Italian.
“When this is your livelihood, your profession, you give everything you have for it and you put everything you have intoit,” Bradley said. “There’s no doubt that when you’re in a new country with a new club it’s important to be able to integrate yourself as quickly as possible –that’s part of the deal.”
“We didn’t expect him to adapt so well and so quickly,” said Chievo’s front office member Fabio Moro, who played forthe club for 11 seasons. “It’s rare for a foreign player to become a starter and do so well in their first season in Italy, but he’s showed all his worth and we’ve been veryimpressed — he’s improving game by game and become a key member of the squad.”