Football
ESPN staff 8y

Alejandro Bedoya considers leaving Nantes to play at a 'higher level'

Alejandro Bedoya has enjoyed his time playing for Ligue 1 club Nantes, but the United States national team midfielder said he has his sights set on possibly taking his game to a "higher level."

Bedoya, 29, has been with Nantes since 2013, making 77 appearances and scoring 10 goals during his time there. He's also made 45 appearances for the U.S. national team and was recently called out for his recent run of good form by manager Jurgen Klinsmann at the team's camp in Miami ahead of the Copa America.

Looking down the road, Bedoya sees his immediate future in Europe, but admits a move to Major League Soccer is also something he's considered at some point in his career.

"I've always been an ambitious person, so of course I've always wanted to try to play at the highest level you can," Bedoya told reporters at the U.S. camp. "France is one of the best leagues, but I think I'd like to try to see if I could maybe make it to a higher level. We'll see what happens.

"MLS is also in the back of my mind, there's no secret about that, but in the meantime I'd definitely like to stay, stick it out in Europe a couple more years."

Bedoya's immediate focus, though, is the upcoming Copa America, which will be held at venues across the U.S. with the top teams from CONCACAF and CONMEBOL on hand to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the prestigious competition.

The U.S. kicks off the tournament on June 3 versus Colombia in Santa Clara, California, and Bedoya feels it's a great opportunity for the team and its players to showcase their abilities.

"We know that the last year maybe wasn't the best year, but we know that when we're all playing together and we're all on the same page, we're a great team," Bedoya said. "We've shown that in the past World Cup.

"This is the biggest tournament here in a long time, so it's just huge for us to showcase ourselves and for every player this is another window of opportunity to show themselves.

"The second half of the [Ligue 1] season, I think I hit a good stretch of form and was playing well. Hopefully I can bring that into the new season now. We didn't finish the season how we wanted to over in Nantes, but I think I can definitely bring some of my form from over there back here."

Klinsmann was also bullish on Bedoya's chances to be a leader for the U.S. team this summer and going forward and called out his improved consistency as something that's gotten better in recent years.

"I think he had a tremendous year at Nantes," Klinsmann said. "We are pleased with that process because he stands his ground, he prolonged his contract there and he wants to prove a point -- mainly to himself, first of all, but also to everybody else -- that he's a high quality player.

"He's maturing, he's getting more consistent. He's always had a tremendous attitude, positive character and he gives you everything he had, but sometimes his performance curve has been a bit up and down, up and down.

"But he's become more consistent now in that and hopefully he can prove that now in such a big tournament like the Copa América."

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