Source: Daily_Mail
Jozy Altidore thanks his lucky stars after winning Hull City debut
American striker Jozy Altidore thought his dream move to Hull City would collapse.
But now he has arrived in East Yorkshire, the teenager is determined to make up for lost time.
Altidore had to wait two weeks in a New York hotel for his visa clearance to come through, and even suffered a swine flu scare after meeting up with the United States squad.
Jozy Altidore
American dream: Altidore had no problems settling in at Hull
But he finally got the thumbs-up to join City on loan from Villarreal last week and, just hours after jetting in by helicopter, the 19-year-old made his debut as a substitute against Bolton on Saturday.
Altidore, who laid on the winner for Kamel Ghilas with his second touch, could complete a £6million move to Hull if his season proves a success.
He is certainly keen to fulfil his dream of playing in the Barclays Premier League after rave reviews from international team-mates like Everton keeper Tim Howard and Fulham's Clint Dempsey.
Altidore said: 'What people tell you doesn't quite cut it. When you play a game you see first hand that it's exactly what people say it is and then some. People say they can play in the Premier League but you have to play in it first and then see.
'This is what I've been waiting for, a big chance for me to prove my worth. I want to make sure I do well and not slack off or be distracted by stupid things. I'm here to play football and that's the most important thing.
'It's all been a little bit crazy but it was all about getting here and contributing to the team. It's been very frustrating not being able to do anything proper for the last two weeks but I'm finally here.
'I was running around embassies, listening to hearings, running around with passport photos, running when I could on the treadmill and I was keeping in touch with team-mates the best I could and tweeting all my frustrations.
Ghilas
Winner: Ghilas earned the points for the Tigers against Bolton
'I was losing faith and thought it was all going to be for nothing. Last Monday the embassy was closed and I was thinking "this isn't good".
'I was supposed to be here that day so that was a low point but a lot of people worked their tails off to bring me here and thankfully the guys behind the scenes, the lawyers, the chairman, the gaffer, they all did a great job trying to get me here and I appreciate it.
'I will give it my best shot every time I step on to the pitch. You have to try and feed off them and give it back.'
Altidore will be keeping the boots found by Hull kitman Barry Lowe after he was unable to find his own pair at the weekend.
Brown has had to be patient to land his man but the City boss, who gave the striker his debut despite concerns over jet lag and exhaustion, is convinced he will prove popular with City supporters.
And the early signs of his relationship with £2m signing Ghilas are encouraging.
Brown added: 'He's a bright kid but the bottom line is that he's hungry. He's a 19-year-old who's come on and helped to win us the game.
'He's a strong, robust striker who has an attitude towards running at you. He looks at the whites of your eyes and he wants to put you under pressure and ask you questions. Strikers who do that are priceless and he brings something to us that we haven't got.'
