That is great reporting and is worth more than a video highlight reel. Talk about a diamond in the rough.
Eh, seems like a reclamation project but Ogunjimi had to have some quality to get to where he was at his peak. He. He's not old. His injury history isn't terrifying. It's the Revs. I think he gets a shot.
We thought the same thing about Cisse ... then his salary info came out. I'm not sure what to make of this move. Potential is there, so I'm on the hopeful side.
I disagree. Cisse had been playing regularly and IMO was worth the $400k contract based on his pedigree and recent performances. Goncalves was similar to Ogunjimi, neither had seen much of the field prior to coming to the Revs to trial.
So his contract with Mallorca expires June 2015. Let's just say he does go on loan to the Revs and prove to be a worthy starting FWD. I'd think the transfer fee would be very small, seeing as he'd have only 6 months of playing time left on his contract. Problem I see is that he is likely on a huge contract in relation to what the Revs have historically paid. I'm guessing somewhere around $600-800K/year. Now granted, that was when he was a Belgian National Team player. He'd have to expect a pay cut after the past few seasons. There's also a chance he'd be happy to stay with a club if he found some consistent time/form. So if Heaps thinks he can turn him around, it looks like a good opportunity for both sides.
Cisse and Ogunjimi isn't a direct comparison though. Cisse did not trial, was signed very early in the offseason, and had no significant (documented) injury history. He also was still a key player in his team's most recent season and still had significant interest from teams in Europe, which made the Revs overpay. Ogunjimi is trialing, has fallen out of favor in Belgium, and has an injury history. I'd say Cisse also had a slightly more impressive resume than Ogunjimi, quality of national team affiliation aside. If Ogunjimi does sign, I wouldn't be surprised if he gets around $250 - 275k, but no way does he get the $440k Cisse was offered.
I was expecting somewhere in the 300ks. To be honest, I had much higher expectations for him than I've had for any of our other recent foreign signings except maybe Bengtson.
Not worried about the Mallorca travails--La Liga can be a very peculiar place for forwards who would find success elsewhere either with physicality or pure speed. More worried about the career decision making and attitude issues hinted at. This solidifies our M.O. as bargain shopping in the European dustbins. Not a bad thing, but I continue to think we aren't getting the most for our (limited) money out of these players. Given the JoGo situation, are we really going to reward success anyway, are we really building a core, or are we just looking to rent a series of useful players to keep up appearances?
I didn't know this was a deal that had to be re-upped every year, but Rochester will again be the Revs' USL-Pro affiliate. Rhinos coach Bob Lilley was with the Revs at the Bradenton camp.
You see, this is the kind of double-speak, non-truths that drive me crazy. The Revs had 1 player (Bilal Duckett) recalled for 1 game (May 2nd @POR) with the first team, and all 4 players are now ex-Revs. I hope it improves this year, but in 2013, the "benefit" was one-sided. Yeah, I know, there is no benefit to Burns being brutally honest here, because the fault isn't Rochester's, it's his own.
They should get another partnership with my local PDL club, the Ventura Fusion. Those guys crank out pro's in an assembly line. Besides, the Revs need some west coast farming to up their game. Yeah, I said it.
To be fair, Latigue and Polak were also recalled for three USOC games, in addition to Duckett's recall for the Portland game.
Besides, they are in the second division currently. If Real Mallorca doesn't want him on the squad, he's worth less than if they didn't want him and they were in the top division.
Point taken. Just as a comparison though, SKC sent 6 different players to their USL-Pro affiliate at various times during 2013. Five of the six are still with the team, and one of them played in MLS Cup. THAT is what I call "mutually beneficial". The Revs definition is "Save us the money it costs to field a reserve team."
Does it really cost the Revs money to field a reserve team? I could see it costing the league money, but the Revs?
Brian Bilello @RevsPrez Trade just completed. No one leaving us (used draft pick + allocation). Details soon. #NERevs #tease
WOO HOO. Trade just completed. No one leaving us (used draft pick + allocation). Details soon. #NERevs #tease— Brian Bilello (@RevsPrez) February 19, 2014