Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? Well it appears that the transfer window is not yet closed in Russia. Perhaps there's a disgruntled finisher rotting away in some bottom of the table gulag there. You used to be able to buy anything you needed in Moscow with a carton of Marlboro's. Maybe we can escape the transfer window dealing with Russian mobsters and escape salary cap issues with an incentive-based contract trading smokes for goals. The product endorsements alone could be enormous. Today's game brought to you by Chesterfield - the official cigarettes of MLS! Philip Morris reminds you where there's smoke - there's FIRE!!
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? Yeah, but this club isn't even in Moscow. It's in the Tatarstan Republic. It's like comparing Chicago to, say, Green Bay. If I were Ralph, I'd quit. He thought spring and fall in Chicago were cold...
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? Not only that, but Russia/Tatarstan are places not well-known for their warmth and hospitality to people with a lot of melanin. For that matter, the majority of Eastern Europe isn't well-known for their love of people with a lot of melanin, either... What I want to know is how the heck did a club in a backwater former republic of the USSR find a player in MLS? This seemed so out there as to be fiction when the story first broke.
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? I'm almost certain that transfer windows only apply to the buying club. I remember having this exact discussion when Damarcus was transferred.
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? I've heard that too. Just never from a source that actually had any experience. Maybe PW can clear that up. As for the remotness of the Russian Club, Damani will be leaving by his own choice because he stands to benefit (assuming financially). I don't think the Fire would sell any of thier players to such a remote club unless the player wanted to go. That's just not the way they operate.
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? This particular russian club isn't as removed from MLS/the Fire as indications might ssem; and it's not just Simutenkov/KC. Just saying.
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? Tatarstan? (http://www.tatar.ru/english) It had better be A LOT of money. Today's temp 3F. I'm guessing the club chasing Ralph is Rubin Kazan' (Kazan is located in Tatarstan, east of Moscow on the lake north of the Volga River). Last season they finished 10th, 28 pts behind Lokomotiv. Here's the team's website: http://www.rubin-kazan.ru/ Here's an email address for the club: fcrubin@mail.ru Let's drop 'em a line and see if they'll respond. Igor Simutenkov is on that team as well as plenty other internationals. Maybe it won't be so bad for Damani afterall.
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? From my research, it seems McBeth Sibaya (south africa) and a Gambian are playing at Rubin. Sibaya is black, and the Gambian (and possibly the Brazilian) may be as well. There are increasing number of internationals, including africans in the Russian and Ukraine leagues, which can only be good for them. Rubin seems fairly cosmopolitan for a "backwater" club, with the aforementioned players, a Norweigen, an Argentine, and a Uruguayan, as well as players from a variety from former soviet republics. And with the number of uber-wealthy Russians around these days, I'm sure the Russian League is in pretty decent condition. And they get to play in UEFA competition. Liam, what are you saying?
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? According to this: http://www.soccerbot.com/russia/tables/rus04.htm They have the same colors as the Fire.
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? If their budget is anything like hockey's Bars Kazan (55 million USD), then I think Ralph will be just fine. There is a lot of money to be made in the Russian league these days, especially as a foreigner. Brazilian Vagner Love for example makes $67,000 a month at CSKA Moscow. You get the idea... No way MLS can compete with some of these astronomical wages.
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? What a useful map I found! Not sure about the crowds, but the church/mosque is incredible.
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? So are you saying that the same Russian mobsters run both Rubin Kazan and have a minority share of ownership in the Fire?
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? Well, coming from someone who knows well his backwater former republics of the USSR, trust me, Russia, including Tatarstan, does not qualify as backwater. There's a lot of money in Kazan, it's one of the major cities in Russia. This club was one of the league's best 2 years ago and qualified for the UEFA Cup. They could finish just about anywhere in the table this time around. As for racism, I'm sure it will be a problem but remember, most of Rubin's fans are ethnic Tatars. They are more often on the receiving end of racism. Road matches, however, might be a different story.
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? Close - no sauce, just tartar - They're the cavity creeps. They attend football matches when not raiding nearby Tooth-opolis. - We make holes in teeth! We make holes in teeth!
Re: Rumor: Damani Ralph sold to Russian Club? I'll just echo what Justin O said about Kazan. It's a very nice and rich city. Lots of oil money. It's also very clean in comparison to other parts of Russia and is generally a beautiful city. As you can see in the picture, the stadium is right by the Kremlin and also by the river. And as far as racism, anybody whose last name doesn't end in "ov" or "in" or "ski" is going to have to deal with that playing in the Russian league, and being black will amplify it. But, as Justin O mentioned, if there's any place that will be tolerant it's Kazan. Too bad he only gets to play half his games there. I believe Kazan's basketball team is very good and has several black players, both from America and Africa. I may be thinking of a different city though. It is a serious issue though. If I were Damani I'd want to be sure I knew exactly what I was getting into. Is he married, girlfriend or anything?
It's official lads....$2 million dollars! http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlinenews?id=327015&cc=5901
Well good for Damani he paid for the teams wage bill this season. I have no idea what a Jamaican mon has to be thinking to go play in Russia...they must have some dank weed there. Sadly that team wouldn't have made the MLS playoffs last season with that record.
As much as the Fire faithful must have been dreading this day, you all knew it was going to come. Sorry to see him go, I enjoyed and feared watching him blow by our defenders when the Fire came to town. Good luck in Russia Damani!
Motives, problems have been discussed in the previous Ralph to Russia thread (mods?). The season hasn't started yet, so Kazan aren't "in relegation trouble," they finished 10th last time, but I believe they qualified for the UEFA cup some years ago. Good-bye Damani, shame we only had you for two years. Good luck in Russia.