Rumor: Bocanegra to the rapids?!?!?!?!?!

So for this to be possible:

1. Have to trade up in allocation order
2. Have to open up a roster spot
3. Have to open up salary cap room (probably a max salary spot for somebody like bocanegra)

The only way this makes sense is either a significant trade (Casey/Ginger/Wynne level player) or Pablo's announcing his retirement and the league is giving us some cap relief for it.

 

Plus you have to assume any move is going to get tied up in the courts for a little while, so even if we do sign him we may not get him right away, if at all.

 

Yeah, that was my way of saying "I'll believe it when I see it".

I know he's been linked to the Whitecaps before, so I'm guessing the Scottish Sun made the "Vancouver Rapids" mistake and that got the AO's (and you ) all excited when in reality he's going to Vancouver.

 

Fixed.

Even though he's old and slow, he would still command DP or sub-DP money. I'm pretty skeptical the Rapids would ever pay for a player like that.

 

What's a sub-DP? And yes, he'd probably be a DP so the Rapids would have to spend money.

 

NBC Sports is assuming they mean the Whitecaps:

http://prosoccertalk.nbcsports.com/2012/06/22/is-carlos-bocanegra-bound-for-vancouver-of-mls/

 

I thought I remember reading that players of bankrupt teams have 2 "free" opt outs. When its declared and first transfer window. By free opt out, club will grant complete release to any player who asks for it.

Also, as it looks last time I read about them. No one has stepped up owner wise and club is looking at liqudation this summer.

But no way on earth he ends up here.

 

Yes, but this case looks like the club did X, the players interpreted it as Y and decided they were free to go. I'm sure the club will go tot he courts to stop the movement while they plead their case that X was all they had to do.

Essentially I see some of these players as Martin Rivero times 10, at least for the next month or so.

 

Maybe I need more caffeine but I don't get what you mean by this.

 

Rivero got tied up in moving to the Rapids due to his old team claiming they still had rights to him when Rivero, the Rapids, and MLS felt like his team had broken the contract and he was free to go. In the end FIFA even had to step in to get the transfer completed.

Now that was an unknown player for a second division club in Argentina. Imagine what's going to happen when a huge club like Rangers thinks it still has rights to some high-level players and they and their new teams think otherwise.

 

And as expected, the rumors are now starting that Vancouver will announced the Bocanegra signing at any time. They waived a player today, probably to make room for him.

 

Gotta love a circus.

 

Are Rangers really interested in keeping these players? I don't reckon Bocanegra commands a big transfer, and with Rangers troubles would anyone be willing to pay them a transfer? In the current climate I have to wonder if Rangers would be terribly interested in trying to enforce a claim that might reduce their wage bill.

Still, I don't see it happening for Colorado, so it's all academic.

 

I guess I was a bit vague. Basically it means a larger salary that would be just below the threshold for DP status. Casey would be an example of this.

 

Actually Casey is over the DP salary, but the Rapids have (apparently) been using about $65K of allocation each year to buy down his salary to the non-DP max.

 

Still a rumor but sounds official now.
Speaking of Rangers, the crisis at one of Scotland’s most storied clubs deepened on Monday when news broke that the club is now expected to be demoted to the bottom division, ending a 140-year stay in the top flight. Charles Green, who bought Rangers earlier this month, was informed that he would have to form a new company following forced liquidation
Also, more players from Rangers now being linked to move to MLS

 

Bocanegra and Edu (the fast one not our one) were given extra time from pre-season training due to the US WC qualifiers, so were not subject to the same legal timing of the other Rangers players who had to decide to leave before Pre-Season training started or they were subject to de-facto contract movement to the NewCo Rangers formed after Rangers liquidated, he states today that he is waiting to see which league Rangers are playing in before deciding but, if its not the SPL he implies he will move on. The vote on Rangers NewCo to be admitted to the SPL is July 4th. They will not be admitted, that has already been decided following a fan uprising of the other clubs forcing club Chairman to publicly state voting intentions, subsequently a vote will be held by the SFL on admitting them to either the SFL 1st Div or SFL Div 3. There is also a chance that legal blocks could come to prevent them gaining admission anywhere from smaller clubs who have waited years for a vacancy to emerge. Net from that is that timing still allows them both to move here, or elsewhere, in the window, as free agents.

 

Today the SPL essentially threatened the SFL teams by saying that if new Rangers aren't admitted to Division 1 (pretty much ensuring they'll return to the SPL after a one year absence instead of 3) the SPL will create a SPL2 inviting all the current Division 1 teams and Rangers to join. They will then lock the SPL1 and 2 and only do pro/rel between them, not with the remaining SFL clubs.

Needless to say this is not going over well with the fans...

 

If the SPL wasn't dead before it certainly will be now. I think the only hope is for Celtic and Rangers to somehow get a move to England. I can't really see that happening though. Very sad state of affairs in Scotland.