Gallardo apparently does not have much transfer prospects (there were some Argentine rumors a few weeks ago, and it is perhaps the case that DC United was trying to make something happen there, but if so it seems to have failed), so yes, it would probably mean a buyout. (There's also the possibility that Gallardo simply wouldn't have co-operated. After all, Reyna didn't when he was offered one.) And the thing with Gallardo is that he was hurt--he was pretty good when he played. So for DC the problem would be paying a buyout to get a hurt guy out. . . in order to get another hurt guy in. You could see how that could really blow up in their faces. There's that, and I believe DC only has the slot for this year, so it would necessitate another trade. And paying two different guys $2 Million would probably be a budget buster for the club, almost regardless of who they were. The FCD angle makes less sense and like I've said in another thread, they seem to be looking these days for too much in return for too little.
Hmm ... NYRB needs a two-way midfielder ... and we have an open DP slot. But that would make too much sense right?
It does seem odd that the Red Bulls wouldn't be a candidate for Appiah. Even though both players have a history of injuries, Appiah at his age is a tremendous upgrade over Reyna, last season's DP midfielder. I guess Osorio's insistence on not signing two DPs might be part of the explanation. I don't get the idea that Appiah would be looking to transfer out ASAP given that he's already receiving interest from European clubs and is reportedly willing to come at a discount. Even if he did leave in August, he brings some excitement to the league and his club can sell him at a profit if he performs well. If he doesn't, there won't be much interest. Very bizarre story. Curious to see how it unfolds.
This makes no sense. Sign him on a free transfer. Pay him 2 mil a season. Who cares if you can't afford it, you could always sell him and recoup.
Right. It makes sense to bring someone in you can't afford with hopes of selling him for a profit. You see how well that worked in the housing industry (extreme example, I know). Just because the owners are rich doesn't mean they have to act stupidly. We don't want another NASL where people are bleeding money just for the sake of bringing in players they can't afford (or don't have the revenue to cover). Guy coming off a major knee injury + NY turf = Freddie Ljungberg 2.0 I have a feeling that FCD are using the Denilson and Davino (not a DP but max salary) experiences as their judgment for future transactions. Neither of those high priced experiments resulted in on field success or an increased gate to make extra money. I think that if they go with a DP it is going to be someone to excite (pander to) the local latin market. Appiah is well known but I don't know if he would draw for Dallas. Borghetti may just draw in fans so they would look at that as a good signing. There might be a South American player that they think will fill that bill as well and may pursue them. Their goal might be to get someone that they can sell to the fans and to a potential shirt sponsor. They might have figured that they would not get a return on signing Appiah at 2 million dollars. Might make sense from an on the field perspective but not from a business perspective.
This is MLS not EPL or La Liga or even remotely close. These are the types of players that MLS has a chance at. You're talking about a box to box midfielder at 27 years of age, captain of his national team. Take a chance and guess right and you have a horse, Juan Pablo Angel best at his position type DP in MLS, for 3 to 5 years. If he does want to go back to Europe, and is healthy, then you more than make up your 2 million dollar gamble. Don't take a chance and miss out on the opportunity. Thats the free market and thats Capitalism. Grow a sack and take a chance or sit back and let someone else do it and most probably reap the rewards.
Why in the world would they pass up a player of Appiah's quality for such a great price? He could literally take any MLS team, and make them contenders. He can control the midfield on world class stages, let alone MLS. Big miss on this one. Very dissapointing to see.
2 million is hardly going to bankrupt a MLS team. Particularly a team like FCD which actually generates a profit.
As I said, if selling Cooper meant having the money to pay Appiah, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Columbus just won MLS Cup with Alejandro Moreno and Robbie Rogers at forward...
I've got a horrible feeling this is because he doesn't have any marketing potential outside of knowledgable soccer fans....which is a totally despicable way to run a league
Absolutely ridiculous decision by those FOs. Stephen Appiah is probably one of the ten best midfield players in the world today, they could have signed him for a very reasonable salary, and they say no. Maybe MLS just doesn't get it. If you want to have a good league, you have to have good players. When a world-class midfielder offers to come, you can't just pass that up. Even LA should be trying to snap him up at that price. Let Beckham leave, or sell him to Milan to free up a DP slot. Appiah is five times the player Beckham is now and twice the player Beckham was in his prime.
They made a profit of maybe a couple hundred grand in 2007 and they may not have made a profit in 2008 (we don't know the actual numbers for 08 yet do we?). You are right that it won't bankrupt them but we are in a down economy so revenue will probably go down next year and you want them to spend 2 million dollars. MLS is a business so they have to see if it makes sense from a business perspective. To you (and pretty much everyone else here, including me) it makes perfect sense from an on the field standpoint. From a business perspective we don't know how much sense it makes. Will his signing increase attendance? Will it increase sponsorship money? Will it bring in friendlies that make money or allow the team to go on tours that make money? His salary is very reasonable on the world stage for 2 million dollars. However, that still makes him almost as expensive as an entire MLS roster. Beckham has been able to pay for himself with sponsorship and all the other ancillary money he brings into LA. Blanco sells shirts and got Chicago a deal with Best Buy because they wanted to expand their brand. Appiah does not bring that to the table. He brings skill (which is what we all want this league to have) but not much from a business perspective. MLS is not at the stage of development where they can drop a few million dollars on players just for the sake of improving the product on the field. If they were the salary cap would be quite a bit higher than it is now.
That is exactly the reason why they passed him up, and that is the problem with MLS, and why we need to expand the salary cap, which will come with time.
Man what the F***!!!!??? I'm incredulous that DC or Dallas passed up on this guy. That's perhaps the most ludicrous thing i've ever heard. FREE transfer??? Seriously??? Wow.....
Please tell me this is all one big lie. Because if it's true...then I just want to bang my head against the wall as an MLS fan.
DC has shown an interest in African players over the years (Kuffour, Kpene, Cassali, Koroma, Crayton, Doe), so there's probably a few agents that know how DC works. Throw in international recognition, and the fact that we've chased after other well-known midfielders (Veron, Gallardo), and it's not all that surprising.
Bartender: Get me a drink. Make it a double. Screw it. Give me the whole bottle. (btw: I'm liking pyrat. damn good rum)
OK. There's a lot of over-the-top reaction here. I love Stephen Appiah, but give me a break. He's not played for almost 2 years, IIRC. He's been available on a free for months and no club has met his demands. There are reasons for this. It's hard to justify 2 million, as much as Blanco makes, for a player that's been inactive for a long time and is in no way a house-hold name/big draw.
Amen. I tend to agree. Appiah is a good player no doubt about it but he hasn't played for months and months. The only matches he's played are the WCQs for Ghana but that's been spread out over time, too. There's no telling how his form would be and/or how long it would take to return. I don't know how he's looked for Ghana. But I suspect average or not near his past. There's a huge risk in paying $2 million a season for a guy that hasn't played in ages. Off the top of my head Arsenal, West Ham, Portsmouth and Chelsea were linked to him since the Premier League season started. Yet, no one bit on him. It does make you wonder. If they aren't willing to pay his asking price should MLS? No. I'm not saying DC/FCD should have passed on him. I'm just saying it is not a cut and dry situation. I'm sure, or least I'm hoping, DCU/FCD took many factors into consideration before passing.
Sorry, Carlos -- my policy (as the most dashing bartender at Telstra Dome) is only single shots, with ice and a mixer. But fear not, I still contend that as long as Appiah is on MLS's radar somewhere, some team with cap room and a DP slot will inquire to his representatives about him. I don't think we've heard the last of this story yet, but that's just a hunch of my own.
Why? Why do you always do this? You are always make me jealous. And I hate it. I just prefer that I not know and you not share that you live in Melbourne and having working access to the Telstra Dome (which my good friend says is the sweetest, most advanced stadium he's been in). I'm sick of it. The more you spread the word the more i have to get to land down under. Bastard. Making me save my money!