I know that this has been rumour for a long time, but it looks like things are heating up. http://www.planetfootball.com/article.asp?id=125301&cpid=24&title=Grimandi+tipped+for+MLS+move It's kind of cool that he's considering an MLS team over two French teams.
Interesting.. It would be nice to see him in MLS. I wonder what is weighing in his decision? I would think that it can't be money as the top reason as you would think Nice would be offering more.
I think the promise of being a starter right off the bat and being a core part of the team. Plus, he mentioned that he was really impressed with the way the club treated him when he trained with the club, and with the facilities the Rapids have. And the fact that we made it to the semifinals this year. I also like to think the email I sent to him telling him how great Colorado is and how there are more than a couple of Gooners that are Rapids fans had something to do with it as well, but I doubt it. ;-)
That's a good question....I'm thinking as a Discovery since it's the club that's courting his services and he's not being allocated, but I'm not sure.
Well I hope that the Rapids get in via Discovery as opposed to allication. As much as I hate the rapids(Burn fan here ) I would rather see him in a green and white than a red and white(Chicago) or black and red striped(NYNJ) jersey. Now a problem comes when GG and Morrow are on the field at the same time. Oh well an Arsenal flag would be suitable for the occassion.
That might be pushing it. No worries, but although it would be interesting to see a bunch of Arsenal fans at an MLS game cheering on just the former Arsenal players on the pitch.
Here is Gilles' diary entry for 1/6, courtesy of icons.com: <<America here I come! I'm still in France at the moment, but I will be leaving for the US at the end of the month. I am pleased to announce that I have just signed for Colorado Rapids on a two-year contract. I went over to the club in September and was impressed by what I saw and as soon as I get my work permit sorted I will be going back over there. It's weird because there was a possibility last week that I was going to return to the Premiership and join Middlesbrough. Boro called me and said that I was the type of player they were looking for and asked if I'd come and train with them for a week because they were not sure about my fitness levels. This was nothing to worry about, it is normal for a club to give a player who has not been at a club for a while a week's trial to test him physically. I was very flattered to get the call from Middlesbrough and they said lots of nice things about me but Colorado were pressing me for a decision at the same time and I had to make my mind up quickly. If Boro had called a few weeks earlier, who knows what would have happened! I made my decision, however, and that was to join Colorado Rapids and I'm very excited about this new stage in my career. The season for Colorado doesn't start until April so I have plenty of time to prepare myself. I will be a long way from my family but I will be back in France in October and really two years is not a very long time to be away. It is going to be a fantastic new challenge and I'm really looking forward to playing again. Meanwhile, I hope everybody had a good Christmas. This was my first Christmas off for a long while and I really enjoyed the time with my family – we even had snow! I'll be back with more news soon.>> It'll be good to see Gilles playing in MLS. Hopefully he brings the Rapids a championship.
Heh. The Grimster was never a star, that's for sure. He was versatile, being able to play both in defense and midfield. He was hard, smacking Diego Simeone of Lazio in a Champions League match. He was often criticized by supporters for his lack of talent or flair. But in the end I think he was a good squad player who served the team well.
Never good enough to be a regular starter for Arsenal and not one of my favourites, but even I have to admit he gave his all when he was on the field. I also noticed over the time he spent at Highbury that he has a nasty, sneaky streak in him. He does things like standing on player's hands when they are on the ground, that kind of thing. Hopefully he'll have grown out of it by now.
That was Gilles?!!? I remember that game...Diego had to come out because of the huge gash on his forhead, and when he came back in he was running all over the field for about 10 minutes, basically trying to kill any Arsenal player that had the ball because he was so furious. And then at the end when the whistle blew, he went after Gilles but the players kept them seperated.
Ahh, classic stuff. I can still see Simeone with his head swathed in a gigantic bandage and a murderous scowl upon his face. It's the little things one never forgets.
The Grimster was a good squad player - versatile. He is basically a midfield player but was sometimes used in defence. He certainly made an impression on some of his opponents, Diego Simone can attest to that fact. There were others, Alan Smith(Leeds) - a Grimster butt, Guardiola (Barcelona) - a Grimster elbow, Gary McAllister(Liverpool) - a Grimster stamp, Djalmenha (Dep. La Coruna) - recipient of a red card, courtsey Grimster etc.etc. Grimster to say the least was quite explosive on the pitch. Never a dull moment!!
Rapids hang at Arsenal This is actually kind of cool. From the Rapids' official release announcing the Gilles signing:
Following up from the previous post, here's info from the Rapids' latest release about Hankinson and Grimandi's trip to England. The trip sounds great, but did he get his picture taken with the trophies?
I actually sent him an email, and he wrote me back! He said he hopes to win a championship and that he can't wait for the season to get started. Looking forward to meeting him in person. How many pro athletes answer fan e-mail these days?
True that, but sadly even though he is a Gunner for life, he is still going to get heckled when he comes to Dallas to play.
This may be nitpicky but I hate sloppy writing. When did Patrick Vieira become a forward? One issue I have with much soccer writing, both in this country and abroad, is no fact checking! I'm glad to see Gilles get another run out and hope that he is entirely ineffective when the Rapids play DC United...
Trust me, Morrow is public enemy #1 in my eyes when Dallas comes to play in Denver. He KILLED us last year. Except in the playoffs .
Well to show some mercy to Grims, if I can get an Arsenal flag, I'll have that around so he can still have some respect.
wow. If you try to send emails to them in England, most of them ends upto their club's secretary! Maybe you can get reply from mangers over here, but I think that only happens if you contact small community clubs in the non-league. I remember I emailed Vieira on Arsenal's old website (for some reason, they took that contact feature off!) to welcome him, when he first came here but he never replied!