9. Get ready to say goodbye to … Jeff Cunningham. The FC Dallas striker might be 33, but he is attracting the attention of goal-shy English Championship club Reading, who are interested in acquiring him during the January transfer window. http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news;_y...ug=ro-weekendreview101909&prov=yhoo&type=lgns I have to think this is merely speculation, but that would be a surprising move from FCD's end sending away their two top goal scorers in back to back seasons.
if i was JC9 id be all about it. if i was FCD id think giving him his shot in jolly old england was a good call at his age, get the cash, spend some of your cooper cash and JC9 cash and go find a quality striker even better than JC9. as awesome as jeff has been, he's missed some easy finishes and as good as he is playing give him his payday and chance.
Perhaps he can pull a Beckham. FCD could loan Cunningham out to England until June, then he could play in the World Cup for Bradley, and then rejoin FCD for his final 2 years before he buys a MLS franchise.
C'mon now. That's what people said about Graziani and that's what people said about Ruiz. Don't overrate the misses at the expense of the goals that he has scored. I'm not saying that we couldn't find another goalscorer, but as we've found out on two previous occasions, it's not as easy as many armchair GMs seem to think.
Why destroy the chemistry when we've finally got it right? Yes, I know Jeff can't keep up the pace for very many more years, but good God, fans are finally starting to show up at games and Jeff is a huge reason... He scores, he's fast, he's a constant threat, and he has fun after he scores (the fans love his dances). He's done more to put the fun back into FCD's game than anyone. Please, HSG, don't be penny wise and pound foolish with Jeff. Give the man some respect. And kudos to Jeff for not being a head case in Dallas.
Really don't see this happening. Why would Jeff uproot his wife and 1 year old to slog through a year in the Championship?
it likely would be. Recall Cooper talking to Cardiff... they didn't offer $1 mil, but they did offer something like $600 to $700 in pay.
It is. My question is whether Jeff could get a work permit. He certainly doesn't have enough caps. Could he get in by being born in Jamaica? I forget how the Brits view citizens of their former colonies and how long since independence to they allow them to claim UK citizenship.
My wife's dad was born in India, and she and I briefly explored looking for work in the UK (ultimately, we both realized that she'd probably evaporate into a puff of smoke if she were away from Texas for more than a month or so, which I would find distressing to say the least). I believe being from a commonwealth country makes it easier to get a work permit, but it's not a slam dunk.
He would need a work permit, and his Jamaican nationality doesn't help with that unless he has a grandparent or parent who was born in the UK. Given the length of time since his last international cap, I highly doubt that he would be granted one under normal circumstances, but if they were really desparate, money can occaisionally be persuaded to talk.
Cunningham has had a great season - and a great MLS career. But it is hard to imagine an English club bringing in a 5 ft 7 in 33 year old USA forward. Cunningham is good - but he is no Brian McBride. Even if JC scores more goals than McHead.
This rumor from the same source who claimed DC United's Brian Namoff was leaving for Greece during the recent transfer window. IIRC someone on the DC boards said he(the columnist) got his information after hearing that Namoff wanted to "go abroad"...for a vacation.
HSG has the money to make a play for the ownership position of a major English side, but they can't scrape enough together to make Cunny happy for a couple of more years? Look, if they keep Jeff here, they have a chance to build on the fan momentum where we have all been euphoric after going through hell and wanting to jump off a bridge. New England has won over the years by maintaining continuity. FC Dallas needs a degree of that if we ever want to really contend for the Cup. I say they pony up and pay some serious money to Jeff for a two or even three-year contract. If he stays in shape, there is no reason he can't be productive over that period of time. We aren't paying Traffic Cone or Denilson any more, so why would we have trouble paying Jeff what he is due? Make him a low-tier DP, if necessary. The guy is about to win the Golden Boot, for crying out loud. We wanted a marquee player. If Jeff keeps producing goals, he will bring as many fans to the stadium as most "big name" players would. Few big names have really translated into a bump in attendance.
This is a great topic for AFTER the season. The last time we had a forward sidetracked by the possibility of a transfer, he greatly underperformed.
Far being from me to put the brakes on a good "HSG needs to open up the wallets" thread, but according to the MLSPU, Cunny is making $219,295 in "guaranteed compensation" for 2009. Add to that any money that he's likely to get in bonuses, and we're not exactly talking about Kenny Cooper's rather paltry salary. If the guy can get himself a last payday by playing the Colaship for a year or two, more power to him. But in your heart of hearts, you know that there's an upper limit that we should pay a 33-year-old striker and frankly, he's already close to that limit. BTW, I'm skeptical of this rumor until further notice.
I agree 100%. And I also agree with you about being skeptical of the rumor altogether. It doesn't make much sense to me, although I'm sure he has to be getting some attention for scoring a ton of goals in the last couple months.