Quintanilla vs El Salvador - MLSNet article

Agreed.

Q2 should be celebrated in San Salvador, not vilified.

 

The article only confirms what I suspected originally. The guy (Quintanilla) spoke publicly of his desire to go to Charleston and play for his side. It makes no sense for him to publicly take that position and then privately tell the ES Fed he has no interest--b/c you know they'd publicize it. If he didn't want to play, you'd hear him talking about "a long season" and a "nagging injury" and "no chance to train with my team" and "need to rest". None of that before or after came out of his mouth.

EQ's point about players finding out about their "callup" via the radio rings true on this. The callup process for most teams is a very informal affair. My understanding is that even the US team (which is one of the more organized setups out there) doesn't send out formal invites. You usually get a phone call from Pam King (the team Manager with USSF), or Bruce has an informal conversation a month or so before ("hey--I'm thinking of calling you in for the match at RFK in November--better starting working on your conditioning you slug!").

I think ES is being screwed on this whole thing. He's being made a scapegoat or example. For instance, the team they brought to RFK is entirely domestic so with the Federation making an example of him (one of the few Salvadoran players who plays outside of Central American and is still in the plans of their National side), that's a VERY prominent example and one that probably makes all the domestic players in the nat. team pool sit up and go "s**t--I guess I'd better behave."

 

I fully agree, i still think there is something more to it.

 

Maybe they are doing this because they know how much their DC-based fans hate DC United. By scapegoating Q2, they appease these fans... who would otherwise be livid when the U.S. spanks them tomorrow at RFK. When you are a losing CONCACAF side like E.S. that always underperforms vis-a-vis similarly situated teams like Guatemala and Honduras, you need to find a way to keep your supporters happy... and winning is obviously not one of them right now.

I read recently that the President of El Salvador was leaving automated messages on the homes of Salvadoran immigrants in the United States (I think this was in the Post a few days ago) to get them to send money back to family and friends in El Salvador. Money sent back to the country from the U.S. is crucial to their economy.

Maybe Q2 is part of a larger plot by the Salvadoran federation and government to generate sympathy and patriotism from Salvadoran immigrants in the U.S. who, by mailing U.S. cash back to the country, are a big source of economic support for the country right now. El Salvador wants its DC-based supporters to remain anti-U.S. and anti-D.C. United so that their nationalitic sensibilities remain aroused and their wallets remain open.

Maybe I'm being a conspiracy theorist, but the whole thing seems too obviously concocted to have a more benign explanation.

 

Yeah, yeah, El Salvadore is screwing with 'nilla. It's upsetting, but there is a bright spot to the article......

This is encouraging. Maybe it means that he isn't the slowest player in the league....and a little 'something to prove' is always a healthy thing in a player.

 

Bofahey, I think your response is a little overboard. First, the Salvadoran government isn't contacting countrymen telling them "send us money." The article said that the countrymen send money home (no surprise there--lots of other expats do that). Instead, the Salvadoran govt. was contacting expats and immigrants to get them LEGAL--to make sure they applied for work permits and visas.

Second, I think it's pretty extreme to think that the Salvadoran FF is doing this to appease fans living in DC. The truth is that the majority of Salvadoran residents in the DC area aren't the ones misbehaving at RFK. That's an extreme core that get their jollies by being jerks and embarassing their country. I think the Salvadoran fans feel gifted that they get to see their National team at RFK (rather than in Columbus or LA).

And to be fair, I doubt people could say El Salvador has underperformed (their fans might say that but most objective observers wouldn't). El Salvador has been to the WC twice--more than almost all Concacaf sides (I think only the USA and Mexico have been more times and they're tied with Costa Rica).

 

Right, but the reason they want their immigrants legal is so these people will continue to have money they can send home. The Salvadoran government doesn't want its immigrants legal because it cares if they are U.S. citizens, it just cares about the economic implications. The fact of the matter is that getting their immigrants in the U.S. legal is one of the best things they can do for their economy right now.

I didn't mention anything about their fans "misbehaving," I'm just saying that the majority of their fans don't like DCU. That is a fact. Even if only a small percentage throw food and beer and start fights, the rest bascially sit on their hands if a non-Salvadoran DCU player does something good. So I don't think it's a stretch to say that the majority of Salvadoran fans don't like DCU... even if they are peaceful.

As far as their two W.C. appearances... exactly! They've been to the W.C. twice, but in the last two CONCACAF qualifying rounds, how have they done? I'd imagine their supporters would expect them to be better than Trinidad & Tobago... not worse. That's why they'd be concerned about keeping their American supporters happy (the ones who mail money to the Federation for Salvadoran jerseys, etc.)... especially now that they've imploded the team and are starting from scratch. They need a diversion from their pathetic play... and his name is Q2.

I agree with you that my theory is extreme (been watching too much X-Files) and probably not the real reason... I am just throwing it out there. However, the whole thing seems just too fishy to have an innocent explanation.

 

Did anyone else read this:

It seems this process has been going on for more than a month with the news becoming public only in the last couple of weeks. I wonder if there is some personal politics going on here. It's hard to believe that any FA would want to keep out a player who's stated goal is to play for the national side AND happens to be the country's best young prospect.

EDIT: Bohafey - Legal immigrants does not mean getting citizenship. The Salvadoran goverment should be concerned that Salvadoran immigrants are legal, if for no other reason than to protect their (the immigrants) interests.

Sachin