He has a diary on MLSnet.com that briefly touches on his situation: While my endeavor with the national team takes off, my professional future remains uncertain. Now at the end of my contract, I've been a part of MLS for five years, and I feel a thirst for having a new life experience. I'm certainly happy in San Jose, and if I stay there, I know I will continue to grow as a player. For me, I've always had a curiosity about playing in Europe, not only for the great soccer experience, but having the chance to learn a new language and a new culture. At 26 years old, the timing may be right. It's really the first opportunity I've had in my career to even explore the options, and if I choose to re-sign with MLS, I may never get that chance. It's not an easy decision, because I know I need to be playing consistently in order to continue my chances with the national team. San Jose would be a great place to continue to develop, but if I'm able to explore some opportunities elsewhere and can find a situation where I think I fit the system and will have the possibility to play, I would at least like to look into it. http://www.mlsnet.com/content/03/us0108barrett.html
could he make it? ive only seen the earthquakes live once... i wasnt too impressed by anyone on their back line... still any quakes experts know how he would fare...
He's better than burkhalter & euros keep giving him money. He has big time potential & I was impressed by him from the moment he made his debut as a D-mid. Quitely I prayed that he would one day get a call up. It took yrs of seeing goose, burkhalter & regis lumbering on the back line b4 bruce gave him the call, but now he's here. Go! Go! Go! Anything to weaken the quakes fault line is good for a burn fan.
at 26 it would be the perfect time to make a move. at some point it's now or never. i'm not really sure where he could go. maybe england div. 1, along the lines of lewis. but he probably couldn't qualify for a WP. sitting on the bench won't do him any good though if he really just wants to be available to bruce in 2004 when the qualification process begins, he'd have a year to earn his keep and get back into the mix. maybe the dutch league or german div 1. he's still a bit rough around the edges, despite how well he played last year. no doubt he could benefit financially by going abroad as well. significantly.
Unlike some people, I have no desire for our best to go abroad. I'd like them to stay here, if possible. Still, if I were a player, I'd probably want to go to Europe and wish Barrett the best of luck. I'm happy if young guys start off in MLS and then return at the end of their careers. We'll end up seeing a lot of these folks.
Re: could he make it? I'm not an expert, but I would say Wade's best qualities are that he's very consistent (no/vey few mistakes), he's good in the air, he has a decent shot and is good for a couple of goals a year, and he's very fit and speedy. I would estimate that he's better than Greg Vanney who's getting PT in the French Le Championat, but I'm a little biased I suppose.
you meet very few MLS players who don't express some interest in going to Europe if they can. It's just normal. We tend to think about the overall good of the game in this country, the national team, the success of MLS, but they are thinking of their careers, their relatively short chance to achieve. Having said this, if his contract is up now, you'd think he would have lined something up already if there is European interest. Presumably he has an agent and that person would have been looking for opportunities. He really came on leaps and bounds last season, so I think he would be a viable contender for a starting role in France or Germany.