21 year old midfielder Guilherme Canniel of Brazil. He played professionally in Brazil, for Gremio, if I'm not mistaken. As I understand it, he is to try-out in 2 weeks and is already in the Denver area. By chance, he requested a ride from me to a local park to assist coaching a U15 boys' team. He revealed the above information during our conversation along the way. I got this information straight from the player. I was shocked, myself. Guilherme said he is currently waiting for Hankinson to call. Can anyone collaborate or provide background information on him? Considering this, I'd rather have a young Brazilian as opposed to an old Jamaican.
I've no information one way or the other about this guy, but I will say this: in the years that I managed the Rapids website, I encountered this situation with players all over the world claiming the exact same thing. Most of the time it was email, but it wasn't uncommon for me to get phone calls nor have this information come up while talking to someone on the sidelines of an amateur tournament or even league game. When I inquired with the Rapids about the validity of so many of these claims, it was explained to me simply that the only way teams would consider foreign players is if an agent brought them to the team's attention and did so with a professional package (complete CV, video, and related press coverage). Domestic players were generally under the radar and already being invited to combines, camps, playing with lower-division pro clubs or high-profile amateur sides, and already registered with MLS as a potential player. Then there's also the chance that Canniel may be trying out for the Rapids Reserve. Heck, I once played in a tournament where people on my team swore that the opposing striker had played for the Rapids. Nobody could remember his name but people saw his picture in a program. When checking player ID cards, the referee even seemed to think this and asked the player if he had ever played pro. Turned out that the guy had simply played for the Boulder Nova (now BRR) in a game against te Rapids. Again, I don't know anything about this kid so I won't pass judgment. Only mentioning the above stories because I used to run into people with these claims and beliefs a LOT.
You raise some good points. I'm really out of the loop here and was just reporting what I had heard from the player. I suppose it remains to be seen, then.