Ruud move over it may be Raul coming to RSL
by denz on Dec 12, 2009 3:33 PM MST
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PrintOK, both are a stretch but this is the time of the year when rumors start and sometimes become reality, so could the current MLS Champions replace the departed Yura Movsisyan with Raul? Well the same source that brings us the current rumor of him coming to MLS also have him retiring, so who know which story might be true?
Well according to report number one Raul will be retiring at the end of the season and possibly taking a staff position with Real Madrid (a move most experts expect at some point in the future). You can check out the details here, remember that this report is about a month old.
Perhaps more fun for RSL fans to dream about around the holidays is the more current story here which says that several Spanish newspapers are saying Raul could be coming to MLS at the end of the La Liga season. It is interesting that the article mentions Philly since they are an expansion side but I have real doubts about that since there have been no big money deals for the Union so far. Knowing that there is still a level of relationship between the two Real's to have played in Utah, could this be part of the results of the infusion of cash that came recent with Dell Loy Hansen becoming a part of the RSL ownership group?
If you wanted to really impact a brand and do some big things locally like Hansen has talked about there would be nothing better to jump start those plans than to have the team win a MLS Cup and then bring over one of the best known strikers in the world. While Raul will be 33 and has fallen out of the focus of the new Los Galacicos seeming to have moved on, could RSL scoop up on of the most famous players of the team that has over 1/4 billion worldwide fans?
Ah I love the holidays and with a transfer window opening in a few weeks expect a lot more rumors, I for one would expect another couple moves to come from South America where RSL has had some success with Olave, Espindola and Morales, but also a couple flops in Escalada and Tejada. Then toss in the fact that the 2010 MLS Super Draft will be coming soon and the first list of players invited to the MLS Combine has been announced.
What will the future hold? A lot will depend on if the MLS roster size moves back up to 28, remains at 24 or falls somewhere in between for the 2010 season.
OFF MY SOAPBOX
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what I do know
I do know that almost every RM player that stopped here in 2005 loved the city and several of them mentioned wanting to come back either to play, coach or be involved with the sport in some format.
You have to wonder if the MLS wonderkid coach, yes Jason is that, could be chosen to help other players understand the transition from playing to coaching?
I am not sure what the future holds but I am willing to believe that there are many players who have been here that love the city, the people, and a bright emerging soccer culture. We have heard that from Everton players, USMNT players, and RM players, oh it could be a fun future for the sport in SLC.
Its funny how US sports backwaters
Are the cities that the European players like the most.
In the NBA (back when I had a local team) players felt that cities like Seattle, Salt Lake, Portland, Vancouver were in middle of nowhere, and yet those are the very cities that European players, coaches and analysts are saying are top notch and of interest. Same goes for Toronto, which tends to be disrespected in NBA and MLB, but is obviously an MLS feature. Montreal lost MLB, and yet when it gets in MLS will be loved.
I am not a Supporter
I am not a Fan
I am a Sounder
Sounder At Heart
It is simple
It is easy to figure out. Consider the reality of sports in Europe where soccer is king and the players are the highest level of celebrities, often the fodder of newspapers, tv shows and their every move is followed by fans. When they come here and can actually walk the streets of a city and not be mobbed, they often are still recognized but fans here tend to be polite and honored by the fact that their heroes are playing here.
The young kids who get tossed into the NBA, NFL, and MLB are given millions of dollars as draft picks before they do anything and far too often they fail to understand the responsibilities that come along with being a professional sports player, so they act like thugs and criminal more often than professionals. Yes I know there are soccer players who get messed up in things in Europe but if you compared the number of players from the NFL or NBA in the US who get arrested of illegal behavior and compare it to the EPL or La Liga you would think we stock our teams from the prison system.
I believe those players who in Europe have been the focus of all attention for so long, when they come here and only have to deal with the occasional fan, they consider it a vacation.
man
I am DROOLING at the prospect of landing someone like Raul, pipe dream though it may be. Man, now I’m going to have this foolish hope in my head all off-season. It’s like when that hot girl wrote in your yearbook that you should hang out over the summer but you both knew it was never going to happen. Look what you did to me, denz.
Uh, do you think you could draw me like a ninja?
Sorry? Not really
Listen all I am saying is that if the guy wants to come to MLS, what better place to come than a city he already likes, a organization he already knows, and a team that has stated if they chase a DP that it would be an attacking player, most likely a striker.
I still don’t think RSL is all that interested in going after a DP, they just proved that a solid team is a better options as they beat the 3 top teams with DP’s in the playoffs. Columbus and GBS got handled at home and away, Blanco and the Fire were shooting blanks all night, and Golden Balls and Landycakes were only good for one goal against RSL’s team effort.
Consider that for the 3/4 million that GBS makes, the 3 million Blanco makes, the 7.5 million for the two LA boys, you have 4 players who make over 11 million dollars and have nothing to show for it this year.
I would much rather see RSL sign Robbie, Kyle, and Will to long term deals.
I would rather that as well.
And I think your point is a valid one, that SLC is just the kind of place Euro starts might prefer.
Uh, do you think you could draw me like a ninja?
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