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Agoos: Reyna to return in 2008 (Conway negotiating)

Claudio_reyna_mlsnetcom

Newly-appointed Red Bulls sporting director Jeff Agoos has revealed that team captain and designated player Claudio Reyna will be back in 2008.

"Juan (Osorio) has sat down with Claudio and we expect to have Claudio back and healthy," Agoos said. "We’re expecting a big season from Claudio."

Reyna, 34, is entering the second-year of a two-year $2.5 million contract with the Red Bulls. Reports had suggested that the Red Bulls would attempt to buyout the remaining year of Reyna’s contract but Reyna stated throughout the tail end of the 2007 season that he planned to return in 2008.

Reyna played 21 games for the Red Bulls, registering three assists.

Jon_conway_mlsnetcom

Agoos also stated that the Red Bulls are in talks with Jon Conway about a new contract. Conway’s contract with the club expired at the end of the 2007 season but Agoos believes the Red Bulls will be able to reach an agreement with Conway.

"I think the world of Jon and I think he should be a starting goalkeeper in this league," Agoos said of Conway. "He’s been in a difficult position throughout his career and I think it is a big opportunity for Jon to claim the starting job here."

Comments

  1. To me, Conway is the perfect backup keeper, but he’s not a starter. It’s not a bad thing, as he provides value to the team as he has experience, but I would hope that the Red Bulls can do better than Conway.

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  2. Chris,
    2 DPs are not needed to win cups. NY already has a world class player in Angel.
    I guess, because we have Angel, I see Reyna less as a DP and more of a 400k player.
    On top of that, I have a feeling he is going to do really well this year.
    In fact, I’m gonna go on the record here. Reyna will play 2/3 or more of the games in 2008 and 2/3 of those matches will be wins.
    NY fans will want him to come back in 2009.
    Mark it.
    -Mike

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  3. You guys supporting Reyna are idiots. He’s sucking up a DP spot that could be spent on a WORLD CLASS player like an Angel or Blanco.

    Instead we got a bag of rocks. Idiots.

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  4. Ed Ho –
    I agree.
    We know how poorly he can play, which really isn’t that bad. I am happy he is coming back. His downside is known and acceptable, while his upside can win a cup.
    Also, I hate being fickle NY fans. Everyone wants him hung, but then 4 games in when he has 3 assists, they will rerebrand him as the greatest American player ever.
    -Mike

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  5. This doesn’t seem to bode well for the Red Bulls. At best Conway is good enough to be the starting goalkeeper on a bad MLS team. There are quite a few good goalkeepers in MLS. Why Conway? Several teams have much better backups than Conway. Busch and Wells for instance.

    As for Reyna, I hope Osorio has some effect on him or this doesn’t make much sense. At the very least he should take a pay cut. I anticipate another injury prone season for Reyna.

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  6. This doesn’t seem to bode well for the Red Bulls. At best Conway is good enough to be the starting goalkeeper on a bad MLS team. There are quite a few good goalkeepers in MLS. Why Conway? Several teams have much better backups than Conway. Busch and Wells for instance.

    As for Reyna, I hope Osorio has some effect on him or this doesn’t make much sense. At the very least he should take a pay cut. I anticipate another injury prone season for Reyna.

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  7. Well, I for one, think its good Reyna is coming back. Worst case scenario has him repeating 2007 with a lot of injuries and lack of contribution. Mor likely, he has a more significant impact and retires on a higher note.

    Overall, I don’t think he has much left in the tank, but more that most in MLS and I’d like to actually see it on the field.

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  8. Reyna – ugh. Desire and motivation be damned, this reeks delusions of grandeur. What’s the over/under that he plays more than 1/3 of the games? Enough said.

    Conway – Happier news. We got more out of him last year for less money than Wattereus. If he works on his positioning, he’ll be a solid starter.

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  9. Conway is a very good goalkeeper.

    But is he the one who can help get New York to and help win MLS Cup? Don’t know.

    Conway let in that Gomez near post goal that eliminated New York from the playoffs two years ago. Really don’t know.

    But Conway had a very good year in 2007 and I am behind him 100%. If his cleat did not get caught in the Foxboro turf during the regular season and if he had saved Twellman’s goal during the playoffs who knows …

    Regardless, I feel Conway will be better if he is really pushed by another goalkeeper for the starting position.

    Reyna has a year to prove that he can still be a DP-type difference maker. Otherwise, it will be a two year experiment that failed and result in a terrible end to his career (2006-2008). Worse than just underdelivering, he would have robbed NY of significant cap room in more ways than one.

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  10. I have a hard time believing that Reyna will be as bad as he was last year. I expect Osorio’s presence to increase Reyna’s desire to be assertive. Conway is good enough to be the starter. Here’s to good things in ’08.

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  11. It’s not exciting to have Reyna back, but I’m hoping he’s better than in 2007. I’m not going to raise my hopes and expect a goal or even more than 3 assists. I know staying healhty is beyond his control
    but I would settle for a couple of forwards passes here and there instead of passing back to his defenders. Reyna is no DP-caliber player but he’s better than he showed last here. I just hope we get an attacking midfielder.

    Conway is better than enough for this league. Make him the starter and let him settle in.

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  12. Conway is a major asset to the Red Bulls. Reyna, not so much. Here’s hoping Osorio does the right thing and keeps Claudio on the bench this season.

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  13. Here’s to hoping Reyna can play worth the $1.25 Million price tag. I’d really like a little more tangible production than 3 assists. Maybe he can chip in a goal or two? We shall see.

    As for Conway, I’ve always liked him. He’s a very solid MLS keeper, and if he’s healthy, he should start every league game. Last year, the switching between Wattereus and Conway hurt both players’ continuity, which led to each giving up some bad goals. If Conway goes in knowing he’s the starter for good, he’ll be fine.

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  14. i was hoping reyna wouldn’t come back or at least take a pay cut to allow us to get a DP slot back.

    as far as conway is concerned i dont see why everyone is so down on him. i thought he had a really strong season this past year obviously excluding the mendes backpass debacle in NE. i think perhaps NY fans are a little spoiled when it comes to the goalkepper position having had the likes of tony meola and tim howard. if you look at some of the other starting goalkeepers in the league like matt pickens in chicago or kenny stamatopoulos in toronto or will hesmer in columbus, you have to say that conway is at least as good if not better than those guys.

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  15. Posts at 12.39 and 1.17 AM!
    Thanks for burning the midnight oil for us Ives, gives us something to read as soon as we get in to work.

    Reply

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