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Guevara says goodbye Motagua, hello Toronto

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                                                        Photo by ISI Photos

Former MLS MVP and one-time MetroStars and Red Bulls standout Amado Guevara played his final match for Honduran power CD Motagua last weekend and appears ready to return to Major League Soccer.

According to this detailed report from Honduran newspaper La Tribuna, Guevara bid farewell to his long-time Honduran club as he prepares to move on to Toronto FC.

"I don’t know if in four years when my contract with Toronto expires if I will still want to play," Guevara said when asked if he might come back to Motagua for the fifth time in his career.

As SBI first reported back on March 18, Toronto has been closing in on signing Guevara to fill the team’s desperate need for an attacking midfielder. The deal did hit a snag in late March, which led to several reports claiming the deal was dead, but those reports have proven false as sources have confirmed to SBI that Toronto FC, MLS and Guevara are working on the agreement to bring the 31-year-old playmaker to Toronto.

His arrival can’t come soon enough for a TFC squad that is off to an 0-2 start that includes a 4-1 drubbing against D.C. United on Saturday. By all accounts, Guevara has enjoyed a renaissance as a player since returning to Honduras after a falling out with Chivas USA led to his departure from the league early in the 2007 season.

Comments

  1. Yes we are arrogant fans. That’s because we are the best, by far. Everyone knows it, including DC supporters.

    Moving on….

    Reply
  2. Brett,

    I welcome your opinions as American as they are! I still welcome them with open arms and a warm heart, afterall i am Canadian so it’s the least that i can do…

    Here is my beef with the bigger picture. It wasn’t the rest of the league that allowed us(TFC) to exist. It was the DEEP POCKETS of AEG, that was able to keep losing money that mercifully allowed the league to continue, so don’t go preaching to me that it was the rest of the fans of the other teams, because the other fans might of been there ONLY in limited numbers and MLS was losing money ALL over the place!!!

    Secondly, all we are looking for is for recognition of us doing something so great, so fast and so unprecedented in the league!! Making money! and lots of money! Heck just from 3000 of us going to columbus flooded that stadium and city with money that they would otherwise NEVER see! Meanwhile, while all these great things that we are doing in terms of sales, merchandise, support, atmosphere etc..etc..It seems to us that it goes by unnoticed!, which is totally UNFAIR! You shouldn’t be getting your information on how great of a franchise we are from us layman posting on boards!! You should get it from MLS HEADQUARTERS doing a bio spot on us, you should get it from IVES doing an full exciting article on how we raised the bar!, you should get it from ESPN wanting to do more then one game at BMO field if it’s even that!, you should get it from other players and coaches saying “YES” currently BMO Field is the best/most exciting place to play in MLS…What i’m saying is this “feel good” news should be spread all around the league by MLS, I’m sick of how the american outlets refuse either by choice or not, to write or do shows on us…I hope this will change come the All-Star Game this year…

    Thank you for your time!

    Reply
  3. Geoff- and to point out i dont have any issues with your post, as you seem to be one of the few sensible TFC fans ive yet to see, but to claim “best fans” comes off as arrogant beyond any to me….

    and the reason ive listed DC far beyond is they’ve consistantly had huge base for over a decade…

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  4. Geoff- your team is no more then 1 yr old… how in the world can you say you have the best fans in the league?? you’re fans are still on a contact high of getting a team… if you continue to fail for years to come, we’ll see how the league’s “best fans” react…

    you are simply basing this arguement on the fact that you sell out of BMO… congrats on throwing streamers at the corner flag, have you not realize that hurts your team more then annoys the rest?? taking time away from the game is not a smart thing to do as a TFC fan, as your team will probably already be down or soon to be down on the scoreboard…

    what makes the fans in BMO better then Section 8 or any other fan group at that point??? claiming to have the “best fans in the league” is subjective to what team you support…. personally i think DC fans are far beyond yours, and i dont like DC one bit

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  5. In a way, I’m actually kind of glad you guys don’t like us. It helps build rivalries and is very healthy for a league which severely lacks good rivalries.

    Yah I agree Alex’s argument was on the arrogant side, but if you look at the substance to his argument, he’s got a point. Ourselves and DC have by far the best supporters in MLS, and I dont think that most fair minded people would argue against that. I think if any other city had the support that we did, their fans would likely be just as ‘arrogant’. We’ve got a good thing going (off the pitch at least), and we’re proud of it.

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  6. Geoff- “As a general rule, I don’t think our fans are overly arrogant”

    in all honesty the majority of TFC posters i see always respond in arguements with something that has with selling out their stadium or “the best fans in the MLS”…

    their arguements get boring and redundant and thats why you see alot of dislike for TFC… its arrogant fans like Alex who create a bad name for the rest of you TFC fans… Phrases like:

    “You guys need to face the FACTS! MLS SUCKED before Toronto or Beckham!! and now that you have both, you don’t want to give us credit of selfish!?!?”

    and

    “Everyone else in the league should be worshiping the ground we walk on!”

    what he fails to recognize is that if it were for the rest of the team’s fan base then TFC wouldnt exist today… yet he, and many more TFC fans, go on like they created the league, b/c they are able to sell out a 20k seater… SO, TFC fans, go on hooting and hollering about your 16k season ticket holders and 5k wait-listed… it makes no difference as you have failed miserably where it counts

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  7. I don’t know if Guevara is good for Toronto. Yeah, they suck right now and it looks like another bleak season on the field, but Guevara would only be a short term fix.

    Like someone said, a four year contract for an aging central midfielder with attitude problems (who, according to rumors about a year ago, refused to be traded to Toronto) just spells trouble. Add a quality veteran here or there, but let Toronto’s young nucleus figure things out.

    Reply
  8. irishapple21,

    are you somehow trying to make the case that having sellout crowds is detrimental to your team?

    Alex raises a good point, many people from Don Garber to media people have nothing but praise to what Toronto has done to the MLS. It was the first franchise to set the precedent for how a real football club should be run in North America. Yes, after 1 season + 2 games, we’ve been poor on the pitch, but almost all expansion franchises start off this way.

    As a general rule, I don’t think our fans are overly arrogant. We’re just passionate about our team, and I do think many fans of other MLS teams could learn something from us. We’ve been nothing but good for the league and whatever team you support (i’ll assume NY Energy Drink) is better off with us around.

    Reply
  9. Alex, you sir are a hoser.

    Enablers like you have permitted the Toronto Maple Leafs to be the NHL’s doormat for 30 years. Go eat some Kraft dinner and try to avoid the bolts falling out of the aluminum roof of your “stadium.”

    Reply
  10. Haig — Wanna know whats even more iritating then your mindless post? Is that you fail to give credit, where credit is due! I’m sure you’ll see our fans being front and center for a long time to come!

    Also, maybe you will realize that we are the best fans in the league, not by all the attendance and merchandise records we are smashing, but more likely you’ll realize it when we put on the greatest MLS all star game the league has ever seen!! Everyone else in the league should be worshiping the ground we walk on!

    Also wait until you see the Montreal fans once they get a team, and don’t kid yourself, they will be getting the next team! Then you’re going to have to strong supporting pillars in the MLS, in Toronto and Montreal!!

    You guys need to face the FACTS! MLS SUCKED before Toronto or Beckham!! and now that you have both, you don’t want to give us credit of selfish!?!?

    Reply
  11. Brett, perhaps I exaggerated a bit by saying that it is ‘inevitable’ that we (tfc) are going to get better. But all signs do indicate that we’ll be out of the basement very soon.

    Right now we have ours and San Jose’s first round picks in the 2009 MLS draft, along with a good young crop of players (ie. edu, james, wynne, phelan). On top of that, we have cap space. If we end up signing guevara and ricketts, then we wont have much mroe if any cap space, but we’ll have a top tier mls midfield. On top of that, rumours are swirling that Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (our owners) have been given the green light to sign a DP.

    If it works out that we don’t improve on the pitch in 5 years, I would agree that I could see our support fading a bit, but i think that scenario is highly unlikely given our current state.

    Reply
  12. Seven, the deal is not done yet but the negotiations are ongoing and based on the fact that he has left Motagua it seems like an MLS move is inevitable.

    As for the Chivas USA rights questions, the Goats waived their rights to him, which should mean they have no claims to him anymore. At best, Chivas USA would have right of first refusal on signing Guevara but since the Goats don’t have the cap room to sign him (nor do they want any part of him) he wouldn’t go to Chivas USA anyway and they can’t trade his rights because they don’t own them.

    Reply
  13. alex- if we didnt bicker, argue and nit-pick every post then the boards would be quite boring… ive always said on open forums, that drama improves everything…

    Reply
  14. Calm down children, you act like you’ve never heard people say something stupid on the internet before.

    If I based my opinions on teams based on what some random losers said online, I’d hate practically everything.

    Anyway, back to the move … can we officially say Mo Johnston is hopeless when it comes to importing players? He waits all this time to identify someone he already knows and gets his only other signing from his coach. We had coutless worthless trialists run through camp and very few constructive playres.

    Reply
  15. Geoff- dont know if anyone said that you werent a stable franchise….

    why is improving on the pitch “inevitable”?? while you may be more consistant on the pitch, being in the league doesnt mean you’ll be a quality side… The crew are a more consistant team, but they’ve had a 2 yr playoff drought…. LA has had success and been in the league since the begining yet they’ve hit a 2 yr playoff drought… team’s play will vary from year to year…but im not saying its not possible, just that its not “inevitable”..

    if TFC continue to fail on the pitch for a span of 5 yrs, do you think that the season ticket holders will remain consistant?? or do you see it possibly falling a tad?? for TFC’s sake, id hope you continue to sell out…

    Reply
  16. I would be shocked if in 5 years time, TFC doesn’t continue to sell out every game. THe supporters began this momentum, and then the media is now picking up on it…soon enough when we improve on the pitch (which is inevitable), we’ll keep getting bigger and bigger. i mean theres already rumblings about expanding bmo field. this franchise is as stable as it gets in mls.

    Reply
  17. i’ve got no problem with Toronto. Guevara is worth a few lines of expletives, though. one of my least favorite MLS players of all time.

    honestly, i’m a little concerned for TFC. there are all kinds of ways a FOUR YEAR CONTRACT for a 32-year-old central midfielder — who also happens to be a head case — could backfire.

    Reply
  18. It’s certainly not xenophobia. Any jokes about curling or Don Cherry are opportunistic, not because people hate Canadia.

    What’s irritating about TFC fans is the “we’re gonna show you the way to support your team” attitude, when no other team in the league started off in a suitable soccer stadium, where supporters can actually be heard and where there was an artifically-created demand for tickets based on scarce seats. Supporters of most MLS teams have seen early peaks of interest that were not capitalized upon, because fans learned that (most of) the teams weren’t very good and that they could get walk-up tickets whenever they wanted– and in some cases, the hardest core supporters were actively supressed by teams/stadium security.

    Support for other teams made it possible for Toronto to have a team, a fact deliberately ignored by many TFC supporters with delusions of grandeur. THAT’S why so much contempt.

    Reply
  19. Azerban- the term xenophobia or any use of the word has been over used on these boards (all blogs and open forums)… its being thrown around constantly and has lost its value….

    why dont you talk about your sell out stadium and 16000+ season ticket holders… that hasnt been over done yet… altho i stress yet….

    Reply
  20. Chewy Unikronik–> “What’s with the constant Toronto ‘hating’???

    Sheesh, just imagine when they start actually winning!!!! :|”

    would this be in our life time?? 😛

    Reply
  21. True Johnny. Sounds like a stellar middle of the pitch, especially when you add Ricketts. So who is the odd many out? Does Edu move back to D, where he’s recently proved he can play. Do one of those players move up front? Was also hoping to see Wake’s Phelan move into a starting role sometime later in the year. Think he’ll be a solid defensive minded midfielder in this league. Does Mo package Cunningham and Edu for a blockbuster deal? Scoring a strker and solid defender?

    Reply
  22. If Toronto actually won something, the rampant xenophobia would become completely unhideable (more so than it is now), blood would start firing out their ears and their brains would collapse inwards in a cascade failure of epic proportions.

    Have you seen how little imagination they’ve displayed since their precious currency jokes were taken away?

    Reply
  23. Whats with all the TFC hating…its because at one point some of the older clubs had the support we did and it has since died off. The league suffocated some markets’ expectatuions by not expanding the salary cap. Hopefully, this isn’t a prejudice thing and the hate will be spread to new markets with equal off field success like Seattle and Philadelphia. Otherwise, its just sad.

    Reply
  24. Maybe this was covered before, but how does this work. NY traded him to Chivas for a DP slot, then he leaves. I understand that, but wouldn’t Chivas still own the rights to him? Or wouldn’t Toronto have to trade for those rights for Guevara?

    If there is this loop-hole, then couldn’t Conde “retire” from Chicago. He could then come back during the Summer window and play for the Red Bulls? I could be way off it has happened before.

    Reply
  25. What’s with the constant Toronto ‘hating’???

    Sheesh, just imagine when they start actually winning!!!! 😐

    Reply
  26. Hudson,

    Thats right youre not, youre in Columbus supporting a shite football team. Ill take Tuh Rah Nuh, thanks.

    Reply
  27. as for our strikers up front, i think if anything theyve been lacking the service and the addition of Robert and Guevara greatly improves that situation (as would Ricketts). Basically if those guys still arent putting em in once everyone is signed and settled we know we’ve got some strikers to move.

    Reply
  28. I think its a great move considering how we’ve looked thus far in the season, just worrying about the reliability of the source itself. I guess its sorta been in the books for a bit. LETS SEE THAT RICKETTS SIGNING PAN OUT!!!!

    Reply
  29. I still think it sucks for Chivas to give up a DP for this guy and not even have him last half a season. But I guess it’s their fault for the bad research on Guevara.

    Reply
  30. Classy comment Modibo.

    Guess its common to hate what you can’t have though. 16,000 season ticket holders with a waiting list estimated at 5000. But you’re right, they must be all bad.

    Reply
  31. Guevara is definitely a class player and I too have heard his play of late has improved since most of us last saw him. Will he help TFC? Of course, but as Spencer stated, they lack any quality up front (and that’s including Cunningham who apparently is on his way outta TO, rumors that I’m sure don’t have him playing his best either) and their D has just been disgustingly bad so far. If anything, they need a proven, no nonscense, pure defender that plays hard nosed footy (which would also allow Brennan to move to his more natural midfield position). As bad as their attack has looked, for me at least, their back four have been even worse. What’s worse, 1 goal in 2 games, or 6 goals against during the same two game stretch??? Even with a proven scorer, they still woulda lost to DC and likely Columbus. Interesting to see how things play out.

    Reply
  32. Not sure if this will help them much. They will have great center mids in Edu and Guevara but the attacking options are bleak still. And I’m not sure about how stellar the def is either. Hopefully he will bring some hope.

    Reply

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