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Morning Ticker: Alvarez dealt to San Jose, Tottenham chases Bentley and Barca might keep Eto’o

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Good morning all. The transfer and trade activity both in Europe and MLS is starting to pick up plenty of steam, giving us plenty to discuss. Let’s get the day started with some of the deals of the past 24 hours.

FC Dallas deals Alvarez

Remember when FC Dallas started the season singing the praises of the attacking trio of Kenny Cooper, Juan Toja and Arturo Alvarez? Well, all three could be gone by the end of this week after the Hoops traded Alvarez to San Jose for an allocation and a first round draft pick in 2009.

Alvarez fell out favor in Dallas and has struggled to recapture the form he showed in the season’s first month. With new coach Schellas Hyndman looking to shake up the roster, Alvarez became expendable in an overcrowded midfield that added another body in SMU midfielder Bruno Guarda, who FC Dallas acquired from the Colorado Rapids (Colorado won Guarda’s rights in a special lottery last week).

Guarda’s arrival in MLS was overshadowed last week by the MLS All-Star game but the Brazilian midfielder could be an impact player for Hyndman, who coached him the past three seasons at SMU. With Toja also expected to move on, Guarda could potentially slide into the starting lineup.

Alvarez joins a revamped San Jose attack that has already added Darren Huckerby, Francisco Lima and Scott Sealy in recent weeks. Will a return to San Jose (where Alvarez played his first two seasons) be the change of scenery Alvarez needs to regain his top form? The Earthquakes are hoping so. At the very least San Jose has a young player with more of a long-term future with the club than their three previous acquisitions.

Tottenham in Bentley chase

Apparently that Robbie Keane transfer money is burning a hole in Tottenham’s wallet. Spurs are already lining up to make a bid for Blackburn midfielder David Bentley. Blackburn is reportedly seeking a $34 million offer for Bentley, which happens to be slightly less than the $40.5 million Tottenham just received for Keane.

Adding Bentley to a group of new midfielders that already includes Luka Modric and Giovani Dos Santos would make Spurs a very dangerous group, but wouldn’t exactly help replace Keane (or Dimitar Berbatov if he happens to leave).

The Bentley move comes as a bit of a surprise since it was first believed that Tottenham might use the Keane money to land Andrei Arshavin, who is looking more and more likely to stay at Zenit. St. Petersburg.

Barcelona could keep Eto’o

When Barcelona put ‘For Sale’ signs in Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto’o and Deco earlier this summer it seemed a bit odd for the Spanish giants to be considering unloading a striker in Eto’o who is still considered one of the world’s best.

Well, it may not happen now. Barca is strongly considering keeping the Cameroonian international, citing his positive attitude in pre-season. So why is Barcelona really having a change of heart? It could have to do with the transfer market and the lack of A) huge bids for Eto’o and B) replacements for Eto’o in the market.

What would I do? I’d be glad to see Eto’o hasn’t become a clubhouse cancer and keep him. An Henry-Eto’o tandem up front is still very dangerous, and would allow Lionel Messi to roam around the midfield, where his speed seems best served.

Everton back in Moutinho chase

Just a day after selling striker Andy Johnson, Everton is back in for Sporting Lisbon midfielder Joao Moutinho. Will the Toffees offer enough for the Portuguese international? It seems as if Moutinho already thinks so and isn’t happy that his current club hasn’t accepted the initial bid.

As I stated yesterday, Moutinho would be a prize acquisition for Everton, a skillful central midfielder who would boost an Everton attack that often struggled to generate goals in bunches.

What do you think of these stories? Did San Jose land a steal in Alvarez? Was Schellas Hyndman wise to unload Alvarez and trade for Guarda? Should Tottenham be spending its Keane money on a forward rather than another midfielder? Is Barcelona wise or foolish to keep Eto’o?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. As a Galaxy fan I would like to see to it personally that Kenny Cooper leaves and never shows his face again in an MLS SSS! He burned us worse than my mom’s meatloaf and for that reason alone I’d be happy to see him go.

    Is Everton still interested in MB? I haven’t read or heard anything that would suggest that they are still in the race.

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  2. buzz – b/c he’s nearing the end of his career… he’s probably got 1 maybe 2 more seasons at such a top flight….

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  3. As an FCD fan I’m willing to give Hyndman a little bit of slack, but if he starts stacking the roster with his old college players, like Murphy suggests he might, then I’m done with this team until they hire somebody with some pro cred. Hell, isn’t Daniel Hernandez still at Chiapas? Why not go ahead and give him a call?

    As soon as KC goes, all ability we had to finish is gone (and don’t feed me any Dominic Oduro crap).

    I miss El Pescadito!! He may have been a little punk, but at least he made the games fun to watch.

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  4. Looking at the transfer figures for some of these players….why was a top keeper like Friedel transferred for so little? You would think he would be worth far more (in comparative figures) than the actual sale price?

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  5. No Brett, that only happens with the yanks abroad. jk

    Memo in 23 and has been a pro for five years, yes, five years, and in that time he has played in Copa Libertadores, Copa Sudamericana, Copa America and countless friendlies with the national team. That’s more experience than Guzan can fit in his tight girl-like jeans.

    Memo will go to Europe eventually but right now, I don’t seen him displacing Howard since Timmy has been one of the best/most consistent GKs in England for a few years now.

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  6. ah, different league, different team, different country… who knows how he’ll develope abroad… we’ve all been down this road where we think someone is going to be huge and then find out they fizzle out…. just saying that you should hype him up, b/c people tend to get let down by the overblown hype… (not saying he wont become a quality keeper, just saying be carefull on hyping)

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  7. Although it would be “nice” to have Alvarez back home in Houston, we don’t need him. Our midfield is completely stacked. We need forwards, could maybe even use a good backup defender, but we don’t need midfielders.

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  8. I would hate to see him go but he deserves it man. He just hasn’t really been showcased on the world stage much that’s why clubs don’t know too much about him. He doesn’t even feature for Mexico all the time because they still think Sanchez is something that he’s not. Mark my words Ochoa will be starting for one of the best teams in the world in 5 years. My guess would be Barca. Hell he could start over Valdes right now in my opinion.

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  9. kyle- yes that is who im refering to…

    it just seems odd tho, with how quality Howard has been for Everton, i cant see why they’d bring in another young talented GK…. unless they were planning on loaning him out to get PT, but i dont see it…

    apparently its being reported he’s being scouted by 2 english, 1 spanish, and 1 italian team

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  10. Are u referring to Guillermo Ochoa with a link to Everton? if anybody else watched America’s first game on Sunday you could easily see how much talent the kid has. As an Aguila fan I have watched him grow on the team and he never stops amazing me with some of the saves he makes. I’m very surprised a big club hasn’t splashed big money for his services. I see him being at least a top ten GK in the world in 5 years.

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  11. Cal- there are ALOT of players who are 1-footed…. tons of pro’s who hit the ball with the outside of their good foot rather then hitting it with their “off” foot….

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  12. Screw this year! Unless FCD has a serious plan I’d be worried about them heading to the cellar for a couple years.

    Selling off starters and replacing them with never won anything SMU players?

    Me thinks this ain’t the next revolution in MLS.

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  13. If you watched Alvarez play he was a one foot player. He never used his right foot. For passes that he should use he right foot on he would use the outside of his left. That is to one dimension to be playing professional football.

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  14. cant believe that he’s getting rid of Alvarez… this seems like a nightmare of a season for you FCD fans….

    altho obviously the team was clicking, i dont blame the coach for mixing things up… but quite the drop… obviously Cooper and Toja are understandable seeing they’ll be getting allocation and cap space, but Cooper is going to be tough to replace…. Alvarez seems more like a personal decission… im guessing he and the coach didnt click… perhaps the coach just doesnt like his playing style… either way its truely improving SJ with the addition

    IVES- 2 rumors catching im reading up on, can you shed any light..

    1)Barca is after Trezeguet

    2)Everton after Ochoa

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  15. I just want to applaud Dallas and SJ.

    Houston trades allocation and draft pick for Kei Kamara and SJ turns around and gives it to Dallas for Alvarez.

    to quote anchorman “Actually, I’m not even mad. That’s amazing.”

    Alvarez would have been a great Houston Home Coming.

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  16. As and FCD fan I really hope this new coach has a plan and really hope the players taking the places of all these departures can show something. If not, the season is over.

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  17. Im not really shocked at Eto’o not moving on. It was he and Dinho who didnt get along at Barca. Now that he’s gone we’ll find out if Eto’o had a Ronaldinho problem or a generally poor attitude

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  18. I agree with kpugs. Dallas looks like a joke hiring a college coach who brings in his favorite players from SMU. Yeah this guy Guarda might be good but come on… Then they are going to get rid of Toja and Cooper. I just don’t understand.

    On the other hand, San Jose looked a lot better with Lima, Huckerby, and Sealy, so Alvarez will help them.

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  19. If Everton does end up buying MBradley, poor young Michael may never see the field. Too much strength there by a long shot if Moutinho is there too.

    But, depth at midfield is necessary so maybe they still go after him as a Carling Cup player and injury replacement.

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  20. Were I an FC Dallas fan, I would not be remotely happy right now. The European transfer window can be the bane of MLS clubs; and then you don’t expect your team to go giving away players when they lose important ones to Europe. Ouch.

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  21. Some reports have Spurs going for Pavlyuchenko instead of Arshavin. Pavlyuchenko is a skilled forward, and a bit younger, I believe…and also could come at a lower price.

    If they can get him and Bentley for slightly less than what they would pay for Arshavin, it’d be a decent move.

    With the way they’ve been spending, though, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them go after all 3.

    Conversely – I wonder what they’re going to do with all these midfielders, and whose going to be responsible for holding down the middle with all these attack-minded and wing mids…

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  22. Everton stepped up and made a serious offer. 19m euros is a fair price for Moutinho. I hope Sporting uses some of that cash to get Viana from Valencia. I doubt it though. Money for the best academy in the world has got to come from somewhere. Also, the usual Veloso to Arsenal rumour has popped up again, 18m euros.

    I think Etoo is demanding too much in salary, thats why he hasnt been sold yet. An Etoo for Berbatov swap would be intersting, if Etoo had a realistic valuation of his services.

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