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MLS accepts $5 million Rangers bid for Edu

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                                                  Photo by ISIphotos.com

Maurice Edu is on his way to Europe.

According to multiple sources within Major League Soccer, MLS and Toronto FC have accepted a $5 million transfer fee for Edu from Scottish giants Glasgow Rangers. Edu is stil finalizing personal terms with Rangers, but a deal is expected to be completed soon.

Edu joins Jozy Altidore ($10 million move to Villarreal) and Brad Guzan ($1.5 million move to Aston Villa) on the list of MLS standouts to make moves to Europe this summer. Who do you think is next to go?

Share your thought’s on Edu’s move, and on who you think will go next, in the comments section below.

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Comments

  1. The reason it won’t be a problem for Edu getting a work permit is because UK work permits usually require the player to have played in 7 of the last 10 international games, except in exceptional circumstances. Edu’s appearance at the Olympics will pretty much guarantee him a permit

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  2. Bob-you’re 100% right…enough’s enough… we need American players to stay here and develop the league’s talent, besides money, what’s the point of leaving to ride the bench?

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  3. Why do people pay to watch MLS games when they ship all the young talent out? I watch games as often as I can, but you have to give me a reason to watch. Do you think I would watch American football if young talent like Adrian Peterson was sold off to another league? No way. I’m tired of watching MLS as an expression of charity to American soccer.

    I love the comment about how these guys will come back later. Well, great. I love watching 35 year-old Americans come home — what a thrill. I love McBride, but he is definitely in the twilight years.

    I want the best in the world playing here — nostalgia doesn’t sell tickets.

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  4. Lol do you think Edu will do as well as Reyna did with Rangers? It was easy when just Beasley was on Rangers now Edu is on there…and im Celtic fan so the next Old firm Match is going to be a tough one to watch.

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  5. “How the heck does he sell for 5.75 mil and Guzan gets the 1.5 mil shaft?”

    Dan, Guzan was in the last year of his MLS contract and could have left on a free transfer this winter, hence the lower transfer fee. Remember, Villa’s bid last winter was closer to $4MM – it’s a contract/time-table issue.

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  6. For those shocked by the price tag/team:

    It’s got to do with history. Last year, Rangers held a comfortable lead making the turn and coming down the stretch in the season, but fell apart, due to injury and a crowded schedule, and lost the league to Celtic, again. I say again because Celtic has won the title the past 3 years.

    In case you’re unaware, Rangers and Celtic get along as well as cats and dogs. Rangers already crashed out of the champions league. They really, really, really want to win the league this year, else heads will roll.

    But they wont win anyway. Up the bhoys!

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  7. this won’t hurt TFC at all.

    If you’ve seen all of TFC’s game (I have) you’d know that Mo was pretty invisible this season. Robert has had his fine moments, same with Ricketts, Guevara, and Robinson… but Edu hasn’t put it together for even a full match. His best pass is a back pass to his defense… he tries to run through 3-4 opponents and then loses the ball. When he’s had scoring opportunities, he’s almost always flubbed the shot.

    His strength is protecting himself by muscling guys off the ball while keeping his balance, and passing off. He’s a pretty smart guy too… but worth $5 million? no way. Rangers are paying for the hype he’s received as rookie of the year, USMNT player, and FIFA coverboy. I still don’t understand why the US Men’s team keeps calling him up.

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  8. Jeffrey, I posted a thread on BS on that very subject (in fact I used the term “Mass Exodus” in the thread title) and people don’t tend to agree. I think they are being a bit blind myself, although I’m still not convinced LandyCakes will ever leave the US.

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  9. Dan-Ger 001,

    Edu is definitely talented and physical however he is a work in progress. As of the last year or so hes played the defensive mid position however this year hes been going forward alot more. Its not out of the question that he could become a playmaker however as of right now it doesnt seem to be his natural position/identity. TFC fans can be rude and unfair and say that hes had a sh!t season with us but in all honesty he has been going through some growing pains as his role hasnt been defined and he is now surrounded by alot more talent then he was last season as a result different demands have been made of him. Regardless we are sad to see him go but glad hes going to a team that will train him well and help him evolve into the great player he will be. GOOD LUCK EDU!!!!

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  10. At the end of the season I think we will see a mss exodus of players. Donovan, Cooper, and Segares for sure. Many more to come.

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  11. This is not the way for the MLS to maintain fan loyalty. Get a good player. feel pride in your team, sell him, what’s the point of supporting the team. Sure there are trades but for the MLS it is all one way.

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  12. Dan-ger,

    Edu is not a great creator. He’s a fine passer, his touch is good, he doesn’t let the ball get far away from him and he holds up very well under pressure, but he is definitely a D-mid. He’s a good leaper with excellent speed and athleticism, with a decent shot who can certainly contribute to the attack but he’s definitely not a #10 player.

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  13. I hope Klejstan or Holden is next to go. Klejstan needs it the most. He has good size, decent strength, is fiery and competitive, makes good runs and can finish pretty well. He desperately needs work on his ball skills, particularly his first touch. A European league will force him to refine his touch and make quicker, smarter passes.

    Holden seems to have all the skills. He just needs to go through the crucible of European competition to take it to the next level. I do worry that he’s a little thin and small for an overly physical league like EPL or Bundesliga. He reminds me a lot of John O’Brien and I don’t want him to shorten his career the way John did.

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  14. Hi Guys,

    Scottish Rangers fan here, just wondering how you rate Edu, sounds like he is more defensive minded? We are in desperate need of creativity going forward from midfeild! If he is close to the quality of Reyna most gers fans will be happy (Given Reyna was older when he arrived). Looks like he did well last year to win an award.

    For the guys wondering about work permits, the system in Scotland is the same as in england as far as I know, and the clubs don’t have any real sway in these decisions.

    Cheers,

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  15. Good for Big Mo’. He deserves his shot over in Europe. Maybe he can use the SPL as a stepping stone to an even bigger league. Without a doubt, this will polish his skills and help the MNT.

    As for why MLS always loses the good young players, I would venture to guess that his yearly salary will be at least 1200% larger than his MLS payday. Money talks, and quite frankly, there’s very little talking going on in the MLS.

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  16. Its not easier to get a work permit for scotland than it is in england, its exactly the same as both countries are part of the UK.

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  17. I think this is good and bad for the league. It is good, because, 5 years ago did any of you ever hear of an American being “sold” to Europe? It is bad for the obvious, there goes some good talent reason.

    Next up:

    Donovan (I would think he will command the most ever 12-15 mill and will AEG do it?)

    Kljestan (5-6 mill)

    Cooper (5 mill)

    The values have gone up tremendously. Why Guzan was a 1.5 million sale instead of a 5 million sale, I don’t know. I do think part of it is because decent American keepers are a “dime a dozen” and can be had on the cheap. American field players are a lot harder to come by, and 5 mill for a transfer fee is nothing to most of these clubs making us very enticing.

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  18. good for him

    i don’t think its such a bad thing for mls that the young kids are heading out, there’s plenty of decent americans coming back too: eddie lewis, cory gibbs, kasey keller, jaqua, noonan…

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  19. apparently its been in the mix for a bit, one would assume as press release says that

    Manuel Diego Tello is trialing with the team. Logic would dictate that Mos got a striker up his sleeve too (seeing as Carver has been calling for one since the start of the season. PLEASE HAVE ONE UP YOUR SLEEVE MO)

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  20. If you’re talking about how, as soon as a player becomes good, he gets sold off, it’s something that happens to all but the very biggest clubs in Europe, not just MLS and Scandanavia. The same thing happens in South America, heck, the same thing happens in France, and the same thing also happens to the smaller teams in the Premier League, Serie A, etc. As soon as a player becomes a star for a team, a bigger team will be inquiring about him. It’s no fun when he plays for your team, but it’s just reality.

    It’s all about the money. If MLS salaries were to start competing with NFL, NBA and MLB salaries in a year or two, a lot of top players wouldn’t be able to get over here fast enough.

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  21. >.< teams are not very profitable from a business standpoint… enough with all this "raise the cap" nonsense…

    the cap will be increased at the end of 09', probably to 5M… nearly double is my guess… however, that wont keep euro bound players…. its not just about the money, its about the enviornment, its about the teams, the players the development… the MLS is simply NOT at that point yet…

    in the next 10-20 years id say yes, its likely we could keep the bulk of our quality players… with more and more intl' tourny's our teams are introduced to, the better our image is….

    its not about attracting fair weather fans, its about producing quality new diehards, and that starts with our youth… get them attached when they are young, not when they've been introduced to leagues around the world which are more advanced…. we simply cant throw money at this and hope it'll solve itself… our teams need a history… they need fans that fill their stadiums….

    if the salary is increased, i hope they increase the minimum before anything… give them an additional million, allowing them to give each player an additional 30-40k more…. b/c if we increase the amount but not the minimum then all we will do is have a bunch of players making loads of cash and their backups scrapping off the bottom…

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  22. Before everyone gets excited, Edu won’t be playing in the Champions League. That’s right, last year’s UEFA Cup finalists were knocked out of the cup this week by Lithuanian minnows Kaunas. At least he’ll still have the Old Firm Derby.

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  23. Question for everyone saying what a good thing it is for all the best players to leave doesnt make much sense to me. How is the league ever going to get more interest from the public in that scenario? With the cap in place it isnt like teams can use that money to get much better players like the Scandanavian leagues do. If they are going to be serious players in the transfer market then they need to change the rules so teams can use that money to get better players beyond the cap. The way it is setup now fans are just left with a worse product when one of the best players gets transferred.

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  24. He is a franchise player but was horrible this year. I don’t think TFC lost anything! All I would like to know is how much money Toronto will be getting and who will fill his spot.

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  25. Great for Maurice, good for Rangers, bad for Toronto FC.

    And for all you complaining about players leaving MLS for Europe, look at all the names returning — Cory Gibbs, Nate Jaqua, Kasey Keller, Clint Mathis, Brian McBride, Pat Noonan, Josh Wolff, and perhaps Eddie Lewis. (Bummer Benny Feilhaber signed with AGF Aarhus instead of New England Revolution.) I’m sure Altidore, Edu, and Guzan will all be back in MLS some day, too.

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  26. Gavin… will be next…. hahahahahah, man thats a good one. I will meet him at the airport and wave goodbye, maybe even pack his bags. Keep those coming mikefromlinden, thats gold

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  27. That is the last thing i expected to hear about. but this is good I mean do you realize how many players we’ve sent over to prestigous European clubs. the only problem i have with Edu going to Rangers is that im a Celtic fan. Get it Mo!

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  28. Edu is overrated. Adrien Silva is better at 18 than Edu is at 22. Wynne is another overrated player, if he wasnt superfast he’d be the worst defender in MLS (Velez wouldnt be so bad if he didnt have to cover Wynne’s a** every game) and his crosses are rarely dangerous. Move to a 442 losango style and put Hemming at RB and TFC will be better off.

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  29. To answer two questions that have been asked –

    Edu was sold for more than Guzan was sold for because of the amount of time left on his contract. Guzan’s contract expired after this season, while Edu still must have a few more years left on his original contract.

    The work permit rules are technically the same for England and Scotland because they are within the same government (UK). Edu will probably have an easier time getting a work permit because of the fact that Rangers is asking for one. The biggest and most influential clubs in Britain can usually get work permits for whomever they want. It is not fair, but it is how the world works. It may also be that Edu has another passport to help him on his way.

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  30. cbr, keep in mind, TFC gets two-thirds of the transfer, not a small piece. That would make it about $3.3M. Of that, they can use up to 500k as an allocation for another player. And also, as I understand it, MLS players do not get a percentage of the transfer fee.

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  31. I am not a TFC fan but I am a huge MLS fan. I agree that it is good to sell some players when they want to move on to Europe. However, with all of these sales, the league is in a better financial position. To take the next step and become more popular, MLS has to show its fans that it is now willing to invest in quality players.

    The salary cap is ridiculously low. It honestly needs to be at least doubled for next year. The league has the money. Most teams have soccer specific stadiums or plans for them. IMO, the next step is not expansion, but commitment to player compensation. You cannot attract and keep quality young talent by offering them $30K per year! LA has proven that while the DP is good, it doesn’t provide quality teams as long as the cap is so low.

    Please MLS, lets use this money to attract and keep quality talent. Focus on the quality and put off the quantity (i.e. expansion) for a while. 16 teams is enough until MLS can keep more players.

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  32. I don’t believe it! Maurice has been terrible all season long and we sell him for $5 Million?!

    Super-MO! (Johnston not shitty Edu)

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  33. I’m sad to see him go, but i’m very happy he is going to a club like rangers and not some 2nd division club in norway or denmark.

    I think those teams are the real culprits of the drain of talent in the MLS. Lets face it players like Edu, Adu, Dempsey are always gonna make their way to Europe, but there is no way we should be losing guys to $hit teams in lower divisions.

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  34. This is great news for Edu and the USMNT.

    I know it’s disappointing to watch young players move on to Europe, but, it happens all over the world.

    It just means, that MLS is producing good players. This is a positive sign. Now MLS just has to reinvest in youth programs, and the quality of play will continue to get better.

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  35. uggg…. guys we cant have it both ways… we cant expect a league who’s teams are not all profitable yet to have a league wide salary cap increase and keep our players…. to increase the salary cap we have to have solid income flowing into their pockets, and the transfer window is a wide open spot light to show off our talent and get the best bang for our buck…

    this shouldnt hurt TFC too badly, as all TFC fans love to point out how crowded their midfield is… Mo is a quality player and would have ventured off to europe… the league got interest from villa end of last seson and the MLS didnt listen… now they got a quality offer for a quality player…. get the money and invest it….

    our youth systems will continue to pump out players… younger players are getting more and more looks by loads of teams…. we’ll continue to see a growth of quality in our youth… transfers to better leagues?? this is the way of every soccer league…. happens more to the weaker ones, but its the only way to grow right now…

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  36. Bit harsh there BgNewf,

    Sad to see him go but in all honesty the only thing to come from this trade is a lack of depth, Edu was not a game changer although he defo has alot of promise. Yes Mo should have signed us a striker by now (there are rumors hes not done yet, granted its not going to be a big name but dude maybe effective). Regardless, Mo (GM, no player) was great in signing our mid this season and elsewhere, his only shortcoming has been the lack of striker (too many eggs in one basket for Dickov, waste of time imo) and that does not warrant a firing.

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  37. What position will Rangers utilize him at? Midfielder like with Toronto or Central Back like the Olympics? The answer to this question will be an important one for the national team.

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  38. Edu is going to have to wait a year to play champions league football because they were knocked out in the qaulifying rounds. Also Guzan was sold for so little because he was on the last year of his contract, so if villa wanted to they could’ve waited until after the mls season wraps up and they could’ve picked him up for free. So Chivas felt 1.5 mil was better than nothing.

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