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Koke abruptly leaves Dynamo

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Photo by Nick Turchiaro/ISIphotos.com

Koke's Houston Dynamo career came and went in a matter of weeks.

The Spanish striker reportedly asked to be released from his contract with the club and has left Houston, presumably to rejoin Aris in Greece — where he starred before coming to MLS — according to comments made on his Facebook page.

Koke scored one goal in his brief MLS stay, notching Houston's second goal in its 2-2 draw with New York on May 21. He played in seven games and made two starts, and reportedly told Dynamo staff that he wanted out over the weekend. He appeared as a late substitute in Houston's 2-2 draw with Dallas on Saturday.

"He's expressed his interest to leave the club, and we're going to regroup on Tuesday after the holiday to assess the situation and talk to the league further," Dynamo president Chris Canetti told the Houston Chronicle on Monday.

Assuming his contract is terminated without a hitch, Koke's departure will free up considerable cap space for the Dynamo. According to the MLS Players Union, Koke was on the books for $153,000.

As for potential replacements, Houston has been repeatedly linked to Hibernian striker Derek Riordan, although Sky Sports reported on Monday that his wage demands continue to be too high for the Dynamo.

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What do you think about the Koke fiasco? Who do you see Houston bringing in to replace him?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. LOL can’t even protect their own unions. C’mon…

    Texas is a right to work state cause we’ve got balls. Get fired? Tough luck. Get a new one or start a business (ALOT of small businesses). We don’t pay any dues to no corrupt Unions.

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  2. I’m telling you, we gotta tap in with a fair skinned, young Mexican player with national team involvement and you’ll get a packed stadium EVERY WEEK! LOL YEA RIGHT (on getting a player i described)!

    But you’re right, get a good central american or a player from the north of SA (Colombia preferably, we’ve got a decent Colombian population) who is creative and can take the heat and we’ll be ok.

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  3. He must have developed strong ties in Greece or at least his family. You have to blame Houston on not doing a better job of screening these signings to make sure the player is ready to move to the U.S.. It is a large cultural change from Greece to the U.S.. You can’t just focus on all those other public problems because he was obviously enjoying his life there or at least his family which you can’t ignore.. If you have a good paying job, then you don’t have those issues of concern as long as the club is paying your salary.

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  4. He’s just a wpussy thats all, scared of little change. Go back home, we don’t need you in our fledgeling league.

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  5. Koke missed the gambling debts that he was incurring in Greece and needed to get back. Dude had SERIOUS gambling problems and thought Houston/MLS was an easy way to get away from everything. He was about to get suspended by Aris prior to his departure. Not sure where he is going but I don’t want anyone that does not want to be here. Neither do Dom or Canetti. No big loss.

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  6. Don’t know what state you live in Yankee, but I’m sure your governor has said some dumba** stuff too that you don’t endorse. But since Texas is the only state in the union that started as a sovereign nation, I’m sure that succession stuff made some people nervous.

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  7. Koke was just a late match sub. This probably had more to do with his unhappiness than anything, even if he’s not admitting it. Not sure why Dynamo would sign someone like him, make a big deal of it, and then sit him down most of the time. Perhaps Dom quickly soured on him.

    As for possible homesickness, perhaps Dynamo FO needs to do a better job of helping international players relocate and assimilate comfortably.

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  8. Use google and find them out for yourself. They just held hearings on CSPAN about them you can watch for yourself. You know-nothing idiot.

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  9. HOU has a large African population (as opposed to our indigenous African-American population). As an alternative to Central and South American talent, the Dynamo could get a top class African player similar to Drogba, Eto, Essien, Gyan, Amoah, or Appiah and realize some energy in the Houston immigrant population.

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  10. I agree re MF. I’ve thought ever since DeRo left, HOU needed a true #10. Unfortunately, good #10’s are as scarce as hen’s teeth. With a true #10 HOU can move Cameron to his best position – holding midfield.

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  11. Show me one subsidy to an oil company? The government takes money in taxes. Sometimes they take a little less and make everyone think they are “giving” money. You are one of the fools that falls for this.

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  12. I saw every one of Koke’s appearances. Koke’s problem was not service/play unlike what he was accustomed to in Europe. He was slow, short and couldn’t separate from defenders. MLS defenders towered over him and ate him up. Remember Freddie Adu in MLS? Nuff said. Having said that I thought that if Koke would have stayed longer the Dynamo could figure out how to make best use of his skills.

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  13. Houston’s last 5 home games.

    Weather: Cloudy-and-81-degrees
    Weather: Clear-and-78-degrees
    Weather: Partly Cloudy-and-69-degrees
    Weather: Partly Cloudy-and-85-degrees
    Weather: Clear-and-86 degrees

    During the summer the games are at night and are not much higher.

    If you can’t handle these temperatures play Hockey.

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  14. We all pay for your oil industry jobs with billions in subsidies for companies that rake in profits. The joke’s on ALL of us, you included Einstein.

    Reply

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