Top Stories

Red Bulls acquire Cooper via trade with Portland

MLSHCS20110924248

photo by Howard C. Smith/ISIphotos.com

The New York Red Bulls' forward corps just got a little deeper.

The Red Bulls acquired Kenny Cooper from the Portland Timbers on Wednesday in exchange for a 2013 first round MLS SuperDraft pick and allocation money. Cooper joins the Red Bulls after a return season to MLS that saw him score eight goals and have two assists in 34 league games.

The move may come as a surprise given that the Red Bulls currently have forwards Thierry Henry, Luke Rodgers and Juan Agudelo on their roster, but it could indicate that Agudelo may soon be leaving the club via a transfer.

What do you think of New York picking up Cooper? Like the trade? What do you think will happen to Agudelo?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Cooper is not a bad player and he’s going to score some goals for New York. Still, he’s not worth $250,000/yr much less a draft pick. The Timbers are being very shrewd with regards to the salary cap, hopefully someone will step forward and score some goals for them next year

    Reply
  2. Geez, I was mostly kidding about the Comos but I guess that touched a nerve. But seriously, “loyalty” and “emotional attachment” aren’t things fans just decide to have or that teams are just automatically entitled to. I’ve vaguely supported the Red Bulls/Metro Stars since I began to follow MLS about 6 years ago because they’re the closer team to where I live, but I’ve never come to like them very much. Most of the players I’ve liked (Juan Pablo Angel, Juan Agudelo) haven’t been treated particularly well by the organization, the ownership and coaching staff seem like fools and “Red Bull” is a pretty tacky, corporate name. Gosh, I guess I’m just a flawed, stereotypical American fan.

    I would love to support a team passionately and feel the kind of connection I feel towards the USMNT (or, when I was younger, Djugarden in Sweden), but RBNY is not doing it for me. So, no, I don’t bleed RBNY like Liverpuddlians bleed Liverpool FC, but then, well, if you are missing the difference between the two clubs, then you’re just blindly pretending MLS is something it isn’t (at least not yet).

    Reply
  3. Cooper has had bad luck with injuries. Everyone is different but it may be that he wasn’t completely confident about his health while in Portland. So it is possible NYRB may see more of the old Cooper.

    Reply
  4. RBNY with another brilliant decision. Might as well accept that Juan is gone. Might as well get rid of Henry, and bring Khano Smith back.

    Reply
  5. So I am a Portland fan and have only seen what he did this last season and compilations of highlights from before, but Kenny Cooper isn’t a target forward (refuses to play with his back to the goal), dribbles too much without much plan of what to do with it other than try to race by the defender if he can, goes down most times when he is challenged, and he does not score many goals with his head (I remember one that he put in off a corner but that didn’t count) — OK just watched all of the Timber’s goals and he had one with his head, one with his chest from a cross and the other 6 were with feet … most of what he gets are long range blasts that he prays find their way through (and most don’t).

    I think Kenny had a bad year at Portland. Trying to play for an expansion team that was hot and cold and had a hard time getting him the ball with any space at all. He was playing better in the last 25% of the season which is when he scored 5 of his 8 season goals, and is genuinely a nice guy, but he unless he can find his 2008 form again he certainly isn’t going to be some dominating force in the air or target forward for anyone.

    Reply
  6. Portland didn’t receive any allocation money for Moffat… they received Chabala, Palmer and an int’l roster spot. They gave up allocation money in addition to Hotshot Hamish.

    Reply
  7. “My issue would be that it sounds like the Timbers may have traded the allocation received with Palmer and Chabala (in exchange for Moffat), in trade for a pick.”

    Exact terms are not announced (and never will be, MLS never tells us how much allocation cash, just that there was some) but RBNY is giving PTFC a gob of allocation cash and a pick for Cooper (not the other way).

    Reply
  8. Better for him to get paid to be on the bench in Europe with a chance of playing himself into the lineup.

    Backe seems intent on letting him sit.

    Reply
  9. “like, three years now?”

    Or 16 years, but who is counting?

    Are fans really that ridiculous that they forgot this team was a founding member of MLS who changed their name as part of a corporate sponsorship/takeover 6 years ago? Wow, just wow.

    But yes, by all means, resurrect the Cosmos – clearly they will do a better job based on results 35 years ago in a league without a salary cap and generally no restrictions attempting to keep the reigns on spending. To me, NY fans who keep begging for Cosmos are the ultimate fickle fans. Do Jets/Giants, Yankees/Mets, Rangers/Islanders, Knicks/Nets fans just switch their allegiances around to the better team all of the time too? Seems unlikely.

    Reply
  10. Just moved to NYC and I have to say that the RB management team appears to really not “get it”. I hear them say the “right” things publicly but there seems to be a disconnect between what they say and their actions.

    Can put my finger on exactly what it is about Soler and Hancke…. I feel like they almost come across as patronizing their fans and people they work with. Maybe I am reading more into the body language than their is…. but body language typically doesn’t lie.

    Anyway…. I guess until RB wins something – anything – the RB management will always be questioned.

    Reply
  11. Never happen–Alonso is the key to the Sounders–I doubt Seattle fans would consider a trade him for anything less than a double digit scorer, much less a guy who comes off the bench. Silly

    Reply
  12. Seriously, get over yourself, Mr. Instant Ultimate Loyalty. The “Red Bulls” have only existed for, like, three years now? And they have not exactly been the easiest of teams to root for.

    A lot of us love the game and are looking for teams here in the USA to support that play a brand of soccer that inspires something other than facepalms and frustration, but the MetroStars…er, Red Bulls, aren’t exactly there yet….

    Reply
  13. That’s actually a pretty good point, I was just remembering when Arena tried that with Altidore and it was a heavily criticized move.

    Reply
  14. Jesus, get a grip on YOURself. You’re on the internet man. I just happen to think Juan would be a good fit in Seattle. Do I think that particular deal I outline would happen? No, I just threw it out there because this is a soccer forum. I’m not even from Seattle. So chill out. And who are you to say what Juan’s next step in his career is?

    Reply
  15. you epitomize the sterotype of an american sports fan… No loyalty, no identity, no integrity.. Go watch the cosmos… oh wait they dont have a team.

    Im NYRB through thick and thin, but then again im a football fan, not a poser, like team jumpers like you.

    Reply

Leave a Comment