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MLS Notes: Heck out at Red Bulls, SKC signs La Masia product and more

HeckRafa (Getty Images)

Not all the news coming out of Red Bull Arena these days involves major player signings, as the club's front office has reportedly made a significant change.

According to the New York Post, Chris Heck is out as Red Bulls president of business operations. The club has come under fire for its ticket pricing and attendance numbers, and the scheduling of mid-day, mid-week games during this summer also drew the ire of players, fans and pundits, something that fell under Heck's umbrella.

The club confirmed Heck's ouster, although he is still listed on the club's website as president of business operations.

Here are a few more notes from around the league:

SPORTING KC SIGNS ROSELL

After a lengthy training period with Sporting Kansas City, Oriol Rosell is officially a member of the club

Rosell, who came through Barcelona's famed La Masia academy and played for the Barcelona B team in the Segunda Division, signed a multi-year deal with Sporting KC Thursday. The 20-year-old midfielder is eligible for selection immediately.

"Oriol comes from arguably the best soccer school and environment a player can be a part of in Barcelona," Sporting Kansas City Manager Peter Vermes said in a team statement. "Adding him as another midfielder will help raise the bar on a daily basis within our roster and add a lot depth in the middle for us."

INTERNATIONAL CALL-UPS 

The Aug. 15 FIFA fixture date is less than two weeks away, and at least three members of the Philadelphia Union will be representing their country that day.

Captain Carlos Valdes (Colombia), Gabriel Gomez (Panama) and Keon Daniel (Trinidad and Tobago) have all earned call-ups to their respective national teams, according to the Philadelphia Daily News. Gomez will go up against Portugal, Daniel will face Canada. Colombia's opponent has not yet been announced.

D.C. United Designated Player Hamdi Salihi will also play for his country, as Albania has tabbed the forward to play against Moldova.

DYNAMO WAIVE RECIO

Oscar Recio's time with the Houston Dynamo has come and gone without a blip on the radar screen.

Recio, a Mexican left back, was waived by the club Wednesday. Signed on loan from Monterrey to provide left back depth, Recio did not appear in a single league match for Houston. He played in six reserve league games and the club's one U.S. Open Cup match.

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What do you think about Heck's ouster in New York? Do you think Rosell can be a difference-maker for Sporting KC? Were you expecting more from Recio in Houston?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Though the RBs don’t sell out all of their home games, they do have a “home field advantage.” They haven’t lost at home this season!

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  2. Happy as Heck about this decision. It was so depressing hearing Heck on NYRB podcasts making excuses for the poor attendance, totally resigned to failure on that front.

    He also took full responsibility for the decision to have that 1pm game in the middle of the week. Back when the schedule came out he guaranteed a sell out. He backed off that a few weeks ago; there were probably less than 10,000 actually at the game, regardless of the announced attendance.

    Let’s hope the next guy has some better ideas. It’s a lot more fun being at RBA when it’s sold out.

    Also I wonder what happened to the clown who was on this site a few weeks and swore RBA would be sold out for Roma-El Salvador. Not only was the place half empty but the El Salvador fans predictably behaved like animals. Awesome.

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  3. deeper than the Cosmos? are you a total idiot??? if not you barely hit the crossbar… Pele, Beckenbauer, Neeskens , Rijsbergen, Chinaglia, Eskandarian………Carlos Alberto, Werner Roth, Bogicevic….the list goes on.

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  4. Yea…this is definitely Chris Heck’s fault.

    Not the excuse-ridden NY/NJ fans that have for not attending games.

    This is all on Chris. Definitely…

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  5. Awesome move for SKC. Rosell, I would bet, could have signed for a number of La Liga clubs, especially in the bottom half of the table. Won’t be surprised if he becomes a big contributor.

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  6. bad move for that kid from Barca to sign a LONG TERM deal with MLS. He’ll never return to Europe if its a long term deal, better off signing 2 year deal then going back to Europe. MLS never sells……

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  7. LOL!!! YOU KNOW AT FIRST GLANCE I THOUGHT THAT HECK WAS STANDING NEXT TO JETS QB SANCHEZ. AND YOU KNOW WHAT THE JETS WOULD DO WELL GETTING RID OF HIM TOO.

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  8. If they had someone that could finish they’d be the top team in the league. But having the most shots and SOG in the league doesn’t amount to poopie if your strikers can’t finish. And they can’t as of late.

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  9. Here’s a stunning suggestion. Actually realize that we’re a short walk from the Ironbound section which has the highest concentration of futbol fans in the area, if not the nation. Sign a Brazilian, Portuguese or Ecuadorian DP. Attendance jumps 20% minimum.

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  10. There were at least two problems.
    One was Chris Heck.
    The other was Austria’s absolute refusal to spend any money advertising in a market that requires nothing less than Coca-Cola/Budweiser level marketing.

    They’ve solved one problem. Will they do anything about the other?

    Reply
  11. Nice signing by SKC, but I don’t see the depth in the middle. Zusi should be playing the right side. SKC needs a distributor in the middle to maintain possession. The helter-skelter football was bound to catch up with them, especially with the absence of Espinosa.

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  12. About time Chris got the heck out.

    This is the most talented club roster in US history and they can’t even draw for a matchup with a decent Tottenham side. It seemed like there were more Spurs fans than Red Bull fans.

    Where is the excitement?

    Reply

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