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Rogers loaned to Stevenage

Rogers (ISI)

Photo by ISIphotos.com

Robbie Rogers has a new place to play until this winter.

Rogers was loaned Thursday from Leeds United to League One side Stevenage, where he will play for former Colorado Rapids manager Gary Smith. The loan extends until the end of 2012, at which point he will return to Leeds, although sources did confirm to SBI that Stevenage has an option to retain Rogers' rights at the end of the loan period.

Rogers was transfer listed by Leeds a couple of weeks ago, seven months after signing there from the Columbus Crew. Injuries limited his production, though, as he started one game and came on as a substitute in three others. He suffered a concussion after his first appearance and then an ankle injury soon after his return. With Leeds looking to free up more funds, he became an expendable part of Neil Warnock's roster. 

What do you think of this development?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. It is not about the leagues, it’s about the teams. Except for a handful of teams, La Liga and EPL are no strong at all…

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  2. MLS needs to loosen the purse strings. There should be room for a player like this in MLS. He was hardly starting caliber on a mediocre Crew team, but he could add depth to a contender. His childhood team Galaxy could use him for their title runs.

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  3. Regardless of the level, and League One is not exactly garbage,the fact that his new manager is Smith, who should be familiar with RR and presumably was the one behind bringing him in, means he has followed
    Rule #1 for Americans Abroad: That is to say ,make sure the manager wants you and is willing and able to give you a fair shot.

    Warnock is under a lot of pressure being asked to take Leeds back to the promised land so he probably wants to go with guys he knows. As you pointed out, this gives everyone time to see if RR can adapt to England and be of some use to Leeds, or someone else.

    This is very positive for everyone unless Robbie does not do well in which case he will quietly be flushed away.

    And if he does well, I suspect he will still remain in the USMNT picture if only on the fringes. And at this point, that is more than RR has a right to expect.

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  4. We also shouldn’t have the inferiority complex that anywhere in Europe > MLS. Or the coaching and talent is automatically better than MLS because…it is Europe. More Americans have an inferiority than a superiority complex when it comes to soccer. Which badly holds us back. At least many of the Yanks Abroad people do.

    We should start having some pride in our league. Sorry, but MLS will be developing our future. Not League One(thank god), the Championship, or some Euro league.

    Rodgers is off the grid now. If he were in MLS his reclamation would be easier to follow. Now he fell through Europe’s cracks.

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  5. Shane,

    If you look at the diversity that most English clubs have on their squads, with players from just about everywhere, you might regret saying Warnock is anti-american.

    I don’t know the man but he almost certainly has far more credentials than you and I’m pretty sure he would take a winger from Romulus if that is what it took to get Leeds promoted. I could not care less what his private views are.

    US fans cry anti-american bias every time one of their guys has a problem and it reflects poorly on us. It makes US fans look ignorant, provincial and lazy.

    I mean most US fans would be the first to dump Robbie in the trash and take great pleasure in doing so, yet when Warnock does it, you accuse him of being anti- american. That is just BS.

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  6. Oh, c’mon, let’s be real, he’s about to be coached by a former MLS coach in a league of quality below MLS. His teammates at Stevenage will include Marcus Haber, a Canadian international with 3 caps for that modest side, and who played a lot of his career for the minor league Whitecaps. From a competitive perspective this is deterioration.

    Now, the Peter Principle will likely mean he gets plenty of PT. And that may be better for his future prospects and injury potential than gathering dust for Leeds.

    Some people are defending this move on the basis of his salary but the effect on that is really that he gets to receive his paychecks on loan and isn’t being immediately released. Since he’d be making the same salary up down or sideways loaned it’s really not pertinent except to weigh up in the MLS vs. Europe debate. He’s probably massively overpaid for Stevenage and not in long term plans which makes this a temporary tactic.

    Worth pointing out also that at some juncture this becomes the Freddy Adu counterpoint to the “MLS won’t sell me” argument, which is you’re stuck in Europe this time plugging away running out a contract while others are in circumstances more appropriate to their skills selling their senior pool bona fides. Bocanegra might get away with sliding down the ladder but Rogers is poised more precariously in terms of the USMNT.

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  7. Yeah dude sure the MLS teams would runaway with the Libertadores Cup. Just like when they lose 6-1 to Mexican League teams in the Concacaf Cup

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  8. More like 200,000 pounds British per year and the reason why Robbie Rogers has been loaned out is because he is not good enough, very simple

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  9. he used to play in Holland! everyone seems to think that the Eredivise (sp?) can make a star out of anyone… truth is Rodgers is not national team material and should keep playing where ever he can get the most money and or playing time. its his career..

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  10. Money! That’s how loans work. He still gets paid his contract wages that he signed with Leeds U. I can’t fault guys like Rogers taking a few years to earn above mid-table MLS wages, and MLS will be here if he wants to come back.

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  11. Guys chill. This is like sending a MLB player to extended spring training. As it’s a short term loan, Leeds obviously feel that minutes in a lower league will bring Robbie’s form back.

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  12. If I recall correctly, there was article on ESPN Soccernet at the beginning of the MLS season that expressed concern over the lack of playing timme for young Americans and deficencies in developing those same players. If that stigma is prominent in circles that matter, that might be why some solid talent chooses getting their start in Mexico and Scandinavian leagues rather than in MLS. Plus, the monetary issue has to be factored in; passing up money from European leagues or even college scholarships to languish on the bench for chump change here in the States has to factor into these decisions.

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  13. In all fairness Warnock is a very good coach, he has 8 promotions in his career, when he took over Leeds the squad was dreadful and he has made us a lot better (only going on the opening game) he is, like many English coaches, all about blood,sweat and tears.
    I wouldn’t think he has anything against Americans, maybe saw things in training that I guess we don’t see. I’d just have liked RR to get a chance, especially with the dross that currently occupies our bench.

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  14. To many Americans MLS is > than any league outside of the top 4 or 5 in Europe.

    I agree with the statement that it’s a hybrid of the Championship & League One.

    I forgot where I read that someone stated that if you took the Brazilian & Argentinian teams out of the Libertadores that MLS teams will runaway with cup year after year.

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  15. Great point. It’s a superiority/inferiority complex going around.

    To me MLS is a hybrid of the Championship/League One where salaries match the later. Tons of quality players in League One that could do quite well in MLS and vice versa.

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  16. He was only “depth” for the past few years. This does not hurt us. But it does cause 1 to pause and ask why didn’t he try and leave England to move to a first division

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  17. Because Warnock is just stupid, and so carries that bias against American players in favor of his equally stupid English blokes.

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  18. That is interesting to her, Jacques. Maybe Warnock, like so many others, simply cannot put trust in an American player. I have followed the Robbie Rogers saga real closely, but from the bits and pieces I have seen I have a felling that Warnock is not a very good coach. Didn’t the team actually fall several spots in the league standings last February after he took over?

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  19. League One is about his level right now, he should do pretty well there and perhaps develop his game a bit, which is severely lacking in many of the tactical areas.
    Good for him, hope he finds his groove.

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  20. Still not sure why so many Americans have a superiority complex over the MLS versus other leagues. League 1 isn’t going to propel Rodgers into a star, but its still a decent league in a footballing powerhouse country and plenty of talented English players have been on loan/started out in the lower leagues.
    “Why not come back to the MLS” is bad mantra, the options to a USMNT player shouldnt be “If you arent playing in the MLS you better be playing in a top 10 team in La Liga or the EPL or else you’re a bum.” I still wouldnt be surpirsed if the quality of coaching and training is better in L1 than the average MLS team either.

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  21. Money is a great reason. I’m sure he knows that playing in League One won’t win him into the USMNT picture, but the paychecks will continue and he can plan a more comprehensive move during the winter transfer window to another club.

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  22. I think I’m one of many Leeds fans who cannot understand this move. We are crying out for pacy wide players yet Warnock seems to have some personal vendetta against the lad. The few glimpses of action we have seen from Rogers looked good to me. Good Luck RR hope you prove yourself and come back to LUFC.

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