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Report: Celtic end talks with Timbers over Darlington Nagbe

Photo by Trevor Ruszkowski/USA Today Sports
Photo by Trevor Ruszkowski/USA Today Sports

It seems like Darlington Nagbe could be staying with the Portland Timbers.

According to the Scottish Sun, Celtic has ended talks with the Timbers over Nagbe. Despite the Scottish giants’ reported bid for Nagbe before Christmas, and Brendan Rodgers’ interest in the midfielder, the club has reportedly informed the Timbers that it has moved on to other targets in the market.

However, ESPN is claiming that the Timbers rejected Celtic’s bid for Nagbe “for multiple reasons.” Either way, it appears as if the 26-year-old will be in Portland for the 2017 MLS season at this point.

Nagbe has played in 187 regular-season matches with the Timbers in his six seasons as a professional. He also has 10 caps with the U.S. Men’s National Team.

Comments

  1. Is it possible that Merrit Paulson can make more money by having an exciting player in Portland then selling him to Europe? Look at franchise values in MLS. They are rising exponentially. European clubs are already at their maximum market share. The only way for them to make money is to sell players. MLS clubs have so much potential that they don’t have to sell players and still make a bundle in value.

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  2. I had a feeling this was going to happen and the fact that the negotiations fell thru disgusts me. It is so glaringly obvious that Nagbe needs to move to a higher tempo, higher ensure europe and environment. At this point, given his track record, I really do not want to hear his name name again until he removes himself from the “tutelage” of Caleb Porter. Grow a pair of balls and force a move.

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    • “Nagbe needs to move to a higher tempo, higher ensure europe and environment”

      You realize he was going to move to Scotland? Because, I don’t think you do. I will keep europe uncapitalized in this case, like you did.

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      • Celtic is a better side than anyone in MLS by a country mile. He would have more visibility, and if he showed well there for a season, would certainly have made the move to a better league. He’s done everything he can in MLS, and it’s not a challenging enough environment for him. Nagbe is a great player, but unless forced to play his best, he lowers his standard to that of the competition. He never pushes the envelope, unless he is forced to.

      • NO

        He hasn’t won back to back. Sounders won this year.
        In fact, let’s start with making the playoffs two years in a row, which he has also failed to do.

        Moving to a team where the outcome is all but given in a weak league, isn’t a move up. It is a move for money, which Celtic didn’t want to pay.

      • I forgot I’m talking to a MLS fanboy…do you think Nagbe has a better chance making a move to a top league playing for Portland or Celtic? Look at all the players who play in the PL who have Celtic on their CV. Nagbe is probably never going to play in a top league unless he makes a move now. He’s not 23 anymore, the train is going to leave the station soon.

  3. I’m speaking of the league in general. I personally feel that MLS is ignoring an opportunity to attract young players and not hav to rely on throwing money at aging players. If MLS were to sell and establish a track record of moving players abroad, it would progressively make it easier to attract the Nicolas Lodeiro’s, Giovinco, & Miguel Almiron’s of the world.

    MLS obsession with continuos expansion and competing with European leagues head on is not the right strategy.

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    • Thanks for clarifying. You are right of course, but MLS has to balance trying to win too, most teams around the world barely have to worry about that…….and like Joe Dirt points out, has to share part of that with MLS in certain cases.

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  4. I don’t blame the Timbers.

    MLS isn’t a league where clubs have a legitimate replacement to insert after making a profit on a sale. They simply throw the cash received towards a hopeful DP that is likely 30+ years old and that’s simply one step forward and two steps back.

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  5. MLS team should take some sense of pride in being a feeder league to the big EURO leagues. That has been the problem with getting young talented players from around the world (namely Latin America). How many young players are brought to MLS do well and earn a move to EURO – not very many. Doing so would give the league credibility. Look how many S. Americans play in Liga MX..Why? The quality of the league and also because they know they have a chance to be noticed there.

    Terrence Boyd turned down a move to the NY Redbulls due to cost of living and also because he knew that it would be more difficult to earn a move back to Europe playing in MLS. Imagine if that wasn’t the case. Imagine if players continuously earned transfers to Europe from MLS and went on to have successful careers there. The league would gain the respect and credibility that it lacks.

    The track record of moving players abroad is what will attract young talented S. American and Euro players to MLS, and that is exactly the type of players MLS needs.

    $ 3 Mil. isn’t enough for Nagbe and I doubt Brenda Rogers will find better than Nagbe elsewhere for that amount of money. However, I’m sure MLS had made it a point to make this transfer more difficult in order to avoid losing Nagbe. This has been typical of MLS and it’s frustrating.

    I don’t know the specifics of what happens and it could be very possible that Nagbe simply wanted to stay. The situation just breathes of the misdirection I feel MLS has taken in developing the league.

    MLS and the Timbers will undoubtedly want to avoid losing such a prized asset, but in the long run it would benefit Nagbe and the league. MLS needs to take the time to earn its respect and credibility before they can even set their sights on competing with the Euro. leages.

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    • Why would the Timbers want your credibility or anyone’s credibility? That is worthless.
      They are trying to win MLS. That is worth everything.

      To me that really is why MLS may be a seller league, like the rest of the world, but it is less of one, because teams are trying to win. Timbers just did, in big part because of Nagbe.

      Stupid to sell him unless the price gives you a BETTER shot of winning MLS.

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    • The way MLS works in regards to transfers fees is that the franchise in this case the Timbers has to split the transfer fee with MLS who then reallocates those funds to the other franchises. This is the equivalent of ManU selling and player to Real Madrid and the EPL office retaining up to half of the fee and reallocating it to the other EPL clubs. Remember MLS franchises do not own the player’s rights, MLS does. This same problem happened when Celtic wanted to buy DeRosario back in 2010 or 11. What incentive do the Timbers or other franchise have to sell their best players if they are only going to net a little over a million or so on the offer. The offer has to be much higher but Nagbe and most MLS players are probably not be worth a really large number just justify the lose to their roster. MLS fanboys feel free to flame away…

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    • Soooooo wait… Timbers should have dealt a player for what you admit is less than his value….. because…. what again if you are a Timbers advocate??

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