Good afternoon folks. It is a slow days on the news front, with next week shaping up to be a busy one.
The first week of the new SBI has gone well and I want to thank those of you made week one a success.
For those of who may not have seen it, here is my ESPN.com piece on Luis Figo’s rumored move to the Los Angeles Galaxy. I know the rumor has already begun to lose steam but you know you can never rule out the Galaxy doing something like this. I’m not saying Figo couldn’t be a great player in MLS, I just don’t know if that’s the direction the Galaxy needs to go in.
Here are some other tidbits for a slow Saturday:
In Chicago Fire news, a decision on the head coaching search will come early next week so the Fire will have someone in place for the MLS Combine.
Speaking on the MLS Combine, there are some very appealing names being courted by MLS for the draft. I have already mentioned Eric Avila and Patrick Nyarko, but a few more young standouts are expected to join the mix next weekend in Florida. I will look to make some of those names public as soon as I can.
Lastly, there has been plenty of discussion about my news regarding Jose Angulo’s rights being awarded to New England. Let me make two points. Angulo was never part of the Red Bulls youth setup so they had no claims to him. He spent a day training with them and it went badly and he was asked not to come back. Secondly, there is a considerable difference between being a high draft pick and being a free agent who can only negotiate with one team. There are general salary guidelines for draft picks, where if you’re a first-round pick chances are you will get a certain salary range (not including Generation Adidas contracts of course), but as a free agent whose MLS rights are owned by a specific team you are either obligated to take the offer or not play.
I think some people continue to miss the point of my issue with the Angulo situation. He NEVER signed a contract of any kind with New England yet the Revs have his MLS rights. That is a serious problem. Another problem is that, according to what had been generally accepted MLS policy, players who are NOT college seniors must go into the draft. Angulo isn’t a 25-year-old journeyman. He is a teenager who would be a freshman in college had he stayed along the school route.
Ultimately, Angulo might flourish in New England and become a star. That doesn’t make the precedent being set by MLS any less wrong.
And finally, in case you forgot, Barcelona is playing Mallorca on GolTV at 2pm, followed by Villarreal at Espanyol at 4pm.
Enjoy the weekend.