Top Stories

Red Bulls trade Thornton to Chivas USA

Zach_thornton_isiphotoscom

                                                         Photo by ISIphotos.com

Chivas USA has turned to an MLS veteran to fill the void left by Brad Guzan’s transfer to Aston Villa.

The Goats have acquired Zach Thornton from the New York Red Bulls for future considerations. The trade was announced late Friday.

Thornton had yet to play a first-team match for the Red Bulls this season but has looked sharp in training all year and has played well in exhibition matches. It was just this week that I pointed out how sharp Thornton has looked in training.

No word yet on what the Red Bulls will do for a back-up goalkeeper. The club could recall Danny Cepero from his loan at USL-2 side Harrisburg. Rookie Caleb Patterson-Sewell is the only other current goalkeeper on the Red Bulls roster along with starter Jon Conway. If the Red Bulls recall Cepero from his loan deal then the Thornton trade will free up a senior roster spot for the Red Bulls, who are searching for as many as two new forwards.

Chivas USA now has a veteran to challenge and potentially start in place of inexperienced goalkeeper Dan Kennedy, who has one career MLS start to his record, as compared to Thornton’s 217 career starts. With Guzan’s transfer to Aston Villa being completed today, Chivas USA was desperate to add a veteran shot-stopper.

The trade also reunites Thornton with former Chicago Fire teammates Jesse Marsch and Ante Razov. All three were key figures on the Fire’s 1998 MLS Cup title team. Coincidentally, Chivas USA travels to Toyota Park to take on the Chicago Fire on Saturday. The Red Bulls have a bye week.

What do you think of the trade? Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Is Agoos making these decisions? My God! Chivas is in desperate need of a keeper, we have the top back-up keeper in the league, and we don’t even get a forward in the deal? I’m still a RBNY fan and Origial ’96 Season Tick Holder – and the joke continues…I just want one championship before I die. Just one. Hell, I’ll take a US Open Cup at this point…

    Reply
  2. Bad deal. Conway has been okay. But MLS is think on GKs this year (what with Guzan, Perkins going over-seas, Seitz in the Olympics). Case in point: United has been desperately trying to trade for someone just to compete with Zach Wells and they’ve come up with nothing in MLS. So if Conway goes down, the Red Bulls are hosed. It’s nice to talk about potential and youth but teams don’t win with rookie, inexperienced GKs.

    Reply
  3. i like this bacause it frees up the spot, but i think Conway has NOT looked very good this yr, i was thinking we would soon see Zack get a few starts to see what happens…

    I would like to see Danny Cepero play though

    Reply
  4. The key to this is move is that it frees up a senior roster spot, which probably means we are about to sign a veteran forward.

    Reply
  5. I think is very stupit from the RB to trade Thornton the reason being that ther starting keeper(Conway) can’t make a winning save for his life what the RB needs a GK that will carry the team when is needed

    Reply
  6. Kennedy is pretty talented… Ives, you forget that this guy has been playing in the USL (Puerto Rico and others and was named Rookie of the Year in ’05 I think) and even the MetroStars for a brief period since he left college (the pay was higher than MLS) and then played in South America. Oh, by the way… his Senior year of College he did play in the College Cup that went to PK’s against Indiana back in ’04. I would be shocked if Thornton is handed the job.

    Reply
  7. You have the ham sandwich thing all wrong. Thornton didn’t get traded for a ham sandwich, Chivas is paying him ham sandwiches.

    Reply
  8. WHAT are the future considerations? C’mon, tell me it was more than a ham sandwich. I would think a veteran keeper ready to go is worth at least a 2nd round draft pick… or why not trade Thornton for Flores?

    Something tells me though the Red Bulls got a ham sandwich… perhaps because Agoof is incompetent.

    Reply
  9. Hey ives, any news on Red Bull Park? seems like there might be a rumor that Red Bull Park is being delayed again due to eminent domain. Is this true? It seems, his park has been doom from the start.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Tim F. Cancel reply