From the earliest days of Major League Soccer there have been plenty of names of superstar players who were believed to be possibilities to join MLS one day. Roberto Baggio, George Weah and none other than Ronaldo.
MLS never did get a chance to sign Baggio or Weah, but the possibility seems very strong that an MLS team could sign Ronaldo if it wanted to. Ronaldo is currently in Brazil, out of contract and working his way back from a horrific knee injury suffered last spring. His future is unclear as more and more teams in Europe seas Ronaldo as a risk rather than a valuable commodity.
The question for MLS is this. Is Ronaldo worth signing?
With the Designated Player rule making it possible for teams to pay someone of Ronaldo’s stature the type of salary he might receive in Europe, the option will be there in 2009. Now the question is whether someone should take a chance on the oft-injured striker.
The New York Red Bulls were strongly linked to Ronaldo two years ago, but nothing materialized. Might the Red Bulls still be interested in a player who could help sell out Red Bull Park and stir up considerable interest from the large Brazilian community near the site of Red Bull Park?
Whether it’s New York or D.C. or New England, you have to wonder if MLS teams would be willing to take the risk on a 32-year old with knees as bad as Ronaldo’s. Yes, he would certainly help sell tickets if he were healthy, but considering the number of catastrophic knee injuries he has endured, the risk would be extremely high.
I ask you, SBI readers, for your opinion. Do you think MLS should take a chance on Ronaldo?
What do you think? Would you want your team to spend the money on Ronaldo? Do you think he would be great for MLS, or would he be another DP mistake?
Share your thoughts below.