The San Jose Earthquakes continued their roster reconstruction by sending veteran defender Nick Garcia and the discovery rights to Canadian national team striker Ali Gerba to Toronto FC for a third-round pick in the 2010 MLS Draft.
Why did the Earthquakes just trade the veteran leader of their defense? Well, they did it because he has been absolutely awful this year and has been to blame for countless goals allowed by San Jose's awful back-line. His salary, close to $200,000 for 2009 after signing a new contract before the season, was also a factor in his departure.
So why did Toronto FC just bring in Garcia considering the year he's having?
Mo Johnston played with Garcia on the 2000 MLS Cup champion Kansas City Wizards and he just might see Garcia being able to re-gain his form in Toronto. Perhaps more importantly for TFC, the deal brings the MLS rights to Ali Gerba, a Canadian national team striker who just might be able to help Toronto's poor finishing. Having just finished a stint with English League One club MK Dons, which let him go after the past season, Gerba is free to sign with Toronto when the summer transfer window opens.
In order to make room for Garcia, Toronto FC waived goalkeeper Greg Sutton, who lost his starting job to rookie Stefan Frei. Sutton's departure frees up a Canadian player slot the club can use on Gerba.
What do you think of the deal? think Toronto is crazy for adding Garcia? Surprised San Jose gave up on Garcia after just signing him to a new deal before this season? Will Ali Gerba wind up being Toronto's answer to their questions at forward?
Share your thoughts below.
Gerba is a born finisher, what does not show in his stats is the way he was played, initially he was just there to run at the defence to disrupt them so another striker could play off of him and grab the goals, in the second half of the season he was highly consistant and should of been given a proper run in the team.
He has never played for a club for longer than a single year however.
What do you think of the deal? think Toronto is crazy for adding Garcia? ……. Yes, muy loco
Surprised San Jose gave up on Garcia after just signing him to a new deal before this season? No……….. nothing to lose
Will Ali Gerba wind up being Toronto’s answer to their questions at forward? ……….no he’ll add to the problem
Gerba’s professional strike rate since becoming a regular USL starter in 2004, and including his european clubs, is a goal every 2.9 games. That’s actually pretty good ,certainly by MLS standards.
thats of course if Gerba decides to sign with TFC. Montreal has always been interested in signing him and hes seemed to always prefer to play 4th division europe as opposed to first division north america
Im reserving all judgement until I see them play. Gerba has been at 8 clubs since 2000 (or something like that) and hasnt really been consistent with goals HOWEVER is amazing on the national team. Garcia is getting older but in the past did well.
Really it kinda feels like Mo (who ive never criticized previous to this point is making some late moves). Hes great with the draft but garbage when it comes to being prepared for the season. These are two positions that should have been filled at the start of the season by two proven players.
In addition to Gerba’s 10 goals in 24 appearances with the Dons last year, he has 11 goals in 23 appearances for Canada over the last 5 years.
It is hard to say how this will translate to MLS (10-13 per season?), but surely his strike rate would be an improvement over Barrett/Vitti.
This has nothing to do with anything….I just wanted to share how sad my life has become. I’m actually watching the Austin Aztex play Mississippi Brilla in an Open Cup match online. God please help me.
Sounds like Garcia will help our defense, bad year notwithstanding. Anything short of curling up in a fetal position by the sideboards, he’ll help us.
Let’s put it this way….when I heard Sol Campbell’s representative say that he had a firm offer from MLS that he was considering, I assumed it was from TFC. Campbell would give them an outstanding central defender. By acquiring Garcia and then if they sign Gerba, no-way can TFC afford Campbell. Maybe Campbell was never a consideration but….if I had to choose between Garcia and Gerba (if he signs) vs. Campbell, I’d go with Campbell (and I bet it would cost the same on the cap too!).
You’ve got to figure that SJ is clearing space to make a major signing, maybe more.
Gerba scored 10 last year for MK Dons. That pretty much qualifies you to be an MLS striker, as the two leagues are fairly equal.
Garcia is a take-a-chance signing. But I’ll say whomever the idiot is who posted that he’s just a mugger with no passing or positional sense has no clue what he’s talking about. Those have been his only two solid traits most of his career; other than that, he’s undersized and a mediocre tackler.
Might do well paired with Serioux though and, more importantly, playing at one of the few teams in the league that takes fitness seriously.
did O sorry O get fired yet?
Ives- Looks like something happened to the end of the sentence about Garcia’s salary — where did it go?
garcia was really bad this year. last year he was good, but this year he totally lost a step. it was a bad move trading a first round pick for him in the first place. now this is just a sal cap dump.
Sol Campbell to the Earthquakes.
If not at least he will probably have some interesting stories to tell in the locker room.
Maybe Gerba’s 14th team in 9 years will bring out the best in him.
Hmm… San Jose just freed up $272,000 or so of salary cap space in two trades. Now, who does SJ have their eye on?
I thought Garcia played well last year. This year…? Nightmare. As others have pointed out, we gave up a number on for him and get back a three. Yallop and Doyle have seriously undervalued draft picks. MLS success requires inexpensive average players. Not expen$ive average players like garcia, Corrales, even Cannon.
Man, I would rather have kept kamera, Reiley, Lima and O’brien despite their flaws and dumped Garcia & Corrales in the off season.
I could careless about San Jose the only thing that bothers me is that this team in a smaller market compared RBNY are making changes for the better , yet in NY every sits on the arse while the team plays themselves into the ground.
as a quakes fan, i would like to thank Garcia with the services he has provided to the quakes. He really does give it his all during a match which earned him our captain’s role. However, for his salary, he was stinking it up when we needed him most.
I love the trade. Not only do we get rid of his and recently Weaver’s contract,but we now have the cap space to bring in top quality players from here or overseas! Im excited with the upcoming transfer window! We already have too many defenders and i think either cochrane, pitchkolan, or Denton can fill in Gracia’s spot. The only way i can be happy with Yallop/Doyle is:
1) We bring back ROB. The guy was a man with a mission last season
2) We sign a DP striker!!!! Huckerrby is finally almost 100% so our attack is going to be superrrrrr high tempo. Screw long balls, we are going to play a very direct style of attack keeping our ball at our feet. Huckerby cutting in from the left. Alvarez cutting in from the right and our DP and Johnson to manhandle anyone to take of business in the middle. This is Yallop’s preferred style and we saw alot of this by the end of last season and it was pretty! Why do the english hopeful long balls when you can hold possession?
Go quakes!
San Jose was able to offload Garcia and only had to give up the rights to a League One player? TFC was robbed.
JoeW — Ali Gerba never played for the Miami Fusion… not sure what the situation was there, but he has not set foot on a field in a regulation MLS game before.
And that was 8 years ago, when Gerba was 19.
I think people have to wonder if SJ is picking up a nice chunk of the salary too. And my guess is TFC picked him up as a throw in, and will leave him on the bench and not view him as anything more than a spot starter. To be honest, I am stunned he is still in the league because the guy has to be one of the worst markers the league has seen. He is physical which is really only his positive trait and a league leader in muggings, has no passing skills and as someone else pointed out, a mental midget. There have been numerous stories about what a terrible team mate he is and how he has never been up to the big games. But I guess in a league where the refs are soft on fouls, he found a niche.
i don’t think we’ll need another defender right away since right now its leitch, hernandez, pitchkolan, and zaher or denton. definitely younger and faster…
1. Bad deal by SJ originally. Gave up the #1 pick in the draft for Garcia. Cut to now–give him PLUS rights to Gerba for a #3 pick.
2. Actually, a bad deal by TFC. Garcia gets $170k a year. Okay, it’s a pro-rated amount for TFC. But basically getting Garcia ties their hands in terms of acquiring new players. Unless they’re going to get Gerba for a song and a dance (or use a lot of allocation $ to buy down his cap hit), this is the usual Trader Mo story–make some changes, shuffle the roster, but ignore the big picture and how all the pieces fit together.
Bottom line: SJ could use a standout central defender and a good finisher. I doubt that Garcia and Gerba are those players. But in any case, by acquiring those guys they basically insured they’re not going to make other major additions elsewhere. Assuming they sign Gerba.
For frustrated TFC fans, this is probably welcome news–at first glance. But TFC fans, think of it this way: do you really think that all you need to do is to add Gerba and Garcia and your team is transformed? You’ve got talent and some youth and a fine midfield. But Garcia is not one of the top 10 central defenders in MLS this year (heck, he might not be one of the top 20 central defenders). Gerba might be a contributor or he might be like most of the foreign signings–a guy who has trouble adjusting to MLS and makes little impact. I grant you it was a while ago but remember that he has washed out of MLS previously (Miami Fusion). So it’s not a done thing that he’ll be a good finisher in MLS.
I think Gerba was solid for the Dons but it’ll be interesting to see how good he is in MLS. His first stint didn’t work out too well and I doubt he is anywhere near the ability of Dichio.
We’ll see though.
FC Dallas should pick up Greg Sutton immediately. They need a proven goal tender and I think Sutton is that. He was just named MVP of TFC last year so i think he is just having a bad start. Other teams who need goalies also should give him a look like DC, Houston, for next year, LA, for back up, NY, for back up.
someone- define: discovery rights.
Greg Sutton gone? Surprised he didn’t go sooner when they drafted Frei.
Any chance Gulati and Garber slip an extra couple bills in his paycheck to get him to join the U.S.?
Ali Gerba and the fourty thieves!! Ali Gerba and the fourty thieves! Ali Gerba and the fourty thieves!!!!!!!!!!! 😉
I hope this inspires RBNY to start rebuilding their team sooner rather than later. Maybe Real Madrid wants to buy RBNY from the Austrians and stall some of their players (like, Robben, vd Vaart, van Nistelroy and Snyder) at their new sattelite club in NYC. Just a thought…
Props to SJ for getting rid of the “mental midget.” Toronto, have fun with that as you slide further down the table. Garcia, get ready for another humiliation when Houston comes to BMO July 18.
Dale Dynamo!
I cannot wait to see if Ali Gerba will sign with TFC, and maybe this move was all that needed for Nick Garcia to heat up, and become his old self
i think san jose messed up in the first place by giving up their #1 overall pick!
Discovery rights to a solid international and a veteran defender (albeit one who is struggling) for a 3rd round draft pick?!?! I’d say that Toronto came out on top of this trade. I wonder if San Jose has their eye on another defender.