Photo by Michael Janosz/ISIPhotos.com
U.S. World Cup striker Edson Buddle has been in Europe for most of the winter, in search of a big payday after finishing out his MLS contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy.
He has found that payday, and it has taken him to Germany.
Buddle is set to sign with German second division side FC Ingolstadt, sources told SBI on Saturday evening. Buddle was en route to Germany to finalize the contract with a club currently battling relegation in Bundesliga 2.
This development puts pressure on the Los Angeles Galaxy, who must now sign a striker after losing Buddle and trading away young forward Tristan Bowen. The Galaxy has the rights to Juan Pablo Angel, but the club's latest offer to sign Angel was turned down. With Buddle departing, there will be even more pressure on the Galaxy to make a deal with the Colombian goal scorer.
What do you think of this development? Disappointed to see Buddle moving to Bundesliga 2? Hoping the Galaxy can land Angel?
Share your thoughts below.
PetedeLA, my thoughts exactly. In some ways, I would say–while a bit risky–its a good move: he will likely get playing time rather than riding pine, he gets to taste Euro soccer, and he has the chance either to move up with the team, or get noticed by a better team–far more likely there.
Viel Glück, Edson!
LA can’t sign Adu. They are #15 in the allocation order and would have to trade up to get the top allocation spot.
Buddle deserves better then this club.
It’s actually a reasonably smart move by Buddle. As a few posts have indicated, it’s basically a half-season tryout for Buddle. Forget who he’s playing for: this guarantees that he’ll get PT (unless he stinks in which case he’ll be back to MLS in August). No, he plays a half a season with these guys and if he shows anything at all, commands a much bigger pay day with a Bundesliga club. For a guy soon to be 30, this is probably his last chance for a big pay day in Europe.
As for Adu, I don’t know what this means for him. Buddle comes on a free and is only half a season. They may conclude Adu is excess to requirements. I’d think Freddy would still have a shot–they’re two different players with different roles.
This puts a HUGE priority on the LAG now signing Angel. People got confused with the re-entry draft figuring you draft a player, you get him when all you really get are his rights. It’s actually quite likely that half of the guys chosen in the re-entry draft don’t sign with the clubs they were picked by but go elsewhere overseas. I’m sure LAG will add another forward or two but a proven finisher in MLS…that’s Angel and with Buddle leaving that frees up cap room.
Yeah, I totally understand Buddle’s motivation’s for leaving. No one can blame him for that. Just wish MLS could compete with Bundesliga 2
Holden was making much more than $35k when Bolton signed him.
Thanks. I didn’t know if there was a connection or if it was just one hell of a coincidence.
They do. I remember that Stu Holden was making $35,000 at the Dynamo before Bolton signed him. MLS needs to start paying up or promising players like Buddle are just going to keep on crossing the Atlantic, even if it’s for a second tier squad.
Ain’t buying it. Not until it’s confirmed by the Galaxy club or ESPN—and at 10am neither is saying anything about it. This would be a step down for him.
Lol, do you really think Garber has that kind of power? He answers to the owners at the end of the day
How much is he making?
I’m sure MLS wouldn’t have offered him more than $300,000.
I would guess had he signed for Birmingham he could be pulling like $1 million a year easily. Now average teams in the Bundesliga, maybe $800,000. I doubt this club would be paying him more than half a million bucks. But I have read they offered him a big payday and a chance to start.
Better than MLS? How so?
blame MLS….Garber take off the training wheels, double or triple the salary cap
Findley can get one easily. He played in 10/14 (71%) games in 2010 plus he can argue he played in the World Cup if he needs to. He should win on on an appeal if he isn’t granted one automatically. He’s pretty close to 75% already so I wouldn’t be shocked if he gets one automatically.
It makes sense given the prejudice that Europe has against American players. The upper division clubs must want to see him prove himself in a Euro league before signing him. Whatever, their loss. If Billy Beane were over there he would see the market inefficiency and exploit it.
He will do well in Europe and get picked up by another European team making him the big bux. Thats why he is going. Salary cap in MLS is awful. Its about time he is playing in europe even if its only a league 2 team. He will have more opportunities there
I think I would pee myself with excitement if Davies played with the Galaxy, at least for now, to get his career back on track.
MLS doesnt pay! end of story
Yeah, and they have the same agent.
He’s 29.
What about Findley?
Oh, yeah, I forgot about the work permit issue in England. Damn you, Bob Bradley for paying Findley so much! He sure got his England move. Yeah, that probably is the reason Buddle will not be in England, couldn’t get a work permit.
Maybe he will be the first Yank striker to succeed in Germany since Eric Wyanlda. Speaking of which, Wynalda started in the 2.BL. There is nothing wrong at all with the 2.BL. Quality football, and still better than MLS…PERIOD.
Best of luck Edson! Go forth and do great things and make us Yanks proud!
OK.
He is probably getting paid a bit more, but I have to think a player like Buddle must be curious to get a taste of what European soccer is all about.
Of course, Ingolstadt is the boonies, but they will play against big clubs like Bochum, 1860 Munich, and Hertha Berlin.
Also, he probably realizes that if he is able to somehow score at least 8 goals by the end of the season (not impossible), he will certainly (unless he has a really crappy contract) be picked up by a bigger and better club.
I don’t think so alf. This has to do with two things: $$$ and work permits. He doesn’t have an issue with either in Germany. That’s why he’s there, but no one else in Germany wants him/knows about him. That’s why he’s there. Ingolstadt must get out of the drop zone and they need a goal scorer to do it. Buddle is proven, and on a free. A free transfer means they have more money to offer him on his contract.
I think this had everything to do with $$$ (and the fact that there is no need for a work permit).
Lorenzo, I assume last line was a joke…
Ingolstadt is bringing him in to save them from relegation, I assume – and yeah that’s worth something.
If folks want to know the reality of how poorly MLS pays non-DP players is widely known – just google it.
So yes truth is 2nd Bundesliga division teams pay better than LOTS of MLSers earnings.
But yeah for Buddle if he scores in bunches and keeps Ingolstadt from going down a tier, higher-level teams will pick him up, and THEN he’d earn some real $.
This is essentially a paid half season long audition for Buddle in real game environments to try to attract a better suitor. Since playing in MLS has obviously not done that for him, it is time to try something new, to shake things up if you will. If he does well, someone will grab him. This is less an indication of money differences between MLS and Europe, and more about how US talent continues to have a hard time overcoming perceptions and breaking into that market …
The Galaxy did want to keep Buddle, but he was out of contract and wants to take his last chance in Europe, can’t blame him. He was the highest paid player, behind Becks and Lando. But I agree, we need to get some young players, too many old bones.
Love how no one has any idea what he’s going to be paid, yet people are still judging this move as a negative one.
The guy clearly got a better offer, and at 29, I’m sure he could give a s**t less what league he’s playing in.
Who cares?
Ohhh-kayyy Edson. Say Hi to Freddy for us.
You have to remember Buddle is 30, he’s no spring chicken, he’s payed his dues to MLS. If he can get more money, and the possibility of getting picked up by a better team, then more power to him. The low Salary cap is what is holding MLS back. We don’t need to do away with it, but it needs to be raised, to like 5 million, for right now.
Estupindola or whatever the kid at the combine is. Or try to get Charlie Davies.
Adu had .01% chance before this and now 0% chance.
Los Angeles should sign Adu now.
This is quite a damning statement for the MLS. Buddle would rather try his hand in Europe with a mediocre team in a 2nd rate division? Not good.
Its not a good sign that the Galaxy is willing to pay good money for a over-the-hill player like Angel rather than keep a legitimate star on the team. A 29 year old who can score goals at a fantastic rate versus a player who’s production has declined each year? This isn’t a hard choice.
Moreover, you can’t argue that this is just Buddle’s interest in proving his worth in Europe because the 2nd tier of the Bundesliga isn’t a great league.
This is basically an indictment of the inability of the MLS to pay players.
This is good for Buddle, but bad for my LA Galaxy. I wish Buddle would have landed in England, Championship or something, if not the EPL. I hope he will play regularly. The bonehead move the Galaxy made, in trading Tristan to Chivas, for money we don’t need, looks even worse now. This leaves our forward pickings to Magee, Kirovski, and Jordan,if we don’t sign JPA. Only good news is we have plenty of money and salary space to use. We need to find a young, good striker, like Freddy Montero. I don’t know how good our scouting is, though.
He wouldn’t have gotten a work permit for England.
Wasn’t FC Ingolstadt the club interested in Freddy Adu?
Whats this say for Freddy Adu? Isn’t he on trial with this same team?
…Meh. Really, this is just disappointing.
Wish he could’ve gone to Rangers. Might have been the best move for him, considering Kenny Miller is leaving.
Let’s him go get his money for a couple of years in Germany. I’m sure he’ll find his way back to the US before he’s called it a career.
He must be desperate to try his hand in Europe and looks at this team as his only shot at the moment. I doubt he will be making much more than he would make with the Galaxy, it at all. If he performs well there he will be picked up by another team. I would imagine that he will have an out in his contract that he can leave the club if they are relegated at the end of the season.
I actually think it would have been a better idea for Buddle to stay in the MLS, getting service from Donovan and Beckham is definitely a step up than any 2nd division Budesliga club. I know he may just be doing this to get out of the US but Im not sure its the best idea.
I actually saw a match in Inglostadt last month as I joined some travelling 1860 Munich supporters for a day.
http://www.jamesdemastus.com/blogs/index.php/2011/01/05/james-euro-trip-2010-part-7-the-soccer-part-2?blog=3
It’s sad that a helpless second division side in Bundesliga 2 can outbid MLS for the best forward in the league. The city itself has nothing to offer, the team averages less than 10,000 fans per match, and the team’s management according to the fans is in shambles. They are owned by Audi who pumps in some money, but soccer wise, it’s a sad place.
MLS needs to focus it’s efforts on developing, keeping, and importing talent. Players like Buddle shouldn’t be choosing bottom feeding lower division sides over MLS.
It’s a shame that is all he could manage. Bottom tier Premier League or Bundesliga team seems to be where he should’ve landed.
Woulda, coulda, shoulda though I’m glad he’s getting paid and has a chance to make his mark in Europe.
Thought Buddle would be good enough to land in a 1st division in the EPL or Bundesliga.
I’m happy for him that he’s found a payday given it’s likely his last chance. But it’s hard to be happy that he’s signing for Ingolstadt. Bundesliga 2 is hard to accept alone, but a relegation-threatened Bundesliga 2 side is really hard to accept. I would be much happier if it were a Bundesliga 2 side that stood to be promoted, not relegated. But hopefully he scores alot of goals and secures a better club in the summer.
I guess he’s getting paid more but I don’t see how this is much of a step up for Buddle if not an actual step down. Ingolstadt is newly promoted to 2. Bundesliga and is in 17th and the relegation zone.
MLS salaries must suck if they can’t compete with a team at the bottom of 2.Bundesliga, soon to be 3 Liga.