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Report: Perry Kitchen agrees to join Scottish club Hearts

Photo by Tommy Gilligan/USA Today Sports
Photo by Tommy Gilligan/USA Today Sports

Perry Kitchen has found a home, but it’s reportedly not in the U.S.

The 24-year-old midfielder did not agree to a new contract with D.C. United in December, and has allegedly agreed to sign a deal with Scottish side Heart of Midlothian. According to the Scottish Sun, an official announcement from the club is reportedly expected to come on Wednesday.

Heart of Midlothian, more commonly known as Hearts, is one of the top clubs in the Scottish Premiership. The club currently sits comfortably in third on the league table behind Aberdeen in second and Celtic in first.

Kitchen most recently took part in the U.S. Men’s National Team’s annual winter camp, making one substitute appearance over the course of two games. Overall, Kitchen has been capped three times, with one of his appearances coming against rival Mexico in April 2015.

The former U.S. Under-23 Men’s National Team player has spent the past five years with D.C. United, scoring 10 goals and providing 10 assists in 167 regular-season and postseason appearances.

What do you think of Kitchen’s reported move to Scotland? What are you expecting from Kitchen in 2016 and beyond?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. As I said before every example I’ve used is based on facts not bulls##t which just flows freely out your mouth. Ive provided various examples like the Europa league to show you how kitchen is progressing his career and the better level of oposition in Scotland. I don’t think you have been to Scotland and you have certainly not been to a match. I can’t prove it, but that my opinion because your that far off the mark with things with your lame argument.
    Given your laughable opinion of football maybe you should stick with egg chasing. I think you may call it American football. Try basketball or baseball but please give up on trying to know about football because you will continue to portray yourself as a bellend.
    Just to pi55 all over your last argument. Kitchen had offers in Germany and Denmark before committing to Hearts. DC would have done ANYTHING to get him to stay even paying him money out with there own pay scale but he was not interested because he wanted to play a better standard of football. There is yet another fact for you.
    Lastly, you couldn’t have bought Rangers for 5 dollars because we use a thing called the pound here (you would have known that if you had ever visited)
    But just for you, I’ve looked at the last assessment done by price by pricewaterhousecoopers and the last valuation of Ibrox was £80million. That’s a far cry from $5 including current exchange rates and market conditions.
    If you are going to respond to me a again. Please think about it first, and please try and give some feedback based on actual facts and not complete bull.

    Reply
  2. I’m responding with FACTS based on your feeble arguments. The Point is, kitchen is coming to Edinburgh to better his career irrespective if you like it or not. Scotland is not the best league in Europe but it’s a step up for kitchen. He knows it and that’s why the guy is doing it for less money. I’m looking forward to watching him compete domestically against the old firm and europes elite in the Europa league. So your comment that MLS and SPL are heading in opposite directions based on the move kitchen is making makes your comments and opinion laughable.
    I’m not sure if you know that Edinburgh hosts the worlds biggest arts festival every August. I would urge you to bring a comedy show to Edinburgh. What you lack in footballing knowledge you definitely make up with great comedy value. Keep up the good work!

    Reply
    • Dixie Dumba$$,…I was in Edinburgh for the Festival. Watched the lone piper and all that. SPL is better than MLS,…errr,…no wait Europa league is great,…errr,…no wait,….you’ve never been to a Hearts match in Edinburgh,….errr no wait,…there is a famous festival in Edinburgh,….errrrr. Dude,…you are pathetic.

      Anyway,…and finally,…Kitchen wasn’t getting what he wanted from MLS and he took the best (probably only) offer available. That’s it. There is no grand plan with this move. He was out of contract and needed a place (any place to play).

      BTW – Old Firm matches,….yeah. Once upon a time they mattered. If I am not mistaken I could have bought Rangers for five dollars. Some club.

      Reply
  3. Brian your making me laugh too and probably every other hearts fan reading this. If you had still kept that Google session open you would have seen that 3 of out 4 stands were constructed in the 90’s and the current main stand will start to be replaced by the end of this year. Hardly constitutes an oooooold stadium really. I take it with all your travels you use trip advisor? Maybe you should have researched “best footballing atmosphere in Scotland”
    Hmmmm top marks is not bad from our old 1920’s stadium huh
    Tell you what. You keep setting them up and I’ll keep knocking them down.

    Reply
    • Dixie Chicks,….

      It was 1993/1994. So now your argument shifts from “your a liar you’ve never been there” to “well they’ve upgraded the stadium,…” It’s pointless going with this as every post you change the point of the discussion when you realize your point/opinion/argument has fallen apart. One last note,…MLS and the SPL are leagues headed in opposite directions. Despite its proud tradition,…SPL is really just a backwater league.

      Reply
  4. Brian I’m talking the Europa league. You should try google if your limited brain cells are having difficulty understanding the concept a European competition. (Keep Google open) So, don’t think my logic is flawed at all.
    As for Andy driver. Never mentioned anything about his ability as a player. You did. I only stated he was a player that has played in both leagues in the last few years and he stated Scotland is a better level which you would expect anyway (apart from you) but as he is now playing in the top league in Holland I think he has done not bad. (Apart from you)
    So. Been to a hearts v hibs yeah! Are you now telling me that’s your a closet hearts fan?? I for one would love to know how managed to get a ticket for an Edinburgh Derby without being a season ticket or club member as demand is that high!
    Frankly, as they say in Scotland, your talking pure pish. So use that open google session if you need a translation.

    Reply
    • Dixie Chicks,

      I am not a Hearts supporter. That said,…if I was to support a Scotish club it would probably be Celtic or Hibernian. I have been fortunate enough to watch football matches in many places in the world,….on being Scotland. If I remember correctly,….I was working in Carlisle in the Lake District in England and I took a train to Edinburgh for the weekend. Contrary to your thought,…I didn’t have too much trouble getting a ticket. The stadium was ooooold. I had a lot of trouble fitting my 6’4″ 225 lb frame in the seat which seemed it was straight out of 1920s baseball stadium. Anyway,…keep talking out your a$$. It makes me laugh.

      Reply
  5. Briank – I’m not trying to be clever, I’m just stating cold hard facts that you clearly have an issue accepting. I get your frustrated that kitchen is moving but it’s for the best of his career. Fact! I brought Europe into the discussion because kitchen will be playing European football at hearts next year. Bang, another fact! Do you seriously think kitchen is that silly to be joining and apparent third-rate league for less money that he would have got at DC? C’mon Briank, wake up and smell the coffee! One last thing, one of hearts ex players (Andrew driver) who played recently with Houston has done a piece in the local press in Scotland about how kitchen will enjoy the Scottish style and the ‘better’ standard of football in Scotland. That’s not my option or yours. This is a pro that’s played in both leagues in the last few years and is better qualified to make a judgement here. Ahhhh wait a min. Your gonna come back and tell me kitchen is still wrong moving, I’m wrong, and Andrew driver is wrong! If you are, don’t, because you can’t argue with stupid.

    Reply
    • Dixie Chicks,

      Your logic is flawed. First you are assuming that because a league is a European league,…then it is a higher level than MLS. Really? So I suppose the Irish league is better as well. Or the Finnish league? Or the league in Albania. Or the league in Scotland.

      Second,,,,Andrew Driver? Oh,…he was that Best-XI guy from last year,…the real star from the SPL that dominated MLS. Give me a break.

      You said it,…you cant argue with stupid. BTW — I remember when I went to see Hearts v. Hibs in Edinburgh,…what a hole. I hope Kitchen also enjoys the facilities.

      Reply
  6. Dixie,..your trying to be clever,…aren’t you? You started out extolling the SPL in your earlier posts,…and now you are telling us about “Europe as a continent.” ??? Sure Europe as a continent has some of the best leagues in the world,…but Scotland ain’t one of them! I could do the same and say,…the Americas as a region have some of the best leagues in the world (Argentina, Brazil, Mexico),…but MLS ain’t one of them!

    Anyway,…I think he would have been better off sticking with MLS rather than going to some third-rate European league.

    Reply
  7. Briank – Europe as a continent has the best leagues, teams and players in the world. What wrong with this guy wanting to play and test himself against the very best and put himself in the window for an even bigger move. You can argue until your blue in the face but this is something that MLS can’t give him. So ask yourself again. How is this a bad move??

    Reply
  8. Quozzel I don’t know where you’re getting your info from re permits. His will not be permanent, it’ll be conditional on his sponsorship from Hearts.
    If Kitchen leaves Hearts for another UK team he’ll need to re-apply with the new club sponsoring his application.

    Reply
  9. Put aside the debate about the quality of the SPL for a moment,…this is a bad move. Perry Kitchen is 24,…in his prime and he has been in the USA national program since U-17s. MLS is sending a terrible message to young American players. In short,…we would rather pay Ashley Cole DP money than young Anerican players a decent wage. Really, really disappointing.

    Reply
  10. Hernando your opionion of Scottish football is crude at best. The MLS is nothing more than a pension pot for European players the wrong side of 30. Gerrard, Beckham, Pirlo, Keane amongst others! Let’s just compare that to Paul Gascogne, John hartson, Henrik Larson, Chris Sutton, Brian Laudrup who all graced our league at there peak.

    Reply
  11. Mac – Glasgow Rangers are 10 games away from returning to the SPL. So the old firm rivalry will exist shortly not to mention the league will arguably be even more competitive now teams are being run better including the likes of Hearts and Aberdeen. Perry will be joining a team that very much on the rise playing to sell out crowds every home game and Challenging for domestic trophies and not to mention the platform of European football which is pretty much confirmed for Hearts. Please don’t get confused with the money that was around Scottish football at the time of Reyna and Beasley against the much higher level of competition you will see in the SPL next season, although I still expect Celtic to clinch it.

    Reply
    • Dixie,…come on now! We could also say that Franz Beckenbauer played In the NASL in his prime. Ancient history brother. Brian Laudrup! When did he even retire? The SPL was well on its way down hill BEFORE Rangers imploded. I am not going to knock the league but you are really reaching.

      Reply
  12. The Scottish league in a couple of years will be two teams league : Celtic and Rangers so will never see Hearts at the news again. Stupid move I think the MLS is much better league.

    Reply
  13. sounds like a good player that knows exactly what he wants ! Hearts are a club moving in the right direction, make no mistake, Hearts will challenge for the Scottish title within the next few seasons, they are doing well this year and are making a charge for 2nd although 1st might be a bit much of a stretch, For any Americans reading this Hearts went into administration 3 years ago and almost shut down but the fans saved the club, it is also the only club that sells out every home match, good luck Perry Kitchen.

    Reply
  14. Football wise, this is not a step forward. It may eventually lead to a better move if he performs well. I suppose teams in England anyway are more likely to notice him if he does well at Hearts as opposed to DC. That said, if English teams thought he was that good, they’d make a move for him.

    As far as work permits, I believe the requirements for Scotland are the same as the rest of the UK – as far as I know this isn’t an area where Scotland has its own rules etc. In any event, Edinburgh is a fun town and this should at least be an interesting experience for him.

    Reply
    • The problem with the work permits isn’t the government end. If the employer pushes for the permit and demonstrates a need, it’ll usually be granted.

      The problem is the employer – in this case, the league. The English FA has a desire to make the EPL more “English” and they’re increasingly not granting exemptions to their rules in an attempt to get their domestic league heavier on domestic players…in particular they’re making it tough on non-Europeans.

      Scotland isn’t, and teams are still allowed to apply for permits on behalf of whoever they want to bring in. And of course, once you get the permit…you are in.

      Reply
      • That’s not the case quozzel- the permit is rescinded once the contract ends for any reason. That contract is a condition of the permit.

        Jason Scotland (ironically from Trinidad and Tobago) got a permit and signed for Dundee United. He never really played that often and when his contact ran out they offered him another.
        However, this time the permit was turned down- United couldn’t show that he was of sufficient quality to be of benefit above a native employee when he had been sitting on the bench and in the end he had to leave the club.

        He actually dropped a division and signed for St Johnstone- seemingly his quality was judged to be sufficient for that level and he was awarded a work permit.

        Anyway, my point- it’s just not the case that once you’re in, you’re in – it’s no green card

    • Football wise…this is definitely a good move. There are a lot of factors at play here, some for the better, some for the worse, but no one in their right mind could argue that Hearts aren’t significantly better than any MLS team. The third place SPL team is a Europa League qualifier….do you know how smoked the best MLS teams would get in the Europa League? They can’t even beat Honduran sides, Salvadoran sides, Guatamalan sides consistently, let alone Mexican.

      Reply
      • I’m pretty sure that a almost all the SPL teams and even some EPL teams in the lower half of the table would struggle in against teams, travel and environments in CONCACAF, regardless of the team.

        Now, if you want to talk about MLS home losses in CONCACAF, there’s a bit of a story there, but CCL travelling games are more difficult than people think.

  15. As a DC fan I hate this move. The only potential positive for Kitchen is that he’ll be making more in Scotland than playing in MLS. He’ll be in a league where the overall level of play is worse than that found in the states. I don’t see this being an advancement for him.

    Reply
    • I’m in the minority here, obviously, but I think this is a perfect move for him.

      I say that not because I think Scotland is a better level of play than MLS, but because the kid obviously has European ambitions. And if he’s trying to give himself the best chance to make it work in Europe, it won’t get much better than this. His game – tenacious and hard working, if not technically perfect – fits perfectly in Scotland, so he can step in day 1 and contribute. And Hearts are in a position where they can afford to give him some run – they’re not catching Celtic for the title, but they’re also securely in position for a Europa League birth, to the point that it would take a pretty epic collapse to lose out on that spot. He should be able to get some league games, and then if he can make it stick (and I happen to think he can) he should get some EL games on top of that next season, which means increased exposure (albeit not huge exposure, but still it’s continental football). And the kicker, he’s going on a free, so there’s none of the pressure that comes along with a hefty transfer fee. He’ll show up, and if they think he can play, he’ll play. If they think he needs time, they’ll give him time.

      Then you look at the long-term possibilities. If it works out and he plays well, it’s going to be a hell of a lot easier to move on from Hearts than it would be from MLS. To Hearts, any transfer fee he might generate is found money. It doesn’t matter where it comes from, if a decent offer comes in they’ll likely pocket the cash, pat him on the ass and send him on his way. This gives Kitchen the opportunity to make the right move for his career, not just the move that MLS deems is best for the league from a monetary standpoint.

      Now, all Kitchen’s gotta do is go make that happen….

      Reply
      • From a Hearts fan ,he definitely will not be getting paid more here. He turned down £5500 a week at DC to come over, i think at hearts he will maybe be getting £3-4k a week (based on the highest earners at the moment.

        I think the motivation for the move will probably be the prospect of european football next season and 5 games a year (at least) on SkySports. Also, players from the top Scottish clubs often get moves to the English Championship/lower half of the Premier League. Seems like a football motivated move for me.

    • Maybe…though I suspect it might be a prelim move to England.

      Once he gets that UK work permit, he can then move freely from Scotland to England. Honestly surprised more guys don’t take advantage of this dodge.

      Getting the permit these days ain’t easy…you have to be a regular starter on a Top-75 International squad if you don’t already have European citizenship, and they are not granting many exceptions these days, which got even guys like Juan Agudelo – who Sunderland wanted, badly – blocked for a move to England. Or you can find a backdoor, like into Scotland…

      Reply
      • Work permits are not permanently issued, they’re codification on employment with the current club.

        If he leaves Hearts for another club in the UK he’ll have to apply for a new one, sponsored by his new club, and it may be turned down.

        Scotland is not a back door to a work permit

    • You clearly know nothing about football Chris. What is really happening is his career is just beginning not ending. You won’t know this as you know clearly know nothing about football but some of Americas best players have played in Scotland. Your past captain Reyna and demarcus Beasley to name two. Kitchen will go on to better things but hearts are a significant step up!

      Reply
      • I agree with your sentiment about it being a good career move, but this isn’t the same SPL of Reyna’s and Beasley’s time. At least then you had the Old Firm rivalry, Celtic vs Rangers who were also competitive in European competition, and an additional club or 2 that gave them a run for their money. SPL has gone down hill a lot since then.

        Still a good move for exposure, decent money, challenge, and easier transfers to bigger and betetr clubs/leagues.

  16. Not related to this story but I thought this was interesting:

    “By all accounts, Sunil Gulati, president of U.S. Soccer, played a pivotal role in the election of Gianni Infantino as FIFA president.

    If you watched Fox Sports’ wall-to-wall coverage of Friday’s FIFA Congress in Zurich, you’d have watched via the “SunilCam” Gulati arguing projected vote totals on the executive committee stage with Sheikh Ahmad of Kuwait, Sheikh Salman’s handler, as the first-round ballots were being counted and then huddling with Infantino between rounds before scurrying to find Prince Ali and Sheikh Salman voters and convince them to switch to Infantino in the second round.

    What began as a three-vote advantage for Infantino over Sheikh Salman after Round 1 became a 27-vote victory in Round 2.

    “Gulati got a FIFA president he wanted, and he showed that the U.S. has emerged as a force on the world scene,” reported SI.com’s Grant Wahl. “The United States played a key role in the intense lobbying that saw Gianni Infantino elected FIFA president on Friday,” wroteSimon Evans of Reuters in his post-election analysis. The headline in the Los Angeles Times: “Sunil Gulati pulls some serious strings to help soccer in the U.S.”

    Just how many votes Gulati swayed — and from what confederations and what camps — is not known. All that you needed to see, though, was FIFA delegates coming up to congratulate Gulati to know what was the view from the floor.

    Tellingly, Gulati smiled when the New York Times’ Sam Borden asked him what was the composition of Infantino’s voters: “I’m much more familiar with how it got to 115 than the first 88.”

    The Congress floor theatrics would not have been possible without the key move: U.S. Soccer’s decision to stick with Gulati’s old friend, Prince Ali, whom it had nominated and supported in the May 2015 election against then-FIFA president Sepp Blatter. Some would argue there was no love lost between Prince Ali and Sheikh Salman, and Prince Ali’s voters would automatically have switched to Infantino. But Infantino needed someone to work the floor for him with Prince Ali’s blessing, and that’s where Gulati came in.

    What’s next for Gulati? France Football reported Infantino would pick someone from Concacaf to be FIFA’s new secretary general as payback for its late support for him. Reuters reported speculation in Zurich was that Gulati would be a good choice for the FIFA CEO role.

    It would be hard to imagine Gulati giving up his day job — Columbia University economics professor — to work at FIFA full-time. After all, his work at U.S. Soccer won’t be finished until it is awarded the 2026 World Cup and avenges the stinging defeat to Qatar for the 2022 World Cup hosting rights five years ago. (On Monday night, Gulati said, “We can host a World Cup relatively easily. We can do it overnight.”)

    Gulati has been on the FIFA executive committee less than three years and he is already the ninth most senior member of the 25-person body that has been decimated by the FIFA scandal. (Twelve exco members who served with Gulati or quit before he was elected have been indicted or pleaded guilty to Federal corruption charges. And that doesn’t include former UEFA president Michel Platini or Blatter, who are serving six-year soccer bans.)

    Gulati’s influence will only grow as the FIFA executive committee is dissolved and the 36-member FIFA council replaces it.”

    Reply
  17. I think it’s a good move. he will be seen by more European clubs and it probably looks better for him in getting call ups to the national team. I see him as fringe usmnt right now maybe this will help develop a little bit more

    Reply
    • Makes no sense to me. I think he is way less visible to USMNT fans and coaches there relative to playing at DC. The move makes very little sense to me – money, exposure, quality of play. I wonder down to what level he would have to drop for you to say that he would have been better off in MLS? 3rd division Estonia?

      Reply
      • Good move for Kitchen as he’ll get much more exposure to other clubs in Europe then MLS gets. Also a stepping stone when it comes to work permit issues. Getting use to the environment and culture that can be kind of different for some players as well.

      • I don’t see Kitchen in the final 23 for a Klinsmann USMNT. He may make a few friendlies or qualifiers, but I don’t see him as part of the 23 for Russia. If that is accurate, Kitchen has no reason to stay at the MLS, particularly if he is looking for more money, or for other opportunities abroad. MLS has been notoriously stingy on accepting transfers for solid team players. DC United would have loved to have kept him at a good, but not great salary. But if Europe came calling, MLS would not have let him go. I thought I heard from Wynalda that maybe a Serie A team had been looking, but the MLS put a crazy price tag on him and the interest went away.

      • There’s plenty of reasons not to sign an MLS contract, and money is the least of them. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Scouts from top clubs just don’t look at the MLS. Middling-clubs look to the MLS for bargain buys. Its not a reflection of the quality of the league or player, the network just isn’t there (yet, this is changing, as players like Henry move back to their old clubs, singing the praises of MLS).

        Length of contract is another issue, especially for someone with a goal of moving to Europe. How many more years would he be tied down to United, 4 years? My guess is a minimum of 3 years, which would put Kitchen at 27 looking to move abroad, an age he should already be establishing himself at a top club as he enters his prime, not adapting to a new country, at a mid-table club (or worse, bottom club fighting relegation), possibly even in a second-tier league (the best clubs looking at Zardes was Genk and Reading). He probably signed a 2 year contract with Hearts, just enough time to establish himself as a top player in Scotland, possibly a best XI, and then move on.

        MLS also has a history of blocking USMNTers moves abroad, holding out for clubs willing to pay above market value for US players, and clubs with enough of a marketability within the US. They negotiate transfer that benefit the MLS, not what may be best for the player. If they actually did care about players careers, they would have advised Agudelo about the slim chance of getting a permit; they would have advised Shea about Stoke maybe being to ambitious for him; and they would have advised Yedlin that Tottenham, an upper-table club with top club ambitions including regular UCL appearances (and now a league title), AND no CLEAR path to regular first team minutes. After all, MLS’ mantra is ‘its better to play in a lesser league, than ride the pine at the top’, and yet they continue to organize these transfers.

        Unfortunately, MLS would never allow one of its homegrown’s a career path like Luis Suarez’s. Imagine if Nacional never let Suarez move to FC Groningen, and instead stubbornly held out for Liverpool to come calling…

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