It isn’t an MLS transfer window without a Giuseppe Rossi rumor. The New Jersey-born Italian international has been mentioned in countless reports over the years about moving back to the States to play in MLS. However, none of them have come to fruition.
The newest Rossi rumor connects him specifically with the Montreal Impact and Chicago Fire. Montreal is in the market for another forward after the departure of Didier Drogba and the Fire are still revamping their roster in an attempt to be competitive in Veljko Paunovic’s second year in charge.
Rossi is currently on loan in Spain with Celta Vigo, where he has made six appearances for the La Liga side. The forward also spent time in Spain last season with Levante, where he scored six goals in 17 league matches. However, that form couldn’t earn him a spot in Fiorentina’s first team. Rossi has only played in 33 league matches for the Viola since joining in 2013 due to injuries and loan spells. His most successful stop in Europe came at Villarreal, where he scored over 10 goals in four straight season from 2007-2011.
Real Salt Lake close to acquiring Rusnak
Real Salt Lake is close to adding the first key piece to its much-needed rebuild. The Claret and Cobalt are in need of younger players in key roles, and it appears Slovakian No. 10 Albert Rusnak is on his way to Utah.
Dutch club FC Groningen announced on its website that Rusnak is off to MLS to join RSL, but that is the only official news from either side of the deal as of now. The 22-year-old is primarily a central attacking midfielder, but he’s also played on the wings in his career when called upon.
Rusnak was a part of the Manchester City youth system before permanently moving to Groningen in the January transfer window two years ago. He played on loan at SC Cambuur, Birmingham City and Oldham Athletic.
RSL is in need of a midfield playmaker after it mutually parted ways with Juan Manuel Martinez and declined the option on Javier Morales, who went on to sign with FC Dallas.
D.C. United trades Collin Martin to Minnesota United
Minnesota United’s slow roster build continued on Tuesday, as the Loons acquired a nice young piece from D.C. United.
D.C. United traded midfielder Collin Martin to Minnesota in exchange for 2018 fourth-round pick in the MLS SuperDraft. The 22-year-old American made 15 appearances across four years for the Black and Red. Martin only took the field for 91 minutes for the first team over the last two seasons.
Martin joins a growing midfield contingent in Minnesota that includes Johan Venegas and Mohammed Saeid. Despite the progress they’ve made, the Loons are still a few pieces away from fielding a competitive starting 11 in March.
Atlanta United announces first preseason friendly
The MLS preseason is rapidly approaching and MLS clubs are starting to announce their preseason plans.
Expansion side Atlanta United will play its opening match of the preseason on February 11 against FC Chattanooga at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga. Chattanooga is also the site of the recently announced U.S. men’s national team friendly against Jamaica on February 3.
“This is another exciting moment for our club, as our preseason tour will start in Chattanooga, signifying our first-ever official match,” Atlanta United president Darren Eales said. “We’re happy to begin our preseason in the southeast and are happy that our fans will have the opportunity to see us play at Finley Stadium in February.”
the country isn’t wide enough. there isn’t a city far enough away. yuk.
Keep winning!
you respect his decision to play for italy. so imagine that you had front row seats when he scored against the usa in germany in 2006. knowing that he was born in america. and then, watching him celebrate the goal afterwards. HOW WOULD THAT FEEL?
It is not a personal thing, and you should not make it personal. He did not slight you directly. YOU just took it personally when you saw it. You remind of guys who took it personally that certain elite high school athletes left the state to play for out of state universities and saw it as a betrayal – never taking into account that is where they felt comfortable.
He learned soccer abroad, essentially. He left US at 12 to move back to Europe. His parents were both Italian immigrants and wanted him to play for Italy. I am sure he feels equally both or, (like myself) more acutely aware and closer to American when living abroad and more acute aware of my immigrant routes when in the US.
Then what do I know, I do not take it personally when players celebrate against their old teams (or teams that trained him).
On a side note, being born in a country does make you a citizen in most countries (including almost all of Europe). You ARE NOT Italian simply by being born there. If you are American with no Italian lineage, you have to apply for naturalization at 18. So in a lot places in the world, being born elsewhere does not negate your citizenship.
my face us scrunched up in a contorsion. i am trying to understand. so being born in a country does not make you a citizen? and changing national teams and scoring against your birth country is not a big thing? maybe i am getting too old. i yearn for the days when life was simpler, i guess.
two cents, being born in a country does not necessarily make you in citizen. I speak from the point of view of someone who has lived in 6 countries on 3 continents and been to 20 more on across 5. My dad worked for multinational companies and NGO, I know a great deal of people who have worked as diplomats or for multinationals and ended on every continent except Antarctica. I am a dual national and I know many dual/tri nationals.
There are generally 2 rules of citizenship: jus soli or jus sanguinis (of the soil and of the blood), and a hybrid of the sort. The US and most of the Americas (North and South) practice jus soli where being born in the country makes you a citizen. Most places I know of in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia use some form of jus sanguinis meaning the you need a blood connection to be granted some form automatic citizen EVEN when born in the country. In Italy, citizenship is only acquired by if (1) birth to an Italian parent or (2)
birth to stateless parents, to unknown parents, or to parents who cannot pass on their nationality to their children. That means if you, as an American, have children in Italy, without Italian citizenship in heritage (grand parents or sooner), your children WOULD NOT be citizens.
well, my issue is more about his goal celebration against the usa in the wc in germany in 2006. it was a little off-putting me, to say the least. when he scored that goal, he looked so joyful, so jubilant, it appeared to be, literally, the happiest day of his life.
i think, “what if pablo mastroeni had scored a goal against his birth country, argentina, in the wc?” we can ask pablo, but i’m guessing he would not celebrate that goal. just put the ball in the back of the net and trot back over the midfield line and wait for the restart.
why? not because people’s feewings are fragile, as someone said, above. because pablo, i’m guessing, loves his homeland. i’m sure he has many friends and family there still to this day. and he knows that if he celebrates, he’s going to hurt, very much, a lot of argentinian people’s feelings. and why would he want to do that? so i’m guessing he just puts the ball quietly in the back of the net and doesn’t celebrate that one.
i think, you can’t put people off like that and then expect them to welcome you with open arms ten years later.
Two cents, you are entitled to you own opinion. If it offended you then, then that is your right. However, I will say that, in my experience, playing is so emotional that it takes more effort to restrain than to hold it in. It was natural to celebrate; sometimes by emotionally running around, or even walking away with a smug swagger. On top of that, I think his close friends and family would be happy for him in a meaningless game. Now, there might be some feelings if it happened in a World Cup, Euro Cup, or qualifying for each.
I know how I feel. if he is not getting enough minutes in italy, then I would like to invite him to play soccer in a science station in antarctica. or perhaps on the moon. or, perhaps on one of the moons of jupiter. or, I the transportation is available, perhaps on alpha centari. but considering my true feelings about this matter, I regret to say that our tiny country is just not wide enough.
Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
Best American player ever
Meet America’s best hope at the World Cup!
That makes zero sense!
Apparently it made sense to the people at ESPN back in 2010, and it resulted in one of the most pompous magazine cover ever.
Move on with the shade for this guy. It doesn’t help that Arena said he wouldn’t chase after guys who couldn’t even get first team minutes with their club (Man U). Bottom line, he never said he was interested or tried to use us as leverage.
He may have made a snide remark afterwards but BA certainly tried to get Rossi to play with the US. Several camp invites, all friendlies not to jeopardize his options. I’d be surprised if he made those comments (tho I’d like to see them) prior to him being capped to italy
I believe Arena’s comments were made long before he was capped by Italy…I think Rossi was still at Man U….
Fair enough. I recently found an interview where BA relived his process of trying to bring Rossi the the usmn. I know BA isn’t necessarily the most PC guy so I would t be shocked but it would seem strange he say that while pursuing him
Giuseppe Rossi? Who the f%#k is that guy?
-Jeremy Stephens
No thanks, don’t want Benedict Arnold.
The best irony would be if it was American Josh Perez who is taking his spot at Fiorentina and forcing him out.
Benedict Arnold wants to come back to the states.
Not really sure why people are still salty over his decision. At best, he was a dangerous striker who was continuously plagued by injuries. No reason to think his career trajectory would have been any different if he had chosen US instead on Italy.
And you do not know if it had of been different if he did choose the USA. He was born and raised here. He would have went to a World Cup he did choose the United States. His agent even admired he should have choose the United States.
His agent said that when they started angling for move to the states. I really do not know why people are so hurt over his choice. He is as much Italian as he is American…maybe more. Both of his parents are Italian immigrants, he speaks Italian at home according to an article I read years ago, and he left the US at 12 year old. He spent more years abroad than he has in the US.
Lastly, they kid is injury prone. I could be wrong, but I think he has only not been hurt for the last World Cup, but was still running the rust off.
Eh, time to get over it.
Panda swerve, I am over it I think it is funny how he did not think the USA was a option, but now since he is not getting much playing time in Serie A because of injuries, he wants to come back crawling to the USA, needing our help.
He is playing in La Liga. Do you honestly think he could not find a solid team in a top 5 league to play?
its time people moved on. I never had an issue with Rossi as he stated from day 1 he wanted to play for Italy. Would his international career been better with the us (giving playing time he would have seen)? absolutely. Does it suck to miss out on a talented player? Absolutely. Do I hold his decision against him? Absolutely NOT. It was his decision to make, he made it and stuck by it. He may have decided he would do things differently if he could do it again, but that’s the gamble you take as a dual citizen.
I never blamed Rossi for his decision to play for Italy for the reason that you stated and because his crucial U13 on up development occurred in Italy anyway. Also it was his dying father’s dream and I’m truly happy for Rossi and his father that they saw the risk they made pay off.
What I do blame Rossi for is his celebration after his goals against the United States, and a few of his childhood friends, in the Confederation’s Cup. Perhaps that’s a part of sportsmanship they don’t value as much in Italy as we do in the US and in other parts of Europe. In the end it doesn’t matter because the US advanced from the group and to the final’s and Italy didn’t. Karma, sorry Rossi but it is a thing.
response to wood chip…
I agree 100% with you….Rossi celebrated his goals against us…
other players do value the sportsmanship…..carl robinson didn’t cheer for the goal he scored against nyrb many years ago and ronaldo didn’t celebrate his goal against sporting…tbh i think rossi’s celebration is worse because it is on national team level not club…..
I never got the whole don’t celebrate against your friends thing.
Is celebrating so bad, so show offy, so in your face that you shouldn’t do it in against your friends?
If so…..ban it. Bad sportsmanship is never right, not just right against someone you don’t know.
It isn’t bad sportsmanship though, it is just me celebrating with my teammates and I will do it against friends and unknown people both.
LoL That whole let’s pretend that didn’t happen facade is kind of silly. Someone scores a goal, they are entitled to the completely normal, human response of being happy about it and the completely standard sportsman’s response of showing it. To lie/pretend it didn’t happen or you aren’t happy… that the other side is so fragile that their itty bitty feeeewings can not take a goal celebration is kind of an insult. Man up, don’t like the results of giving up a goal, then don’t. Lol when my friends- even brothers have scored against my side… seems like they celebrate extra hard. Totally expected and motivating. Good onya- got me this time- won’t happen again seems a better response. In the end, it is a game. As to Rossi’s long ago decision- same tone. I’d take him on my team- he’s healthy, he is a huge asset.
If he went to the Impact would the be coming “back to the States”? Did we annex Canada?