The ink is barely dry on Thierry Henry's contract, and rumors continue to swirl about a potential 3rd Designated Player for the New York Red Bulls. I hate to ever link to anything posted at MLS Rumors, but something on this post caught my eye. The article itself, touting a rumor about a 3-way trade involving Freddie Ljungberg, Juan Pablo Angel, and a player from River Plate, seems like nothing more than a vivid fever dream from a desperate Sounders fan. However, there is a comment at the bottom of the page, by someone calling themselves "Truth," that states the following:
This is an unfounded rumor started by a Seattle fan. I write a column in NY. Here’s the deal.Now, I don't know that "Truth" has any more accurate information than anyone else posting rumors about the 3rd DP. However, this just rings true to me, so I thought I'd share it. I don't know if it's Richards and Kandji that would go, but something like that seems about right. It also helps explain why both rumors have gathered so much traction in recent days--the Red Bulls have been negotiating both deals, with Marquez as their primary target and Ljungberg as a backup plan.
RBNY & Seattle have a deal in Principle: Big Mac, Dane Richards & allocation money to seattle for Freddie Ljungberg.
The only hold up is this: If Rafa Marquez signs by Friday with RBNY, the deal is off.
The deal does not include Angel. He is going to partner with Henry. This rumor is purely a fantasy cooked up by delusional, desperate Seattle fans. Please set the record straight.
Complicating issues is the story coming out of Spain this morning (google translation here) stating that FC Barcalona is seeking a transfer fee of 7 million Euros for Rafa Marquez. It's hard to imagine that the Red Bulls or MLS would pony up this kind of cash. To be honest, I'm not even sure how it works when a player acquisition by MLS involves a transfer fee. Who pays it, the league or the team? Whatever--7 million Euros is nearly 9 million dollars. Hard to believe that anyone involved with MLS is going to drop that kind of money.
As I read between the lines of all the rumors, here's my best guess as to what is going on. The Red Bulls came to an agreement with Rafa Marquez, leading Erik Soler and Hans Backe to say that they were encouraged, but the deal is not yet done because it depends on being able to get him on a free transfer. Meanwhile, they came to an agreement in principle with Seattle for Ljungberg. Soler was able to very carefully pick his words concerning the 3rd DP so that they would describe both Marquez and Ljundberg.
Anyways, I'm posting this info only because it just seems like the most plausible thing I've read so far. Who knows? It could all be fantastical nonsense. If it's true, what do you think? Would you like to trade Richards and Kandji for Ljungberg? If we assume that it's going to take two of our younger guys with upside to get Ljungberg, who would you trade? Let us know your thoughts!
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