Today's Mirror in the UK is reporting that MLS execs are after Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko. It is complete nonsense and you should not for a moment believe that MLS who mortgaged the farm for David Beckham would double down for Shevchenko.
While Shevchenko would be a spectacular addition and an instant superstar in MLS, his arrival would not be accompanied by the same hoopla that surrounded Spice Boy and therefore, it would also not be the financial boon that Becks has been. Shevchenko just doesn't carry the same cache as Beckham with the American public, and therefore, MLS would not be willing to shell out a hefty contract, examining the disparity of earning potential between Becks and Shevy on this side of the Atlantic. And it's a shame because Shevchenko would be accompanied by a much hotter wife, American model Kristen Pazik (pictured).
I feel bad for all the Real Salt Lake and Toronto fans that The Mirror is torturing with fiction like this. But before you allow yourself to be swept away dreaming of the Dneiper River (it's in the Ukraine), remember that his former club AC Milan, received 30 million pounds (about $60 million) for his transfer, but recently said they were "priced out" when they tried to get him back. Also, Dynamo Kiev is reportedly trying to reach a loan deal, so there's competition.
The Beckham signing was an aberration. And don't point to Blanco or Angel or Xavier as proof that MLS is now competing with the big boys because all three of those players were considered past their prime by their former clubs (whether that's an accurate assessment of their abilities is open for debate, but the financial depreciation of their value was clear).
Still, Shevchenko in Major League Soc...Dammit, now I'm doing it.
About Me
- The Yankee Hooligan
- TYH is a masked avenger for the righteousness of American soccer, converting nonbelievers and destroying those who stand in the way of our country's glorious destiny as a soccer world power.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Shevchenko to MLS? Dream on
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2 comments:
DO you even understand what a designated player is? MLS does not pay more than $400k for them. The bulk of their salary falls on the club that wants them. In this case, if rumors are to be believed, DC United, whose billionaire owners have more than enough cash.
Thanks for the comment, but whether they have enough money is not the point of the article. Just because they can doesn't mean they should. I said that MLS mortgaged the farm on Beckham because the league (and yes the "investor-operators") was betting on a huge finacial return on this investment. Shevchenko doesn't have the same cache and therefore will not have the same kind of return as Beckham (in the form of ticket prices and jersey sales). It still might be a good investment, but MLS (and its investor-operators) are wary of the NASL's mistakes. They let owners buy anyone they could afford and what they ended up with was a World All-Star team and then everyone else and the league folded. So, although the DP rule allows clubs to make high profile signings, don't think for a minute that MLS is allowing clubs to hand players blank checks. MLS is still single-entity after all, which means that the "owners" are really still "investors" and that MLS runs the show, billionaire owners or not.
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