Rest Or Relocation? Veracruz Reportedly Pays Carlos Ruiz's 'Buyout' Clause
by Scott Kessler on Jul 12, 2011 5:43 PM EDT
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(All translations by @MarksXJ - Jon Marks - also writes for Philly Union Talk.)
In what is becoming a weekly event, Philadelphia Union striker Carlos Ruiz has been linked to a Mexican club. Club Tiburones Rojos de Veracruz, linked to Ruiz twice in the past couple of weeks, have reportedly paid the Guatemalan forward's buyout clause (also referred to as a minimum release fee) in his Union contract.
The article was published on July 9, the same day that Ruiz did not travel to play the San Jose Earthqukes because he was being rested by Union head coach Piotr Nowak.
An off-the-pitch situation is driving Ruiz's drive to move away from the Union, according to D Poder A Poder (a Veracruz news outlet):
People close to the negotiation confirmed that Ruiz is looking to sever ties with his actual club(Union) under the argument that his family has not adapted to the city and this has him unhappy.
Ruiz himself has offered to pay the money required to activate the fee, in order to expedite the transfer to Veracruz.
The initial conversations establish that Ruiz offered, with the backing of Veracruz, to pay the buyout clause of the contract to MLS and, in this manner, remain free to sign a contract before the close of registration in Mexican Soccer.
MLS is the only hold up in the transfer, per the article, as the league believes that Ruiz is a top Latin/Hispanic attraction and will not want to let the 31-year-old leave Philly.
After the jump, the rest of the translation.
Also, it is confirmed that los Tiburones Rojos have already put in the total (deposited) to spend on Ruiz, so his arrival to Veracruz as the third foreign reinforcement can be sped up.
Until this Saturday, the signing of the ex-player of Aris Salonica of Greece and of the Galaxy of Los Angeles would be suppressed by what MLS decides based on Ruiz being one of the principal latin attractions of the league and by consequence an attraction of the ticket office which leaves in doubt the MLS freeing Ruiz.
For the full article, sans the translations found here, please click this linked text.
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We better fucking sign a striker
I know language like that isn’t encouraged on the site, but I feel it’s appropriate here. The U is in first place. They traded away their starting LB for money. Now, they’re giving away their big offseason signing, who just happens to be tied for the team lead in goals. As we just saw, putting Mwanga and Le Toux together doesn’t magically produce goals (mainly because Le Toux grumble grumble). We’re giving up less than a goal a game. Pissing it away by having a serious dearth of attacking talent would be a terrible waste, and if the Union don’t make a splash on Friday (or soon after), more language as appears in the title will be deserved.
Thats angry talk....and i understand..
But any signing will be some unheard-of guy in his 20s. I dont think this mgmt regime will hire a name looking for a retirement check. And btw we need a No10 mid …our strikers are fine;)
Really?
Look at our bigger signings recently. Ruiz, Mondragon, Paunovic all over 30 and on the downside of their career. The only big guy they’ve signed in his 20s was Valdes, who had at least one national team cap, so hardly unheard of.
Even then, saying our strikers are fine is like Andy Reid saying “we’re okay there”. Le Toux can’t score. Mwanga can’t play a full game. Mac has not looked ready to take on a major scoring load. While a #10 would be nice, we at least have guys who can make something happen and score from the midfield. With the exception of one or two Mwanga strikes a game, without Ruiz, we have absolutely no striking ability. I’d like to point out that we have 21 goals this season. Ruiz has 5. We scored 6 against a godawful Toronto defense. That means, take out Ruiz, and our other players have a total of 10 goals in the 17 non-Toronto games. And it’s not as easy as just putting somebody else in his position. You don’t have to like the guy, but most of his goals were very well taken.
Not Good
This isn’t good at all.. not just within its own context, but the implications of what this may cause if true. News like this has the potential to make it very hard for the Union to sign top foreign talent. While Ruiz himself hasn’t made any comment, if the story that comes out is that his family doesn’t like the area and won’t live here, that could really hurt the team. Philly would then have been shot down for that reason by Pires, Mintal, and Ruiz.
I feel bad for Carlos if this is the situation. It has to be very hard to be in that position trying to make things work. However, he did claim a week or two ago that he has had no contact with any Mexican teams, didn’t he? We know that the Union FO will likely not make a statement until a deal is done (and even then, it is ‘iffy’ see: Michael Orozco Fiscal).
This isn’t good at all.. not just within its own context, but the implications of what this may cause if true. News like this has the potential to make it very hard for the Union to sign top foreign talent.
I’m not sure it’s really a big deal. Ruiz does have a rep for having short welcomes and switching teams often. He’s been on how many teams in the past 3 or 4 years? If this became a trend with a number of players asking to leave the Union, then maybe we worry, but it’s not like any of our other foreign acquisitions (like Mondragon, Valdes, Torres, Daniel, etc.) have had public complaints.
Guys like Pires or Mintal don’t count because they never actually lived in Philly and it’s not like future acquisition will remember or know about guys who were considering the Union but didn’t sign. No one knows or cares about any comments they said. We only remember them because we are following the team closely.
There Must Be Signing(s) Coming...
All signs point to it.. I’ve been saying it for weeks that if Ruiz does leave, that opens up a lot of money under the cap for quality player(s) to be signed. Additionally, you don’t trade away a starting player for allocation money unless you plan on using it, and Novak has been saying since June that “reinforcements are on the way” and “we are looking to be active when the transfer window opens”… Lets see what transpires before we start the doom and gloom talk…
by Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) on Jul 12, 2011 9:05 PM EDT reply actions
No doubt
There’s no doubt in my mind that reinforcements are on their way. Something like this – Ruiz heading south of the border – won’t come as a surprise to Nowak & Co. This process takes time, regardless of whether Ruiz is helping expedite the process. I’m willing to bet Harvey’s sending to Vancouver is a piece of the puzzle in order to bring in an additional striker and (hopefully) some added depth in defense.
Hmm.
I found it interesting that they’re saying Ruiz is a box office draw for MLS. Maybe he would be in a different market, but his style of play hasn’t exactly endeared him to the Philadelphia fans. If the league doesn’t want to let Ruiz walk, they should at least let him move to a different MLS side if there’s another team interested in him.
Yeah. The truth is that, at this point in the team’s history, ticket sales are strong enough that they haven’t noticeably been influenced by one player or another. People buy tickets to see the whole team, not to watch Carlos Ruiz maybe play. Now, of course, that might change should the team decide to bring in an internationally-known player down the line, but for the moment, his being on the team or not isn’t really going to change the number of people who are at PPL Park for any given match.
I could understand MLS making this argument if the team had a major Spanish presence, and he was the center of it, but the Union haven’t really made their major Spanish push yet. They publish many of their website articles in both English and Spanish, but they don’t do Spanish TV or radio broadcasts, etc., nor have they appeared to start outreach programs to Philadelphia’s Spanish communities with Ruiz being the focal point.
Unless they’re trying to make a somewhat silly argument that he’s drawing fans at away matches…which maybe five MLS players legitimately do, and Ruiz isn’t one of them.
Contributor at The Brotherly Game, SBN's Philadelphia Union blog
by Ben Feldman on Jul 13, 2011 10:12 AM EDT up reply actions
Agreed
Most MLS fans hate Ruiz. There’s simply no way Ruiz is a mover of tickets by himself, except maybe in LA. Hardcore fans would turn up anyway, and casuals are not coming out to see this cheating disgrace. The Union are better off without him. Frankly, I’d prefer he stay with Philly, because he’s slowing down your attack and isn’t scoring often enough to justify the fact that he is a poor match to the rest of the team.
Now, whether the article is just making this idea up or if MLS is just acting silly, it’s hard to say. Both are fairly frequent occurrences.
Writer - Black and Red United
by ChestRockwell on Jul 13, 2011 6:03 PM EDT up reply actions
He is tied for our leading goal scorer. Most his goals were key to victories or stealing a point in a tie not blowouts like vs Toronto. I´d say he was a significant part of our successful first part of the season along with the defense. Defense will tie games but hey will not win them. If he goes, it will be a significant loss to this FC. One sure thing, If he leaves, we´ll have a pretty clear answer of the effect he had on this club.
Don't let the door hit you on the way out
Our offensive production is down from last year. I think a good signing would be one similar to Vancouver’s signing of Jarju. MLS has not really tapped into the young African talent pool, which is readily available and i think it might be time. Unless we have a Cliff Lee style out of nowhere big signing up our sleeve I’d say a big name isn’t really needed quite yet.
If we want a name to sell tickets I honestly think we should wait at least 2 year or until they expand the stadium, in case interest starts to fade. Either way, Ruiz was never the answer for this team.
LMAO
Nice try, but the offensive production is down because Sabastien LeToux has 41 shots and has scored a whopping ONE goal.
You would recommend getting rid of your leading scorer (and one of the most prolific in MLS history) and advocate a signing similar to Vancouver’s signing of Jarju of Belgium 2nd division fame? Put down the pipe man.
by TheGoldenOne on Jul 13, 2011 8:52 PM EDT up reply actions
He is tied as our leading goal scorer. Most his goals were key to victories or stealing a point in a tie not blowouts like the Toronto game. I´d say he was a significant part of our success in the first part of this season along with the defense. Defense will tie games but hey will not win them. If he goes, it will be a significant loss to this FC. One sure thing, If he leaves, we´ll have a pretty clear answer of the effect he had on this club and how damaging the loss will be at the end of this season.
Just because Ruiz has goals to his name doesn’t mean his playing creates more Goals. He may score a goal but the fact that his lazy ass is playing means someone else who could create more opportunities and fit into Nowak’s system better is on the bench. Our offense is terrible this season and the only season it somewhat looks OK on paper is because we put a 6-spot on toronto (a game where ruiz wasn’t playing). Say ruiz played that game, scored a goal, we still would have lost because he would have killed the flow that helped us score 6. Remove that game and our offensive production is HORRIBLE on paper. What’s the difference from last year…hmmmmm
You Fail.
Just because Ruiz has goals to his name doesn’t mean his playing creates more Goals.
Uh, do you realize how ridiculously stupid this assertion is. “Just because he’s our leading scorer doesn’t mean he’s contributing any offense!”
Our offense is terrible this season and the only season it somewhat looks OK on paper is because we put a 6-spot on toronto (a game where ruiz wasn’t playing).
The offense has been terrible when Ruiz is NOT playing, that Toronto game is obviously an anomaly since the team looked like crap when Ruiz was away (scoring two goals) at the Gold Cup.
Look at the record with Ruiz in the lineup and without him. He’s an obvious asset to the team. Also, he’d have more assists if LeToux could actually hit the broad side of a barn.
If anything, LeToux has proven himself to be expendable and a locker room cancer. Trade LeToux for a real CAM!!!
by TheGoldenOne on Jul 16, 2011 3:40 PM EDT up reply actions
If we have the money...
"I don’t think there would be a problem transferring there, but the offer has to be adequate in light of my career."- Sulley Muntari
Fish haters.
I wonder if the Ruiz haters had some influence in his decision? If it were me, it would have held significant weight. If it does happen, it would be a good move for Ruiz as he is held with high regard in the Mexican League and with its fans. It would be a step up and closer to home too. Anyone ever been to Veracruz? I have, its a beautiful gulf city!
Ehh.
I don’t think Nowak makes any moves based on the fans. The fans liked Jordan Harvey.
From what I heard, its The Fish that wants out, not Nowak. The article also reads that the only thing holding the deal up is the MLS not Nowak. Nowak is good with his players and shows much affection to the Fish and I think if the Fish went up to him asking for the transfer, he would listen.
I guess this will be a good move for the Fish as he got little appreciation if any from the fans and many attacks. I don´t blame him one bit for wanting out. Who would want to play in a club with that environment? Its hard to give it your all for the club when fans are telling you, you suck and your lazy! Everyone will be happy with this. Fans got rid of him finally and he goes to a better league. We just have to wait till the end of the season to see how the Union fares without him to see who got the better end of the deal. This fan, however, will be a little sad to see him go but completely understands his decision. At least Ill have a chance to follow him in the Mexican League. He is held in high regard over there and I’m sure many Veracruz fans will be ecstatic to hear the good news of the reinforcement arrival. In a bitter sweet way, I hope he MLS lets him go. The Fish would be better of, as for the Union…………..we´ll just have to wait for the end of the season,
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