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Philadelphia Union Bid $1.2M For Maurice Edu; MLS Accuses Them Of Spending Too Much Money; Mind Blown

I did not see this one coming.

By Justin F.
USA TODAY Sports

Remember the days the Union were ridiculed as being a cheap organization? Well those days are gone.

Well then.

Despite the noted interest in Maurice Edu documented here earlier, the reported salary the Union and Edu have agreed to is way higher than most anybody expected. So much so that the Union are being accused of spending too much money. I repeat, the Union are being accused of spending too much money. This is not your wildest dream.

Some sporadic thoughts on the craziness of this all.

  • I am a Maurice Edu fan and was excited at the prospect of him coming here, but $1.2M is an insane amount of money, one I am not at all comfortable with.
  • The Union are spending to keep up with every Eastern Conference team that has made dramatic improvements this off-season, most notably Toronto FC. After a history of being cheap, the sudden newfound urge of the Union to spend is truly admirable.
  • MLS wants to nix the $1.2M portion of the deal because that money for Maurice Edu is insane. Jason Davis correctly points out on Twitter $1.2M for Edu throws league economics way more out of whack than the Michael Bradley transfer ever did. Bradley is an elite MLS midfielder and is being paid thusly. Edu is not an elite midfielder MLS midfielder and should not be paid thusly. Such a salary would be paying him thusly.
  • I can't reiterate this enough. This is insane money for someone with the recent non-playing history of Edu. His last club action was last spring with Bursaspor of the Turkish Süper Lig. He is now set to make $1.2M if this goes through.
  • According to SB Nation's Ryan Rosenblatt, $1.2M is 400% more than Kyle Beckerman is making, and 833% more than Will Johnson makes. Edu is not worth 400% the money of Beckerman, nor 833% the money of Will Johnson, and it is not an issue where it is particularly close. Edu is not the same caliber player as Michael Bradley. He should not be paid like it. Nick Sakiewicz has lost his damn mind.
  • Edu is going to be angry about this because no one else is offering him that kind of money, and nor will they in the future. He's not even sitting on the bench at Stoke City this season. He's giddier than a 6-year old at Christmas at the thought of $1.2M. He likely will never see this money again and I can't blame him if he walks away from MLS should they nix this deal.
  • The Union should not have agreed to pay Edu that much money, but they will probably be angry anyway because the public perception of them right now is not exactly a strong one, and their roster does not exactly compare favorably with the rest of the Eastern Conference. They think this only does good. They probably do not see the team-wide and league-wide harm that may come from this.
  • A large segment of Union fans are going to be really angry, because the perception will be MLS is making up rules as they go along and are screwing the Union in the process the instant they decided to spend money. Does MLS allow this transfer if it is the Los Angeles Galaxy instead of the Union? Probably. Does MLS make up some rules as they go along? Probably. Is MLS doing the Union a favor by preventing them from wasting $1.2M on Edu? Probably. Is there a chance the majority of Union fans realize this? Probably not.
  • The MLS SuperDraft is in two days at the Philadelphia Convention Center. Union fans will be there. They will be angry. Good luck, Don Garber.

We'll keep you updated at The Brotherly Game as soon as more is known. This is big. This is crazy. This is not rational. This is franchise altering. This is conspiracy theory inducing. This is insane. Have I used the word insane enough?

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