Resistance is Futile, So I Give You: Transfer Rumors. Michael Bradley, Freddy Adu, Peter Crouch, and More!

By: Laurie | July 7th, 2008

I fought the urge all weekend. Alas, I am human. I can fight no longer.

So I give you: Transfer Rumors. Today, a few from Europe. Tomorrow, a smattering from MLS and perhaps elsewhere.

On the Americans-in-Europe front, some interesting news coming out of Monaco. Seems the club from the tiny little principality that plays in the French Ligue 1 is interested in both Michael Bradley (son of USMNT coach Bob) and former child phenom Freddy Adu. They’ve offered $9.5 million for Bradley (which is way over the $5 million-ish reportedly offered by Bayer Leverkusen) and are negotiating for Adu. This rumor intrigues me on several levels.

First, go Freddy! The kid just turned 19 last month. It’s easy to forget how young he is, since he started playing professionally in MLS when he was fourteen. In the next four years he was overhyped and undertrained and never quite lived up to expectations, so he took himself off to Benfica in Portugal. He hasn’t seen a huge amount of playing time, but his performance for the US Men seems to show that he’s working hard and developing as a player. He could yet become the player everybody unrealistically wished he’d been at fourteen. Let’s hope that the team he lands at (Monaco, perhaps?) is a good next step.

And what about Michael Bradley? Is Monaco (12th in Ligue 1 last year) really considered a step up from UEFA-Cup-bound Heerenveen, where he was a top scorer? Or perhaps Monaco just offered him a bundle? Or is he interested in the intangibles?

Bradley is considered an up-and-comer for the USMNT, all nepotism aside, and I think I kind of expected something a little more…um…EPL-looking (or perhaps big-team Bundesliga-ish) for his next move. But there’s a chance that this, if it happens, could work out better. According to SoccerAmerica.com, Monaco’s president is Jerome de Bontin, who is French American.

De Bontin, who attended Amherst College and has been involved in American soccer for 30 years, took the presidency earlier this year at calling of Monaco’s Prince Albert, his longtime friend and teammate at Amherst.

De Bontin has been serving on U.S. Soccer’s technical committee that U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati formed after the 2006 World Cup to evaluate the nation’s approach to youth player development and coaching education. Upon his appointment to the Monaco presidency, De Bontin said he planned for Monaco to develop close ties with American soccer.

A few other factoids on the potential Adu trade from Americans Abroad:

The deal might be a bit easier to work out given that current Monaco coach Ricardo Gomes played for Benefica for five years and has maintained friendly relations with his old club. Gomes also might be symapathetic to Adu’s Summer Olympics aspirations since he himself won a silver medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, playing as a defender for Brazil.

As a Ligue 1 fan and on a purely selfish level, I am all for anything that develops American interest in Ligue 1 teams. The fewer games I have to watch on fuzzy pirate streams with Chinese commentary, the better! But I also think Ligue 1 is underrated as a place for American players to continue their development, and Monaco has a long history of turning out stellar players, including Thierry Henry, David Trezeguet and Patrice Evra. The French league may not offer the huge salaries of the EPL, but when it comes to helping players develop the skills that will aid them in their careers (not to mention in international competition,) they have a lot to offer. And if these guys are playing under a president who actually cares about US player development, this could turn out to be a real win-win situation. Let’s cross our fingers.

And now about that Peter Crouch rumor. It’s looking like Crouchie and the Pool may well be parting ways. Portsmouth has agreed to Liverpool’s numbers (reportedly £11 million) and is “in talks” to bring Peter Crouch back to Pompey. Football 365 refers to this as “Taking a Step Down to Step Up.”

But Portsmouth is a team on the move, and acquiring Crouch could help them take the next step. This could be good news for folks hoping to see somebody (anybody!) break the stranglehold of the Big Four on those Champions League slots.

For more on how Harry Redknapp has transformed Portsmouth since Crouch left in 2002, check out the Setanta Sports blog.

And speaking of exits from Liverpool, Aussie international Harry Kewell is Turkey-bound. Galatasaray, to be exact. He chose Turkey despite interest from higher-profile teams like Roma and Portsmouth. At the end of last season, Liverpool had earlier offered him a contract extension, but it was at a lower salary — a blow to both wallet and ego.

Harry said no thanks, and now he’s off to Istanbul, swearing that this is “not disrespectful to the two Leeds fans who were killed in the city eight years ago” before a UEFA Cup match with Galatasaray while he was at Leeds.

Says Kewell:

“For me, sport should first and foremost be about the love of your game. But equally important is the respect for not only your team-mates but all those who you compete against. For this reason I have always objected to any form of discrimination in any sport and football in particular, as that is the sport that is the most near and dear to me.To blame the Galatasaray club for the tragedy in Istanbul is simply wrong and discriminatory.”

So if Crouchie is out at Liverpool, who’s in? Perhaps Euro 2008’s surprise Golden Boot, David Villa? Villa’s in demand all over after that Euro performance, but one of the rumors circulating is that Rafa’s Spanish connection gives him a leg up on the competition, should Villa depart Valencia. (Not a sure thing, according to Cesar at our Valencia blog, who believes that Villa is going nowhere.)

But this post is about rumors, so let’s fan the Villa-to-Pool flames here.

The partnership worked well for Spain, so why not for Liverpool? If by “worked well” we actually mean, Villa shone, and Torres kind of disappeared for long stretches. Aside from that whole tournament-winning goal thing. But the two of them really did get the job done at Euros, and their partnership on the field together week after week could be magical. In theory. I’ve never been a huge Liverpool fan myself, but these two playing together on a regular basis might change my mind.

But fans of non-Spain teams? Let’s not even think about what a week-after-week association for these two would mean for Spain’s chances in WC 2010.

And that’s all the transfer rumors I have the energy for today. Stay tuned for more. Eventually.