It's time for the Philadelphia Union to finally sell Andre Blake
09/04/2017
In what has been a rumored move each offseason for the Philadelphia Union, this offseason the front office needs to rip the band aid.
That band aid is selling star goalkeeper Andre Blake.
While Blake is arguably the best player on the roster, that also makes him the most valuable player on the team. No one currently on the Philadelphia Union roster will bring in half the money that a Blake sale would bring in. Blake is a great keeper but while he was away on international duty, the Philadelphia Union saw what life without Blake would look like.
John McCarthy stepped in and did an admirable job. While he isn't in the same class as Blake, he is able to make the saves that are expected of a starting keeper. McCarthy is also a fearless sweeper keeper who allows the Union to play a high line to put the attacking pressure on. Going deeper into the system, the Union have good depth in rookie Jake Maguire and 16-year-old academy product Travis Romero.
In short, if the Union sell Blake, they'll be in good hands. But why should they look to shop Andre Blake anyway?
MONEY. The Philadelphia Union have struggled to spend money with Alejandro Bedoya being their million dollar man (a paltry sum in MLS). What is needed is a CAM and a winger with additional depth at striker not being a bad shout either. The Union will be able to shed salary to add some guys during the offseason with names such as Fabinho, Ilsinho, Roland Alberg, Chris Pontius, Maurice Edu and Brian Carroll not returning next season but when it comes to paying transfer fees, the Union need cold hard cash.
The team has been able to get creative with transfer fees in the past but it hasn't helped with the Union perennially being in the bottom half of the Eastern Conference. It's time to spend some real money in Chester and if Jay Sugarman won't sell his stock or the team, selling Blake is the next best way to accomplish that.
Selling Blake will hurt in the short run but if it helps the team improve 2-3 other positions, it's an option that needs to be considered with the European transfer window opens in January. Blake will be remembered fondly in Philadelphia but for the team to take the next step, it's time to cash in.
The 16 year old keeper from the academs name is Tomas, not Travis
Posted by: Maureen Romero | 09/05/2017 at 10:57 AM
Apologies. That was a typo when writing this.
Posted by: Chuck Booth | 09/05/2017 at 11:19 AM
With the league rules being what they are, there is no reason to sell Blake. It doesn't help provide any additional funds to the first team.
As of the last CBA, teams could only funnel about $650,000 of a transfer fee into player allocation (this might’ve been upped slightly in 2016 with the new CBA, but it won’t have gone up far). Plus the league would take approximately 1/3 of the fee as well.
So should the Union sell Blake for $6 mil, the league would take $2m, the team budget would get $650k, and Sugerman would pocket $3.35m. He could use that money to invest in the stadium, pay the teams taxes, rent a helicopter, whatever, but it doesn't get allocated to the salary budget.
Posted by: Divot | 09/05/2017 at 04:46 PM