Where's my refund: Nery Castillo loaned to Aris FC
by Tweed Thornton on Jan 20, 2011 11:44 AM CST
in Fire Roster News & Analysis
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I was very hesitant to report that Nery Castillo had been loaned out to Aris FC by the Chicago Fire when the news broke yesterday because it seemed like every new day brought a new story about Nery Castillo going to a new Greek team. I think the story of whether or not Brett Favre is retiring has less twists and rebuttals - notice I did use the present term on that one too. Anyway, the loan became more legitimate with every passing minute and I'm not sure why the Chicago Fire waited this long to send out a press release. Even their own press release states:
Transaction: Loaned to Aris F.C. on Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2011
My guess is that there was some kind of Major League Soccer internal stuff that had to go on before the team could send something out. MLS really needs to work on this kind of thing in the day of instant news. It looks a little ridiculous sending out a press release more than 24 hours after it's been widely reported around the world. As has been widely reported, this is a five-month loan with the Chicago Fire retaining the option to complete a permanent transfer of Nery Castillo back to Chicago if the team so chooses. The general consensus is that we have seen the last of Nery in Fire red but I'm not so sure.
It's quite possible that Nery never wants to step foot in Chicago again. It is certainly true that many Fire fans would shoot off fireworks if Nery never again landed at O'Hare, Midway or even the proposed third airport in the south suburbs. However, the Fire are still looking awfully thin at the forward position and signing players that are talented enough to get designated player contracts is easier said than done. Nery's 2010 campaign was a failure, no doubt:
Castillo appeared in eight games for the Fire, starting six, tallying 487 minutes after joining the club in mid-July.
No goals, no assists, and a lot of collective headaches but Frank Klopas deserves credit for simply getting the deal done. It was a worthy gamble and sometimes as in Vegas, your dice comes up snake eyes. I hope Nery is able to find his previous greatness in his adulthood home of Greece and the comfortable surroundings revive his career. In fact, I hope he has a blast. Perhaps our paths will cross again, perhaps even on the 4th of July.
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I'm probably in the minority here but...
I don’t think Nery ever did get fully fit (most comments I see say he sucks and lacks heart and good riddance). I saw a report recently in Spanish that CDLC said he couldn’t adjust to MLS style soccer, which sounds true. However, if he did come back to the Fire more fit, I wouldn’t hate it. He definitely showed huge upside just a few years ago, then injuries and other issues derailed that. While his Fire stint was certainly disappointing, I look at it like a “doomed to failure from the start” type of thing. You could take Messi even, and if he wasn’t able to play for 2-3 years, he would lose form too. Now, I’m not saying that Castillo could hold Messi’s jock, but my point is that any player, regardless of skill, will see a radical decline in their game f they play as little as Nery did over a couple of year period.
This loan will hopefully get Nery back into fitness, even if he never returns to the Fire. I would have liked to see what he could for the Fire in top form though.
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Glad to see him go
Even if he played good or not the Fire faithfull wouldnt like him. With such high expectations last year proving to be an epic failure. There isnt much he could have done to win the fans over. Every game that he played that he didnt score he would begin to push him self and mess up.
Ives had an interesting tweet today
http://twitter.com/#!/SoccerByIves/status/28145641846734848
Fire fans wondering where goals will come from should take heart. Sources tell me Chicago is lining up an international striker this window
That’s good to hear
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by Tweed Thornton on Jan 20, 2011 10:26 PM CST up reply actions
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