Didier Drogba, Chicago Fire, Rumors, Obligatory Post
by Tweed Thornton on Feb 3, 2012 12:07 PM CST
in Fire Roster News & Analysis
Email
Print
Didier Drogba to the Chicago Fire. I'm not sure how it even started but now we are really getting into absurdity.
Chicago Fire confirm talks with Chelsea's Drogba
Thanks for the big headline Tribal Football. On yesterday's conference call, Chicago Fire head coach Frank Klopas did say all of the following: "Drogba? Of course, yes... There's talks, but would he really come and what would it take?... It's newspapers putting stuff out there... What do you want me to tell you? I just want to focus on my team now... Would I want a player like Drogba on my team? For sure." Thoughts on the absurd after the break.
I'm assuming Tribal Football is using Klopas' "There's talks" as the confirmation that the Chicago Fire are talking with Didier Drogba. When I heard Klopas say that yesterday, the context seemed to be 'yes, there are talks in the media'. The team confirms that Klopas dispelled the rumor.
For those who are looking for a glimmer of hope, it is interesting that no Fire spokesperson is coming forward to put down the flames. Just two days ago, the team wanted to make sure the Michael Ballack rumor was shot down. There's no specific follow-up on the fact that Klopas is being misinterpreted.
Chicago Fire Owner Andrew Hauptman is a Chelsea fan after living a 30 minute walk away from the English club's stadium, Stamford Bridge. You figure Hauptman would be more willing to break the bank for a player that is such a huge part of Chelsea's identity than just a random soccer star out there.
He'll have to break the bank by quite a lot. Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande is reportedly offering Drogba almost $50M over 3 years. Drogba's agent Thierno Seydi said his client is not interested in Chelsea's one year extension offer that is on the table.
This seems pie in the sky but all signings start somewhere. The timing of two Chelsea players being linked to the Fire in the same week is intriguing. If additional intrigue comes out, we'll report. Until then, the Chicago Fire preseason rolls on tomorrow, February 4, with a match against Real Espana at 5:00 PM CST.
9 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
For the sake of argument, suppose there are talks between Drogba and the Fire.
Pros: I don’t think Drogba has the same level of name recognition (before coming to the MLS) as Beckham and Henry did, but internationally the team would get quite a bit of attention. It would be good for the brand. Also, if Drogba clicks with the team, we would have a pretty big weapon to play alongside Oduro.
Cons: With a big name comes a big wage with a big ego. I don’t know what kind of person Drogba is, but I’m always leery of big name player because they can ruin a team’s chemistry.
I think I’d rather not sign him. He would bring a lot more talent to the team, and we’d be instantly in the discussion as an MLS Cup contender, but there’s also a lot of other junk that would come with it.
We’d have a bunch of faux-fire fans to deal with as well. I went to the first LAG match in Houston after Beckham joined the team. Over 30,000 people showed up, which is almost max cap for Roberston. It was pretty easy to see that a large portion of the crowd was there because of Beckham (so many irritating teenage girls that I thought I was at a Jonas Brothers concert). In very awesome fashion, Beckham didn’t even make the trip because he was injured, and the Dynamo had a 3-0 lead in the first 20 minutes or so. A lot of people left at the half.
About a month or two earlier, I saw the Fire and Señor Blanco when they were in town. That drew a pretty big crowd as well. Most people were wearing Blanco C.A. or Mexico National Team jerseys. I saw there were other true Fire fans there, but we were definitely out numbered. That was also McBride’s second or third game.
But back to the topic (and reality). It’s not going to happen, and we’re probably better off for it.
we’d be instantly in the discussion as an MLS Cup contender
We should be there anyway in my opinion. Totally a tangent but just wanted to put that out there.
You are right about Drogba’s mentality. I don’t follow his career to the point that I could even hint at what he would be like in the locker room but I imagine he has somewhat of an ego. It’s deserved if anything. One of this team’s best traits is the locker room harmony. Any new player should be able to keep that going.
Faux fans don’t necessarily bother me because some of them will become long-term fans. I’ll certainly take their investment in the club too. If handled wisely, these faux fans can be a boon for the club long-term and short-term.
Hot Time In Old Town SB Nation's blog for Chicago Fire, Soccer, & Chicago History
by Tweed Thornton on Feb 4, 2012 12:55 PM CST up reply actions
I'd love for us to get a real proven performer
Instead, we’re always getting some guy who never lived up to his potential and ended up the the bulgarian 2nd division.
Sure, I agree; but often people only use words like “proven” to mean “famous.” (I’m not saying that this is what you mean — the rest of this comment is for conversation, not directed at you patagonia). There are proven performers all around the world who don’t make millions of dollars or play on clubs that are also international mega-brands. MLS is full of them, too. For the Fire, guys like Pavel Pardo and Corey Gibbs come to mind. There were a bunch of people complaining on the SBI’s Fire Notes post from today, saying they won’t come to a Fire game until the club gets at least two “marquee” players. Which, of course, doesn’t mean a good player so much as a name to make headlines. Sure, the publicity would be good, yes, guys like Beckham and Henry bring absolute top-shelf quality. But personally, I’d rather win and for that you need performers, not names. Teams like Seattle, Portland, SKC, Philly… make that everybody in MLS except NY and LA have shown that you don’t need Beckham or Henry to win games. True, LA won two trophies last season and will no doubt be favorites for 2012 as well, but it’s not just because of their DPs. Their defense was top-notch and Juninho made the midfield work as much as Beckham did.
The fair weather fans on that SBI thread make me sick...
I posted a few times for good measure, although it won’t change their opinion at all. If they don’t want to support the team unless we have a DP, I don’t want them anywhere near TP.
Hot Time In Old Town SB Nation's blog for Chicago Fire, Soccer, & Chicago History
Tradition. Honor. Passion.
That’s slightly unfair. The five international players the Fire have on their squad came from the first divisions of Colombia, Argentina, Uruguay, Guatemala, and Mexico.
They aren’t on DP deals but that’s because the front office did a good job on their deals. Grazzini and Pardo came to the team as real proven performers. Robayo has a very impressive resume. Puppo has more to show in my opinion.
Hot Time In Old Town SB Nation's blog for Chicago Fire, Soccer, & Chicago History
by Tweed Thornton on Feb 4, 2012 1:41 PM CST up reply actions
I’m sorry, I forgot to mention that Tribal Football called me last week….
http://twitter.com/rtisch312 Inaine thoughts and ramblings about sports and life.
We should have known better
Hot Time In Old Town SB Nation's blog for Chicago Fire, Soccer, & Chicago History
by Tweed Thornton on Feb 5, 2012 4:28 PM CST via iPhone app up reply actions
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
Related FanPosts on Hot Time In Old Town
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
