Quintero Deal May Or May Not Be Off

After going quiet for a couple months, the Juan-Quintero-To-CF97 Saga got real hot real quick. But after a full day of intense speculation, we still have no idea where he’s going.

Earlier today, Guillermo Rivera reported at The Athletic that a deal between the Chicago Fire and FC Porto for Quintero was all but done. The transfer fee, reported to be the main sticking point in negotiations, had seemingly been settled. The Fire agreed to pay upwards of $12 million (yes, really) for the 24-year-old Colombian attacking midfielder. All that was left was paperwork, and the Men In Red would add a strong goalscoring threat to what has already become one of the more fearsome rosters in the MLS Eastern Conference.

That was this morning.

Once everyone came back from their lunchbreaks, the story changed. Dramatically.

Now, Quintero appeared to be headed for Argentine giants River Plate.

The player himself seemed to be lowkey confirming the River Plate move.

Normally this would seem to put an end to things. This preseason? Not so much. Especially not after the Cyle Larin debacle earlier this month.

Rivera is reporting now that the Fire deal isn’t off, per se, but that it has become a bit more complicated.

Did I mention that Porto is asking for a much lower transfer fee from River Plate than from the Fire? Like, less than half?

Gotta love preseason.

We’ll keep you updated on this story as MLS Hot Stove Season heats the fuck up.