(Editorial) – Rumors have been circulating about the Los Angeles Galaxy‘s forward/midfielder Gyasi Zardes moving to Europe. It was initially reported that Belgian side Genk have interest in him. Later that week, it was reported that Championship side Reading FC had a formal offer for the LA Galaxy Academy product.
The 23-year-old is having a dream 18 months. He scored 16 goals in 26 MLS games last season and scored in MLS Cup. He earned his first USMNT cap this past January. He opened his USMNT account against the Netherlands.
He’s one of the rising young players in MLS. While he only has 6 goals and 3 assists in 20 league games this season, he is on an excellent run of form.
The question is then, do the LA Galaxy sell him now while his stock is high and there are several bidders? Or do they hold on to him and make him one of their American poster boys, like Landon Donovan and Omar Gonzalez? Let’s break it down.
The Issue Of Money:
Transfermarkt lists Zardes’s market value as $1.5 million (1.3 million Euros). The Galaxy could have some money issues going into 2016. They have 4 DP level contracts on the books for 2016. They used a little over half of their $500,000 of TAM to pay down Gonzalez’s contract to sign Giovani dos Santos. In order to keep those four players next year, it might require acquiring more allocation money. Selling Zardes would go a long way towards that.
It is possible but unlikely that MLS adds a fourth DP slot, thus alleviating this problem. The Galaxy could also look at selling Gonzalez. The center back has had interest in the past with a short loan to FC Nuremberg and three appearances in the 2014 World Cup.
Head Coach and General Manager Bruce Arena is shrewd operator. He would not have utilized the TAM rule to bring in Dos Santos only to have to make a bunch of moves to keep him long term. The front office no doubt has a contingency plan to navigate this. No doubt Arena has spoken to Zardes if selling him was a possibility.
The Galaxy have plenty of assets they can use to make this work. In no way is selling Zardes now or in January their only option. Like Taylor Twellman reported, if the offer isn’t good enough, they won’t budge.
Upsetting A Potential Cup Run:
Since arriving this month, Dos Santos has played almost entirely up top as a striker along side Robbie Keane. This has pushed Zardes into right midfield and he has handled the change well. He’s been very dynamic in the attack. His speed is more of a weapon out wide. He has 3 goals and 3 assists in the 6 games since the switch.
Moving Zardes now would upset the proverbial apple cart; there’s no clear replacement for him that has the same quality. The two most likely candidates are Baggio Husidic and Jose Villarreal, but they’ve been out for awhile with injuries. Without them, Arena would most likely turn to one of his younger players. Ignacio Maganto and Bradford Jamieson IV have had excellent flashes at times, but they might not be ready to be full time starters this year. The same can be said for Raul Mendiola.
The team is on an excellent run of form: 8 wins in 10 league matches, averaging 3.2 goals/game in that stretch. Hanging on to Zardes cements their status as a Support’s Shield and MLS Cup contender, if not a favorite. They’d still be able to adjust, but Zardes’s replacement would clearly be their weakest position on the field going into the playoffs.
What Zardes Wants:
Arena and the front office have a good track record of doing right by their players. In 2013, the Galaxy traded Mike Magee to the Chicago Fire to obtain Robbie Rogers. Magee expressed interest in returning to his hometown and Arena has stated that they made the deal because Magee consented. It was what he wanted.
The Galaxy handled a situation with Marcelo Sarvas in the offseason much the same.
The club did not stand in the way of Stefan Ishizaki and Jaime Penedo when they wanted to be released from their contracts this year. Ishizaki wanted to return home to Sweden for family reasons. Penedo was unsatisfied with his contract situation and wanted a change. The Galaxy did not hold either of these players hostage. There was no drawn out rift or conflict.
If Zardes tells the organization he’s willing and ready to try something new, they’ll take that into consideration. He is originally from Hawthrone, CA. He played in the Galaxy Academy, went to school at nearby Cal State Bakersfield. He married his college sweetheart and they just had a kid. His roots could be dug in and maybe he wants to be a Galaxy player for life. They won’t transfer him if he absolutely doesn’t want to go.
What Zardes wants is uncertain. Only Zardes and his family know. What is certain is that the organization will respect it, whatever it is.
What’s Best For His Career:
Since turning pro, pundits and fans have repeatedly asked ‘Is Zardes a forward or a midfielder?’ It is clear that Arena is going to continue to play Dos Santos at striker and Zardes at wide midfield. Zardes’s time as a forward with the Galaxy look to be limited to when Dos Santos is unavailable.
The consensus among pundits is that Zardes’s ceiling at forward is probably higher than it is as a wing player. What he’s done for club and country as a wide midfielder is encouraging though.
It’s unclear whether the Genk, Reading, etc. want him as a midfielder or a forward. Zardes has been open to playing both positions in the past.
Zardes is all but guaranteed starting time in MLS. He made huge improvements in 2014 and much of that can be attributed to playing with Keane and Landon Donovan. Being a sponge towards world class players like Keane and Steven Gerrard will continue this at least for the time being.
Zardes is learning a new position and still has room to grow in the mental aspects of the game. That’s an area that Keane, Gerrard, and Dos Santos excel in. For the time being, he can still continue to grow while playing in MLS because of who his teammates are. No doubt Jurgen Klinsmann would tell him to try Europe if they’ve spoken.
Depending on the club, he could have just as good of a situation over in Europe. As long as he’s not sitting on the bench, having some competition for a starting position would probably do Zardes some good. A change of scenery and a new challenge could help him similar to past Americans to go over seas (Dempsey, Altidore, Bedoya, etc.). He can always come back to MLS if things do not work out.
Overall:
After looking at the situation as a whole, there are a few key variables. The first being the money. The Galaxy aren’t go to sell Zardes to Europe for anything less than they think he’s worth. Considering his form and level of interest, his stock will be pretty high.
The other key variable is probably Zardes’s interest. He and Arena pushed the rumors aside earlier this week. If he has strong feelings one way or the other, that could tip the scale.
At the end of the day, I don’t think the Galaxy want to disrupt the possibility of an MLS Cup run. They’ll probably hold on to Zardes for the remainder of the season and revisit it in January. If there’s still interest in Zardes from overseas, they can reevaluate.
Either way, I think it’s unlikely that Zardes is with the Galaxy a year from now. There’s too much interest in his talent and the Galaxy could need the allocation money. They have other young attacking players who are ready for MLS minutes and can grow into Zardes’s current role.
Photo by Harry How/Getty Images
