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According to Greg Seltzer at Soccer365.com (click here for the original article and all the details), U.S. National Team Player Pool defender Danny Califf agreed to an FC Midtjylland contract buyout on Tuesday and will join Philadelphia Union, after dealing with the Houston Dynamo for his rights. Interesting quotes from Calif include:
“I want to do everything I can to put myself where it’s possible for Bob to look my way. At Midtjylland, that was not happening.”
“Four years is a decent amount of time, but it’s not long enough to say the league (MLS) has taken a big leapfrog in level.”
“That was the first goal when I really looked dismal from my perspective at Midtjylland. I would have loved to stay in Europe a couple more years and go from there.”
“But when you’re not playing and you’re American, it’s difficult to get a whole lot of teams excited about you in the situation you want to be in – where you want to live, where your family wants to live most importantly, where you’re going to be happy.”
“Things weren’t the greatest, and I think that MLS is the best choice for me,” he concluded. “But, of course, if there were ever a chance to move to Europe in a good situation, it would be pretty awesome.”
What do you think? Is Califf what is needed in Philly or is there someone else you would prefer? What about his comments about wanting to stay in Europe but no luck at the moment? Is the return of US National Team players to MLS a good or bad thing for the development of the player and/or soccer in the US?
-Patrick Beatty
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what soccer wouldn’t want to play in Europe?? however, the reality is that for every american player the caliber of Califf (average pro at best) there are probably 10-15 european players of the same caliber. what does Califf bring to the game that a euro player doesn’t have?
luck is not what is holding him back… it is his average pro skill he has (in a land full of potential soccer players) that is keeping him from playing.
the aspect with the mls for many want-to-play-in-euro US soccer players is that their perception of the MLS is skewed…. sure it is not serie A or EPL, however, when they accept the mls for what it is (a developing league) and also enjoy it for what it is (keeping a positive attitude) playing in the MLS can be a great experience. Donovan (and many other mls players)is a great example of one athlete enjoying the experience in the mls and not worrying about what others tell him to do.
not sure I would leave sunny CA winters for european winters… maybe southern spain?
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wow. does not sound like the kind of mentality you want from a “star” player coming to an expansion team.
i say leave his bitter a$$ in europe.
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Califf needs to make this move based on playing time. If he isn’t getting it in Europe then he has to do something. As long as his focus is on making the World Cup squad, then I think his motivation is justified. That motivation would be great for Philly! Califf would have to play well for Bradley to include him in USA’s plans. I believe his is only making this move because of Nowak. He trust Nowak to make the most of his talent and that speaks volumes for Nowak and Philly for bringing him on board!
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i agree 100% with ragingredbull on this he should be here if he’s not excited about it.
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What we are seeing is a return of our boys from overseas. Soccer in this country is starting to make enough headway in the eyes of the rest of the world that our boys don’t need to go overseas prematurely to develop. Belgium, Norway, Finland and other smaller European leagues don’t have much more to offer them than MLS. It’s one thing to go over once they have reached a point like Dempsey did or Stuart Holden could possibly, but to go over to one of these small leagues right out of college or earlier, instead of MLS (unless MLS won’t give them an opportunity) just doesn’t make as much sense as it used to. As far as Califf’s motivation, it is to play on the National Team. He will give 110% for Philly for that purpose alone. And that should be enough if you are a Philly fan.
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Agreed that he clearly sounds bitter and does not want to be with Union. He better not be all high and mighty on himself because he will get a rude awakening upon stepping onto the field for his first practice and Peter won’t put up w/ it.
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Cut him some slack! He was hoping to take Europe by storm and didn’t. Of course he’s a bit disappointed.
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He will be one of the better if not best central defenders in MLS. This is a huge building block for the new franchise. Ultimately though, he will not get any playing time between now and April unless maybe they lend him some other team for a couple of months. Not playing until April and then playing in MLS probably won’t help him make the world cup squad, where he would probably be a back up at best. I’m still glad he’s going to play here rather than Denmark though.
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So how many USMNT player who have gone to little Europe have made it to big Europe? Not so many right? SPL doesn`t exactly count as big Europe these days. MLS offers the same level of competition just not as much $$$. If the goal is to make the WC roster then getting PT and performing well in MLS is definitely the way to go.
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I liked Danny when he played for the Quakes. I thought he had heart. So what if he calls it as he sees it. He’s a good player for MLS standards.
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My question is how the hell does Houston retain any rights to a player that has been out of the league for 4 seasons? He left when they were the orgiginal Quakes even. I really hope the CBA can get this type of “ownership” nonsense out of the league. I can see retaining rights for like a year in case someone moves and it doesn’t work out, but at somepoint the guy is gone. His contract is done, if he comes back he’s a free agent to do and sign where he see fit.
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Damarcus Beasley need to do the same thing… Go back to MLS and sort out his career.
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