‘Graziani was an opportunity’

MLS vice president Ivan Gazidis gives his views on the curious situation regarding recent foreign signings Ariel Graziani and Joseph Addo.


SOCCER AMERICA: Can you clarify how the Revolution wound up with Ariel Graziani instead of Joseph Addo, despite the Revs’ chronic need for a central defender? IVAN GAZIDIS: It’s fairly simple. Although Addo fit their needs, Graziani was an opportunity they didn’t want to pass up. We signed Graziani and assigned him to New England at their request. It’s incorrect to say we forced the player on to New England, or to say they wanted Addo instead of Graziani. SA: Did the Revolution get the impression that the league might have difficulty in signing Addo? IG: We had not started negotiations on Addo. We knew he was a free agent, and had I been asked my view on whether we were likely to sign him, my view would have been very positive. SA: You said at the time that if the Revs didn’t take Graziani, there were “11 other clubs interested in him.” But there were very few foreign slots available. IG: That’s true, and if we couldn’t have found a way to get Ariel into the league, I would have been very disappointed. I gave New England the opportunity, and they accepted. SA: If the Revs had refused, what would you have done? IG: I would have explored whether there were other teams interested, and if there was a way to get him onto those teams. If there wasn’t, we wouldn’t have gone ahead. SA: Was he offered to the MetroStars? They had a spot open at the time, and Eduardo Hurtado was talking with a club in Switzerland about a transfer. IG: They felt that [Henry] Zambrano was a great fit for them. And let’s just leave it at that. SA: Will you, and the league, look bad if Graziani doesn’t succeed in MLS? The Revs traded him after just three games. IG: We have to suspend judgment on what he can do. I don’t believe the economic terms of the deal are such that we will look foolish, regardless what the outcome is. Marco Etcheverry’s performance when he joined the league wasn’t all that stellar. There’s usually an adjustment period. Our game is more physical, a little bit faster, and different to what some of these players are used to. Three games is far too short a period to judge a player. bySoccer America Senior Editor Ridge Mahoney