Former New England Revolution forward Pat Noonan reportedly wants to return from Norway to Major League Soccer and sign for the Columbus Crew. The Crew would like to have him, is happy to pay a “modest” transfer fee to his current side, and can fit the U.S. international under its salary cap. But such a straightforward deal can rarely take place in the single-entity world of MLS.
“Noonan, a five-year MLS veteran, signed with Aalesunds FK in January after he could not agree to a contract extension with New England,” writes Shawn Mitchell. “Because Noonan left without a transfer fee being paid to MLS, and because the Revolution made an attempt to re-sign Noonan — albeit at a lower salary than the approximately $225,000 he was paid in 2007 — New England retains his MLS rights.”
Columbus’ readiness to pay for the player is not in the interests of the league, given that when Noonan went to Norway he went for free because he was out of contract. Crew coach Sigi Schmid admits that would be “bad business” for MLS, even though his team would also compensate the Revs for the player’s rights. One agent claimed that Noonan is being punished by the Revs and MLS for leaving the league, while another said that “the rules of engagement change depending who the player is and what the situation is.”