Who Really Wins In The DeRo Trade?

It’s no April Fools joke; Dwayne De Rosario has been traded to New York. As per the deal, which was announced yesterday, the Red Bulls will be giving up Tony Tchani and Danleigh Borman for the Canadian star. At 33 years old DeRo remains in peak condition, having scored 15 goals last year and receiving an All-Star team nod. Tchani, the second overall pick in the 2009 Superdraft, still holds promise for the future, while Borman, who was drafted to the Red Bulls in 2008, has yet to produce much valuable play. Having added such skill to an already star- studded club, New York now seems to be racing towards hardware by the end of the season.

Still, it is complicated to gauge who the real “winners” are in this trade, as while DeRo may still shine as one of the top players in the league, that light is one which surely can’t last forever. Alternatively, Tchani, a D-1 star and top draft pick, still holds tons of promise as a developing player. Herein lies the crux of the trade: New York is shooting for immediate results from peak players, not development from young players. They want a to bring home the very MLS Cup which they let slip away in the first round of last years playoffs, and they want it this year.

That being said, calling this reckless or shortsighted is still probably false. The Red Bulls’ stars may be aging, but they still have a host of young talent (a la Juan Agudelo, Tim Ream, and any of their homegrown players), arguably the strongest development academy, and the money to keep big name signings flowing in. New York is now what it had flagrantly failed to be for the past 16 years: a star studded powerhouse with unmatched signing power. Also, Borman and Tchani have yet to really become difference makers on the field, as both fought throughout the 2010 season for scarce playing time. This is definitely a different set of circumstances for the two players (one kind of isn’t that good and the other just has a little more to learn), but neither one has been exceptional on the field.

So, when considering New York’s plan of going balls-to-the-wall this season on a mad run for a trophy, this was a great move. Their roster is even more solid than before, some short-term slack is being cut, and fans will surely notice. In that sense, New York is the clear winner of this trade.

However, there is a whole other side to the trade. As more of a mid-level team, Toronto will be a much more hospitable environment for Tchani to develop in, and will be a more appropriate team for Borman, who may actually see some playing time. Plus, trading De Rosario, who wasn’t a DP, clears up a good amount of salary cap space for new signings, such as the Serbian midfielder Alen Stevanovic, who will loan in from Serie B to fill in the open spot. Toronto even picked up a first round 2012 draft pick, which could potentially become quite dangerous.

De Ro may not even be too unhappy to leave. Despite practically running the team, De Rosario wasn’t even a DP, and had many memorable verbal sparring matches with the club, its administration, and the fans. I can’t say if De Ro will find more respect or public love in New York, but he will certainly find money. Toronto may miss Dwayne’s magic on the field, but the club may not be so unhappy to leave behind his antics.

Thus, Toronto can be called the winners of this trade in terms of long-term focus. They’ve replaced skilled aging talent with skilled growing talent, while positioning themselves to expand on that growth. Who knows, maybe in five years Toronto will be the stronger team.

What do you think?

Category: Red Bulls New York, Toronto FC