There is not yet any official word on the news of the signing of Rachid El-Khalifi, the winger from the Dutch team SC Cambuur who reportedly impressed over the last couple of weeks in preseason training in Ventura, California. There is also no official confirmation of the impending arrival of Jean Carlos Solorzano as a trialist in Florida in a few days from his Costa Rican side LD Alajuelense. I will pass along word as soon as I receive confirmation of these.
However, here is the result of some of my research on the two:
El Khalifi
My Google-Dutch reading has me a little puzzled. Some reports indicate that he is coming back to Salt Lake this week. The direct quotes from El Khalifi were, "It went very well. The people at the club were also satisfied. There is already a two-year contract ready for me. This week I hope to hear the final go ahead". There seems to be some reference in this statement and in other reports to waiting for approval. Most likely this is just a formality and the contract will go off without a hitch. However, there is another option.
El Khalifi is currently under contract through June. Before he came on trial with Real Salt Lake he did so with the blessing of his club. I assumed that either the club would let him go on a free or that Real Salt Lake would need to wait until the summer to acquire his services. Could this be an issue that is still being sorted out?
Jean Carlos Solorzano
My Google-Spanish isn't much better than my Google-Dutch, but I did discover that Solorzano's current team, LD Alajuelense, is looking for a short loan of 1 year in order to give the player some additional experience. The preference of Major League Soccer is to sign players on two-year deals with a loan buyout agreement. While we rarely learn of the terms of these agreements, if Real Salt Lake were to sign the player it will be interesting to see if it's only a 1 year deal.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
El Khalifi & Solorzano Tidbits
Friday, February 13, 2009
El Khalifi RSL-Bound???
It seems that Dutch winger Rachid El Khalifi who headed back to his club yesterday maybe just made a trip to pick up more clothes, score a winning goal for his current/former team, and is now heading back to his future team (RSL). According to this Dutch article, he says "It went very well. The people at the club were also satisfied. There is already a two-year contract ready for me. This week I hope to hear the final go ahead".
The official response from RSL to this report was "RSL will not comment on existing or supposed contract negotiations under any circumstances". However, this is the standard response by the team until all the ducks are in a row. I will try to validate this report through other means.
He also goes on to say "The game is more physical here and there is more speed. I would like to go. It is a nice challenge."
If this pans out, El Kahlifi would fill a wide void that RSL had last season, and one of the weaknesses that exist across the league - the lack of a left-sided attacking player who can put good crosses into the box. From the highlight video of last weeks exhibition in Ventura, El Khalifi (#34) appears capable of taking the ball at opponents.
If RSL could solidify it's second forward spot, the team could turn out to be very potent on the attacking end. Last season the team proved to be fairly solid defensively (and this should continue to improve this season), and was able to control the midfield with the play of Will Johnson, Kyle Beckerman, Javi Morales and others.
UPDATE: A second source in Europe says that El Khalifi will leave next week to Salt Lake.
As a reminder, here are some highlight vids of El Khalifi.
Rachid El Khalifi from casal52 on Vimeo.
Rachid El Khalifi part 2 from casal52 on Vimeo.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
WCQ/RSL Roster/Escalada
Apologies for the lack of updates today. I've been under the weather. But there is some news out there:
Lot's of things happening on the WCQ qualifying front:
WCQ at Rio Tinto Stadium
First of all, Real Salt Lake announced today that it has been awarded a World Cup Qualifier at Rio Tinto Stadium. The match will take place on September 5th against El Salvador. Season ticket holders will have the opportunity for a first shot at tickets.
The match is not likely to have alot of consequence in Concacaf qualifying because of it's position in the schedule, and the fact that the two teams occupy opposite ends of the power spectrum in the Concacaf region. However, despite that it will likely be an event not to be missed. Having attended the previous Qualifier held against Costa Rica at Rice Eccles, I'm sure it will be a similar electric atmosphere and a chance to show off the fantastic stadium on ESPN2 to all of the followers of the US National Team.
US -vs- Mexico Qualifier
Wednesday night at Crew Stadium in Columbus will see the US take on El Tri in a renewal of the intense rivalry between the two bordering countries. Make no mistake, these two teams just don't like each other. The match may be a bit less competitive due to some missing faces from the Mexico lineup. See this positional analysis courtesy of Goal.com and this preview on Fox Sports.
Real Salt Lake Roster Tidbits
Keepin' It Real has learned that Luis Escalada was not offered a contract before coming to camp. Although some discussions had taken place, the team was not willing to put pen to paper without seeing him in action in the teams training camp. It's unknown what the exact status is, but I suspect this will unfold over the next couple of weeks.
It is also thought to be likely that Rachid El-Khalifi who is currently under contract with SC Cambuur in the Dutch Eerste Divisie will return to his club after the end of this weeks preseason stint in California. However, that doesn't mean we won't see him in an RSL kit. One possibility is that RSL may choose to try to bring him in during the summer window when his contract has expired with his current club. Presumably RSL has/or will file a discovery on the player if they like what they see.
Michael C. Lewis poses a question first raised here at Keepin' it Real: Despite being currently in camp, will Ian Joy be around for all or even part of this season? From a discussion I had with Ian last fall I know that he is homesick and wants to be closer to his daughter, but he also expressed disatisfaction with his financial situation. His comments at media day seem to indicate that these issues still persist. My guess?: he won't be around at the start of the season, and if he is it will only last until another opportunity comes up as teams in Europe re-tool at the beginning of the summer. But that's just my speculation.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Rachid El Khalifi On Trial w/ RSL Next Week
Rachid (alt. Rachied) El Khalifi, a left-sided attacking player from Dutch 2nd Division (Eerste Divisie) SC Cambuur-Leeuwarden will be on trial with Real Salt Lake next week for half of a week according to this article or 10 days according to this one. El Khalifi is a regular starter for the "A" team of the Dutch club. He is typically a left-sided winger/striker, but can also play on the right-side. The player is currently under contract, but this will expire at the end of the season.
EDIT: Confirmed - he will be with the team from Feb 2nd - 11th in California.
RACHID EL KHALIFI, M/F, Rotterdam, 6'0", 157 lbs
DOB: 6/16/1979
Last Club: SC Cambuur, Dutch 2nd Division
Note: from the clips below I found myself trying to compare him to Espindola. I didn't see the finishing or tenacity that Espy was able to bring, but the speed, footwork and delivery of the ball into the box appeared quite nice (although keep in mind that these are highlight clips)
Rachid El Khalifi from casal52 on Vimeo.
Rachid El Khalifi part 2 from casal52 on Vimeo.
