The January transfer window has come to a close in the world of soccer. There was a lot of interesting movement in this hectic month affecting the highest of European leagues and critical USMNT players. Michael Bradley was transferred from AS Roma to Toronto FC for $10 million dollars. AS Roma started off the year strong and quickly got out to a lead in the race for the Italian League title. Unfortunately Bradley sustained an ankle injury while on international duty with the US in October. Because of the ankle injury Bradley missed almost a month. During this time Roma played very well and other mid fielders played well in Bradley’s absence. Bradley had never been the most important player for Roma. He was always one of 5 or 6 midfielders fighting for one of the 4 starting spots. Throughout his time at the club Bradley continually showed perseverance. Many times he would beat out other players for their starting roles. This season Bradley was struggling for playing time again and the injury only made things worse. Early in the transfer window Roma transferred for a young Belgian midfielder. He was another player competing with Bradley for his playing time. It is no surprise that when Toronto FC called Bradley listened. Toronto will pay Bradley more than he made in Europe, give him more playing time, and make him a focal point of the team. Bradley will be playing against a lower level of competition than in Europe. He has effectively given up the dream of playing for a big club in Europe in the UEFA Champions league. Instead he has opted to be closer to the country he calls home and the base of his national team. In his time in MLS he will play with and against many of his teammates on the nation team. The move is probably good for the national team’s upcoming world cup campaign. It is better for Bradley to be getting consistent playing time instead of struggling for minutes at Roma. Even if it’s at a lower level of competition. Bradley’s move follows a recent trend in US soccer. National team players Dempsey and Edu have come back to play in MLS. Donovan hasn’t gone out on offseason lone like he usually does. Gonzalez, Besler, and Zusi have elected to sign MLS contracts instead of testing themselves abroad. It is logical that as MLS grows as a league it starts to have better players. Most of those best players are the US national team players. MLS has decided to pay a premium for these guys because they are the most marketable to the fans. Probably most of the US players just want to stay in their home country and raise their families in the US. The growth of the league only means the growth of the game of soccer in this country. This helps the national team long term. Most US soccer fans are not as concerned about the growth of the league as they are with something else. For the last decade it has been traditional for the best US players to go play in Europe. It was seen as a test of the greatness of the American born player. How far could they go in Europe? Could they play in the best leagues against the best players and succeed? Many US soccer fans wanted their heroes to play well in European leagues to prove to the rest of the world that we are a legitimate soccer nation. Now the only US players playing in high European leagues are Jozy Altidore, Tim Howard, and Brad Guzan. What many Americans fail to realize that the respect of the Europeans will not come from club play alone. It will mostly be a product of the play of our national team in world cups. People across the globe watch the world cup. They are most concerned with their own nation and its key rivals. But their second concern is always the group of death. This year everyone will be extra attentive on nights when Group G is in action. If the US can escape the group and play well against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal and the mighty Germany it will send a message to the world. If Michael Bradley has a better tournament because of a little extra playing time during the spring then it’s worth a little step back in his European dreams. Ultimately the world cup is what the US is judged upon.
