After coming to an agreement, the Philadelphia Union have completed their signing of United States international midfielder, Alejandro Bedoya, from FC Nantes.
Just before the secondary transfer window closes on August 3rd, the Philadelphia Union were able to acquire Alejandro Bedoya from FC Nantes in France. It took a few moves to get the deal done but the two sides were able to come to an agreement. The Union also had to make a deal with the Chicago Fire in order to get their top spot in allocation order.
Philadelphia received the top allocation spot from Chicago via trade by giving them General Allocation Money (GAM), Targeted Allocation Money (TAM), a First Round Pick, discovery rights to a player, and the Union’s spot in allocation order which was #2. The Fire received $175,000 total in allocation money from Philadelphia. This deal was necessary for the team to sign Bedoya.
The final transfer fee for Alejandro that was given to FC Nantes was $1 million and Bedoya’s MLS salary will be $1 million per year. Big money was thrown around in this deal and it shows that the finical power of Major League Soccer continues to grow. This is a huge move for the league and for the Union as they acquired one of the best midfielders that plays for the USMNT.
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Bedoya appeared in 77 games for FC Nantes from 2013-2016 and he recorded 10 goals for the club. Before his time in Ligue 1 in France, Alejandro played with Örebro SK in Sweden, Rangers FC in Scotland, and Helsingborgs IF in Sweden. The former Boston College player will be making his first move to MLS in his career.
The 29-year old midfielder has made over 50 caps for the United States Men’s National Team while scoring two international goals. He has been one of the most important players over the past few years under head coach Jurgen Klinsmann as Bedoya has started in the 2014 World Cup and in the 2016 Copa America tournament.
The Philadelphia Union currently sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with 30 total point (8-8-6 record). The acquisition of Bedoya gives the team a crowded midfield with Chris Pontius, Tranquillo Barnetta, Roland Alberg, Brian Carroll, Warren Creavalie, and including Maurice Edu once he returns from injury. Head coach, Jim Curtin, will need to figure out how to make them all fit together.
The Union have now made Bedoya their second designated player along with Edu. Alejandro signed a designated player contract and is one of the biggest player to move to MLS this summer. We will have to wait and see what type of impact that Bedoya has on the league and with the Philadelphia Union for the rest of the season and going forward.