Minnesota United: The fallout from the Francisco Calvo trade
By Tyler Hanson
Minnesota United sent former captain Francisco Calvo the Chicago Fire earlier this weekend. Here is the fallout from the trade.
Minnesota United have officially moved on from one of the last remaining players from the 2017 inaugural season.
The club announced on Friday that they had traded former captain Francisco Calvo to the Chicago Fire for $100,000 in General Allocation Money and $50,000 in Targeted Allocation Money for 2019, as well as $100,000 in General Allocation Money and $150,000 in Targeted Allocation Money for 2020. The club could also receive an additional $125,000 in TAM if certain performance bonuses are met by Calvo.
With the exception of last week’s match, where the Costa Rican was a healthy scratch, Calvo started all 60 of the matches he was available for during his time in Minnesota. However, this season has seen a noticeable drop in form as his eagerness to go forward and help the attack meant that he was caught out of position and neglected the left side of the defense, oftentimes leaving it completely exposed, which led to several goals being conceded.
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Maybe all Calvo needs is a change of scenery and maybe he’ll show his quality in Chicago, but it was certainly time for both him and Minnesota United to move on.
Moving forward, the club has a couple of options when it comes to replacing Calvo. Eric Miller has played well over the last couple of matches with Calvo out and the Minnesota natives’ commitment to defending has meant a world of difference in the defense. It is not a coincidence that the Loons have back-to-back clean sheets with Miller playing on the left.
The club also seems to be high on the potential of SuperDraft pick Chase Gasper as well, with Adrian Heath calling him ‘the most pro-ready player in the draft’ when he was selected. So, Minnesota United could either move forward with Gasper backing up Eric Miller, which seems the most likely, or they could dip into their stockpile of GAM and TAM in order to find a replacement in the summer window when it opens. Whether or not they’re interested in exploring that is yet to be seen, but for the immediate future, they should roll with Miller and Gasper and get by alright.
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Calvo was a very polarizing player during his time in Minnesota, with fans seemingly divided whenever he was discussed. Nevertheless, he provided some happy memories and there is no questioning his passion for the game. It will be interesting to see if he can get back into top form with the Fire and how Minnesota deal with his absence this season.