BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- While the club continues its push for roster development through multiple transfer periods, there has been much fanfare around the potential acquisition of midfielder Jermaine Jones. With the U.S. international being a free agent, the deadline didn’t affect him.
However, another signing that the club was working on came undone in the final days leading to Wednesday’s deadline with an unspecified Argentine forward who recently played in France.
“We had something really close that the last couple of days unraveled,” Frank Yallop told reporters post-training. “It would have helped us so it was very disappointing.”
“We kept trying to keep it going but the club pulled out in the end. It wasn’t the player, it wasn’t the financial stuff, the club decided not to sell. We felt we had this deal done. It was verbally agreed, all the paperwork Brian [Bliss] sent over – it was all ready to go and he gets a call that it’s off.”
While Yallop didn’t disclose the name of the Argentine forward both he and Jones, if he is to sign in MLS, would count as Designated Players, signaling the club’s desire and ambition to make impact moves.
Though a deadline deal didn’t happen this week, Yallop and Bliss have made changes to help the team this summer on both ends of the roster.
The team added Romanian international Razvan Cocis to help bolster the midfield, traded for Sanna Nyassi from Montreal to help with speed in the attack and also added reserve forward Matt Fondy, who played a crucial role in helping the team to next week’s U.S. Open Cup semifinal in Seattle.
Yallop said he understood fan frustration at not adding another piece this window but reiterated the fact that he didn’t want to make a move for the sake of it.
“The players that we were bringing in were real quality,” he said. “I don’t want to get into a point where we kind of just get anybody in. That’s what we don’t want. As much as I want to get new players in and the team obviously needs it to push on and the fans want to see it, I really feel I want to make the right move for this club.
“For me if that’s not getting anybody in this window then maybe it works out for better in trying to deal somebody or work with somebody you don’t quite want next year.
In addition to Jones, the Fire manager also said the club was monitoring players available on free transfers, who the club would be available to sign until the September 16 MLS roster freeze date.
“We can still add players. It’s not roster freeze date. We have free transfers that now we can start to talk to. Having said that we want to keep a very close eye on the Jones deal. We’d like to see if we can bring him to Chicago but I’ve had good talks with him and the agent and it was very positive but there are other people in front of us to have a chance of getting him.”
