It turns out the Portland Timbers' rumored trading of Kosuke Kimura to the New York Red Bulls was not as simple as it first appeared. In a significant twist, the Timbers will actually receive the Homegrown Player rights to Akron's Bryan Gallego and allocation money from Red Bulls in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2013 SuperDraft and Kimura.
Timbers acquire Bryan Gallego’s Homegrown Player rights on busy day of moves
The previously rumored deal to send Kosuke Kimura to the New York Red Bulls was apparently a bit more intriguing than originally reported. They also acquired Michael Harrington and traded away Eric Brunner.
Steve Dykes
Gallego’s HGP rights are the big wild-card in this deal. The sophomore has played mostly as a central defender with the Zips and was a three-year captain of the Red Bulls academy team. Top Drawer Soccer has him rated as the No. 52 player in college, but as the No. 6 freshman. He has also played for the United States U-18 team.
The release announcing the move indicates that the Timbers will have the right of first refusal to sign Gallego, but it does not address how he might fit into the larger HGP picture. MLS roster rules dictate that teams can only sign two HGPs above the minimum salary, but it’s not clear if signing Gallego would count against that total.
In addition to receiving Gallego, the Timbers are also reportedly receiving $100,000 in allocation from the Red Bulls. At the same time, the Timbers agreed to waive $75,000 in allocation they were owed by the Red Bulls if Kenny Cooper had re-signed.
In addition to that move, the Timbers also made official the trade to acquire Michael Harrington from Sporting Kansas City. That move involved the Timbers sending allocation to Kansas City in exchange for the fullback. The Timbers also traded center back Eric Brunner to the Houston Dynamo for allocation money.
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