Minnesota United breaks Allocation Money trade record to acquire Kevin Molino

Thursday’s trade between Minnesota United and Orlando City wasn’t surprising, but the dollar figures involved were. Loons coach Adrian Heath moved to bring his former player Kevin Molino to the Twin Cities, along with backup goalkeeper Patrick McLain, for a combined $650,000 in General Allocation Money and Targeted Allocation Money.

That’s the largest amount of allocation ever exchanged between MLS teams, and it’s especially interesting now that MLS releases dollar figures, allowing us to compare deals. New York City FC paid $500,000 for the No. 3 overall pick in the MLS SuperDraft, while the Chicago Fire recently paid $400,000 for former New York Red Bulls captain Dax McCarty.

Orlando might have been able to coerce Minnesota into a slight overpay, knowing that Heath had his sights set on Molino and wasn’t going to give up his pursuit. But there’s every reason to believe that Molino can be a star player for the Loons.

Molino missed most of the 2015 season with a torn ACL, but he was spectacular on either side of that injury. He was the star of Orlando’s USL team before they entered MLS, scoring 22 times in 30 appearances. Last season, despite Orlando’s struggles and a midseason coaching change, he scored 12 goals in 32 games. Molino also has 16 goals in 35 games for Trinidad and Tobago.

Alongside Christian Ramirez and Miguel Ibarra, who were superstars at the NASL level, Molino will help form a forward line full of question marks. They could be one of the best in the league, or they could flop badly. We’ll find out what kind of team Minnesota has very soon.

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