After rumors all of yesterday, and speculation from our own Adam Taylor a few weeks ago, D.C. United has officially acquired winger Patrick Nyarko from the Chicago Fire. Contrary to what we all thought yesterday, D.C. United only gave up their natural second round pick in next week's draft, and did not have to give up any allocation money, targeted or otherwise, to complete the deal. General Manager Dave Kasper commented on the deal:
"From a wide position, Patrick has regularly been one of the top chance creators in the league. His pace and technical ability make him difficult to defend and we believe that he will complement our returning attacking players perfectly."
We learned from the Chicago press that Nyarko gave Chicago a list of clubs to which he would want to be traded, and the fact that Chris Rolfe was here and the fact that he played college soccer at Virginia Tech worked in D.C. United's favor.
Overall, this fits right in with Dave Kasper and Ben Olsen's modus operandi: find veteran players undervalued at their current clubs (or who just want out) and bring them to United. It has worked for Davy Arnuad, Bobby Boswell, Chris Rolfe, Fabian Espindola, and more. What role Nyarko will play is yet to be seen, but D.C. United's thin wide midfield corps from down the stretch last season has been bolstered with the additions of Lamar Neagle and Nyarko. With those two, Nick DeLeon, Miguel Aguilar, and Conor Doyle, the wings should be covered and allow for Chris Rolfe to move up top full time.
What do you think of this trade?