Philadelphia Union part ways with forward Jorge Perlaza
If you've been wondering over the last few weeks why forward Jorge Perlaza seemingly never came close to playing for the Union, you don't have to wonder anymore.
Philadelphia Union part ways with forward Jorge Perlaza
Jonathan Tannenwald
If you've been wondering over the last few weeks why forward Jorge Perlaza seemingly never came close to playing for the Union, you don't have to wonder anymore.
The Union and Perlaza agreed to a mutual parting of ways late Tuesday afternoon. It's not a surprise, considering that Perlaza hadn't played in the last 10 Union games. He did not even make the bench during that time, though he did play in some Reserve League games.
Since coming to Philadelphia in the trade that sent Danny Mwanga to Portland, Perlaza made just two appearances: eight minutes as a substitute against D.C. United on June 16, and a 64-minute start at Houston on June 30. He registered a total of one shot on goal in those two appearances combined.
Prior to the trade, Perlaza had established himself as a regular presence in the Timbers' lineup. He appeared in 10 of 12 games this year, and 31 of 34 games last year.
But regardless of what side of the country he has played on, Perlaza has struggles to find the back of the net. He has not scored in exactly 51 weeks, dating back to August 20, 2011. He scored a total of six goals last year, of which two game in the Timbers' first ever home game in Major League Soccer.
Even though Perlaza contributed very little, his departure weakens even further an already-limited Union attack. The team's forward corps now consists of Jack McInerney, Antoine Hoppenot, Chandler Hoffman and Josué Martinez - the last of whom is better-suited to an outside position than a true striker's role.
Cristhian Hernández is also listed as a forward on the Union's roster, but he can play a number of different positions.
The Union's next game is Wednesday night at PPL Park against Columbus. As Kerith Gabriel writes here, the Crew have no such worries, given the prolific form of Federico Higuaín and Jairo Arrieta.
THE FIRST OVERALL PICK IN THE SUPERDRAFT (MWANGA) TRADED 2 MONTHS AGO FOR PERLAZA WHO WAS JUST CUT. SO THE U HAD THE FIRST PICK IN THE SUPERDRAFT AND GOT NADA!!! WHO IS MAKING THESE DRAFT PICKS/TRADES??? THESE PERSONNEL MOVES ARE HORRIBLE. NOW ALL THEY HAVE TO DO IS UNLOAD GABRIEL GOMEZ AND JOSUE MARTINEZ AND MAYBE THEY'LL HAVE THE MONEY FOR A LEGIT STRIKER.— bedpan- I am not sure I'm comfortable with Hackworth's decision making. I hope I'm wrong. This organization may need a complete redo starting with Sakiewicz! He's more interested in photo opps anyway along with disavowing any knowedge of the Nowak moves. As for the up coming game, Adu needs to start I just don't think the U will squeak by with a penalty kick this time!— LCBline
- REGARDING ADU, NOT SURE HOW MUCH OF A DIFFERENCE HE CAN MAKE GIVEN THERE IS NO LEGIT STRIKER ON THE ROSTER. AS MANY HAVE POSTED, HE NEEDS TO BE PART OF A LINEUP THAT HAS LEGIT SCORERS WHOM CAN BENEFIT FROM HIS CREATIVE CAPABILITIES. REGARDING HACKWORTH, I'M THINKING THE KEY FOR HIM WILL BE THE FIRST SEVERAL GAMES OF NEXT SEASON (THIS SEASON IS SHOT). GIVE HACKWORTH THE REST OF THIS SEASON TO IMMERSE THE PLAYERS INTO HIS SYSTEM. THEN, DURING THE OFF-SEASON, OBTAIN A STRIKER OR 2. AND, IF IT DOESN'T ALL COME TOGETHER BY NEXT MAY 15TH THEN THE CRY FROM CHESTER SHOULD BE: "SACK THE HACK!!!" — bedpan
Mr. Perlaza was demanding his pay in cash, not the empty promises that the City of Chester is receiving from the Union and he gets removed from the team.— HappyBob- Happy Bob,
You may be right about everything. They have cut their roster payroll down enormously and are attempting to not pay their former coach the remainder of his contract for "cause." There is obviously something going on here.
— syddan26 - Jonathan, Perlaza did score for us in the US Open Cup. I think it was at Harrisburg, and it was the Union goal of the season so far a blast from the right wing outside the box into the top corner. He should have been starting from that point forward. More poor decisison making from the Union head coaching staff . . . Nowak and Hackworth included.— shane-56
- Actually, now that I recall it was the friendly vs Harrisburg . . . but it was easily the best goal by a Union player this year — shane-56
- IF YOU'VE EVER COACHED YOU KNOW THAT COACHES IN ALL SPORTS "LOVE TO FALL IN LOVE" WITH PLAYERS. WELL, THE OPPOSITE IS ALSO TRUE AND THAT WAS WHAT HAPPENED TO PERLAZA. REMEMBER THE ONLY LEAGUE GAME HE STARTED SHORTLY AFTER THE TRADE. AND, HE MISSED ON THAT GOOD OPPORTUNITY DOWN THE LEFT CHANNEL. THEN HE FOLLOWED THAT UP A FEW MINUTES LATER BY HEADING THE BALL OUT OF BOUNDS BEHIND HIM ON ANOTHER REALLY GOOD SCORING OPPORTUNITY. AFTER THOSE 2 GAFFES (ESPECIALLY THE HORRIBLE HEADER), PERLAZA WAS NEVER SEEN AGAIN. HE NEVER EVEN MADE IT TO THE SUB BENCH. — bedpan
- This team is tough to watch. They have heart but they are easily the most fundamentally-flawed team in the league. The coaching staff is not giving these young players the tools they need to succeed. And there is no veteren leadership in the locker room aside from Brian Carroll. I don't see how this squad can possibly improve beyond a 15th place team.— LaFleur
- YEAH, THAT NIL NIL GAME LAST WEEK WAS TOUGH. IT IS KIND OF LIKE WHAT FANS HAVE TO GO THROUGH IF THEY WATCH A MLB, NBA OR NFL GAME (NOW THAT ALL TDs AND TURNOVERS ARE REVIEWED). PRETTY TOUGH TO WATCH. — bedpan
- LeToux, traded for nothing.
Mondragon went home to Colombia, Union couldn't get a transfer fee out of it.
Mwanga, traded and 2 months later the U have nothing to show for it.
This front office is incompetent.— Pelti - The entire season seems to revolve around questionable personnel decisions and now, some genuine concern about the organization's financial viability. After last season, I started to believe this organization had a chance to survive and thrive. Not so much any more.— syddan26
- Hello bedpan -- I am willing to give Hackworth until the first few games of next season. That also depends on what moves are made before the start of next season. The orginization as a whole needs come clean about what's going on. Back to Hackworth, he like nowak appears to use certain players as scapegoats. He wants Adu to strap this run of the mill team on his back and carry them. That's not Adu. Adu is that missing piece of a puzzle a team needs to complement the stars already on the team. We had stars Le Toux and Mawanga but Adu was either hurt or not in game condition. By the time Adu was ready to be a starter nearly everyone was gone. Hackworth hasn't proven that he can work with international talent either. The teams one dimensional style of play and the players used reflect the coach. It also sheds light on his limitations. If the coach can't grow then neither will the team. Granted the roster is woefully limited, however the coach has to be able to get the best out of what he has. The moves made by the Union under Hackworth are sketchy at best. They bring in a player who is injured and and trade one of there top scorers for another smurf who can't score. They should have done better with the Pajoy trade. It should have been Cruz plus another player who could start or a proven scorer with Cruz thrown in. This has been the sorry saga of the Union--give,trade,or sell away talent for nothing.— LCBline
- YOU NAILED IT LCB. THAT IS HOW I'M SEEING THINGS. — bedpan
- I think people are reading way, way too much into this.
Perlaza has struggled over the last calendar year. He didn't fit in with Portland, he didn't fit in with us. With the amount of forwards we had, it was obvious that he was going to warm the bench unless he made an impact straight away.
The change of personnel at the beginning of the year was Nowak's fault, plain and simple. He got rid of players whom he thought were threats to his authority. Anyone who opened their mouths to the press were shown the door. That's not a money thing, that was a Nowak thing.
The team is not going anywhere. The league has sunk of itself into the viability of Philadelphia as a soccer market, and despite what some people might think, the team is doing well enough to be sustainable. Not only that, but the league loves markets / clubs that have their own Stadium. If the team was playing at the Linc, I would be worried, but the league would never give up on a market where the team there is drawing near capacity in a soccer specific stadium.
Sorry boys, we're here to stay.— BigBrain61
Reach Jonathan at jtannenwald@phillynews.com or 215-854-2330.
