Just last week it looked like Philadelphia Union forward/midfielder Sebastien Le Toux was on his was to Bolton of the English Premier League, instead he’s heading to the Vancouver Whitecaps.
Le Toux took to Twitter this morning and confirmed the trade…and he didn’t sound that pleased.
Just got traded to Vancouver !Saddest day for me in my Philadelphia Union story…. Still can’t believe it
— Sebastien Le Toux (@SebastienLeToux) January 31, 2012
First Faryd Mondragon and now Le Toux, within 24 hours a huge part of the identity of the Union is now gone. The Union officially announced the traded around lunch time and will receive an undisclosed amount of allocation money from the Whitecaps for Le Toux.
Petr Nowak comments from the Union’s press release:
“While this decision wasn’t easy, we are confident that the allocation money we receive will provide the flexibility for us to compile the best possible roster for 2012 and beyond. Sebastien has been a valuable member of our team for two years and we thank him for his many contributions to the club.”
Union CEO & Operating Partner Nick Sakiewicz’s comments:
“We feel that in the best interest of our club these decisions need to be made for our short and long-term benefit, although we achieved great success making it to the semifinals of the playoffs last year we are not in any way content with that. We operate in a highly competitive and demanding marketplace and believe the moves we have made and continue to make improve our roster and give us a better chance to advance past the semifinals. We thank Sebastien for his significant contributions both on and off the field and wish him the best in Vancouver.”
Le Toux joined the Union from the Seattle Sounders in the 2009 Expansion Draft.
