Philadelphia Union Make Maurice Edu Loan Permanent
In January of 2014, the Philadelphia Union’s marquee signing was Maurice Edu on loan from English Premier League side, Stoke City. This year, the Union’s marquee move (at least so far) is making that loan permanent and signing Edu to a multi-year contract.
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First reported by Philly.com, Edu will be in a Union jersey for at least a couple more years, and an official announcement by the club is expected on Friday. It is unclear what the transfer fee paid by the Union was as MLS does not release terms of these types of agreements.
Now that one question is answered, Edu now being a permanent transfer, the next question is where will Edu suit up for the Union. His primary position is as a defensive midfielder, but under Jim Curtin last year he spent the majority of his time as a center back being the anchor of that back line.
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Jim Curtin has publicly stated that he really likes Edu as a center back, and he feels the pairing of Edu and Carlos Valdes can be one of the best center back pairings in the league. With Okugo now gone though, that leaves a void at the defensive midfielder position, one that Edu could solve and even be an upgrade over Okugo.
Maurice Edu played very well for the Union over the course of the season, perhaps most notably scoring the opening goals in the US Open Cup Final match at PPL Park. Unfortunately for the Union, they ended up losing that match, but Edu sent the crowd into a frenzy with that opening goal.
In what has been a relatively slow offseason so far for the Philadelphia Union, the permanent acquisition of Maurice Edu could set off a chain reaction of moves in the coming weeks. These coming weeks should also show where Edu will be playing for most of the season. If Edu is playing as a center back, the Union will most likely sign another defensive midfielder to lock down that spot.
Remember that last year at this time, the Union did not have Christian Maidana, Maurice Edu or Vincent Nogueira. So expect another busy end of January as the Union get ready for the start of the season on March 7th.
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