Dwyer Loan to Charlton is Off

Since announcing that he was looking to go on loan to a Championship side, we've been waiting to see where he'd end up. Throughout the month so far we'd been hearing the name Charlton Athletic thrown around. Dwyer did end up training with the Addicks during the month and still looked hopefully of a loan. The loan appeared to be happening but then Charlton was part of a takeover bid by a Belgian businessman.

That takeover put the loan on delay, and then came news today that the loan move is now off. Chris Powell, the Addicks manager ruled out a move saying that Dwyer was on his way back to the United States.

Dwyer himself said goodbye on Twitter and said that the timing of the takeover bid didn't give them enough time to work out a deal.

Disappointed not to complete a short term loan, Unfortunate timing of the takeover at the club made us run out of time to complete deal.
— Dom Dwyer (@Ddwyer14) January 14, 2014

It's the second time in as many years that Dwyer has had a loan move called off. Last year it was Scottish club, St. Mirren that Dwyer was going to move on loan to. Last year, at least the stories out of the UK made it sound like Sporting KC were the ones that called off the loan. This year it appears to be on the opposite side of the pond.

Charlton Close to Loan Move for Dwyer?

The day after Sporting KC won MLS Cup, news came out that Dom Dwyer was looking to go on loan to an unnamed Championship side. A few weeks later, we learned that Dwyer was training with Championship strugglers, Charlton Athletic. Since then, the assumption has been that Dwyer would be heading on loan to the Addicks some time during the January window. There hadn't been a lot of new news since then, just speculation from both KC and Charlton fans based on Dwyer's Twitter account. Then yesterday, this Tweet was posted:

Charlton are close to signing Sporting Kansas City striker Dom Dwyer on loan. #cafc
— SkyBet Championship (@Transfer_News24) January 10, 2014

That Tweet led me to find this article from the Eastern Daily Press, a newspaper from the Norfolk area, where Dwyer is originally from. The article states that Charlton is still interested in bringing in the striker on loan in January. It states that the reason for the delay has been because of the Charlton takeover bid by a Belgian businessman. Dwyer has apparently impressed manager Chris Powell during his time training with the club.

There's still plenty of time left in the January window for a loan to be completed so we'll see what comes of this and if Dwyer really does go on loan. One of the big questions with a loan move would be how long. Would it be just a short term loan similar to the one Clint Dempsey is currently on with Fulham? Or would it be longer, similar to the one that Kei Kamara went on last year to Norwich that lasted until May? And would their be an option for Athletic to buy?  Plenty of questions that will hopefully be answered in the near term.

Rumor Time - Man City, Dwyer, Heineman

Been resigned to just Twitter over the past few days while doing family stuff and during that time, there's been a few rumors that have come out regarding Sporting KC.

First the rumor that has gotten the most talk and is probably based on the least information. It comes from what appears to be an off-handed comment from midfielder Oriol Rosell in an interview with a Spanish sports site. When asked if Sporting KC could compete in La Liga, Rosell says that Sporting is better suits to the EPL, then says "Two years ago Kansas beat Manchester United in a friendly and this year we will play [Manchester] City."

That one sentence has set off tons of speculation about KC playing a friendly in 2014. Both The Daily Wiz and MLSsoccer.com have gotten quotes from Sporting KC regarding the rumor, and both have been fairly non-committal, saying that they are looking at a big name friendly in 2014. 

The MLSsoccer.com quote I find more interesting, because the team's quote says "after a busy 2013 we're certainly eager to bring a big-named opponent to Sporting Park next year."

It's an interesting/humorous quote considering in 2013, Sporting was guaranteed 39 games at minimum and played 45 (a club record for a season). In 2014 Sporting KC is already scheduled for a minimum of 41 games and that number could expand exponentially if Sporting KC advance in the CCL, the Open Cup, and make the playoffs. So with more games taking place in a shorter time frame thanks to a World Cup break, we're going to be playing a friendly again.

The game though isn't for a fan like me who is more focused on winning MLS Cup, the Supporters' Shield, the Open Cup, or the CCL, it's for the casual fan who currently isn't a big fan of SKC, or a Euro-snob who won't give MLS the time of day.

And while the quote from Sporting in the MLSsoccer.com article specifically references Sporting Park, this tweet from Robb Heineman still rings in my ear:

Question:  for a future friendly w top 3 super club (not this year).  Pay x for ticket in arrowhead, or 2x in sporting park?  U choose
— Robb Heineman (@RobbHeineman) June 22, 2013

If the friendly is indeed against Manchester City it's one that would fit the above description. And while I'm not a fan of friendlies, I'd still attend the game and would prefer the cheaper Arrowhead ticket.

Dwyer to Charlton

Dom Dwyer has apparently been training at Charlton Athletic, and on Boxing Day he was at The Valley for their 3-2 win over Brighton.

Enjoyed the game today! First visit to The Valley for me, Great win and much needed 3pts!! pic.twitter.com/ZKslG0BGKP
— Dom Dwyer (@Ddwyer14) December 26, 2013

From reading through some Charlton forums, fans of the club seem fairly confident that Dwyer will be joining the club on loan in January, although they don't seem sure of the length, whether it would be for the rest of the season, or similar to Kei Kamara's loan where it would end before the season ended.

Heineman Hints at News

Good news from Europe today.....cross your fingers
— Robb Heineman (@RobbHeineman) December 28, 2013

Hahaha.lots of agents think that's them. Ok.make your best offer.  Attacking mid or wing player...your chance 2 play @ the best place in usa
— Robb Heineman (@RobbHeineman) December 28, 2013

With two Tweets tonight, Robb Heineman has gotten the rumor mill turning again for Sporting KC fans on potential signings. It's brought out a number of unreasonable signings, the likes of Wayne Rooney and others, it's also brought out more logical ones, like the return of Roger Espinoza. My assumption is that the player is one that very few if anyone will guess, and few have heard of and know much about.

Dwyer Training with Charlton Athletic

Shortly after Sporting had raised MLS Cup, rumors about all sorts of players started to come out. One of those rumors pertained to Sporting KC's Generation Adidas forward, Dom Dwyer. The Englishman Dwyer said in an interview that he was heading to England for a loan with a Championship club and there was an option for him to stay there permanently.

Today, word came out of England that Dwyer is currently training with a Championship club, although it's not known if this is the club he is looking to go on loan with. The club is southeast London side, Charlton Athletic. After returning to the United Kingdom recently Dwyer has apparently started to train with the Addicks.

The club currently sits one spot above the relegation zone in the Championship. If a deal is made I'm sure we'll start to hear more in the next few weeks, especially once the transfer window opens up in the UK.