Kacper Przybylko has some suitors in MLS and in Europe. The Union’s leading scorer in 2021 may be looking to take one of these offers, as it would give the striker a guaranteed contract, something the striker has spoken about recently in the tabloids. Could it be that the Union is going to lose their top-goal scorer ahead of the 2022 season?
Will Przybylko leave Philly?
It was brought up early Monday morning that Przybylko had offers from the Chicago Fire in MLS and European teams. Rumors were swirling, and one even said that the Union was going to make a decision on what to do with this situation by the end of the day.
That timeframe came and went, and we haven’t heard anything one way or the other from the club, but that is not true of Kacper himself. A few articles surfaced on social media on Monday where Kacper made his intentions clear. Przybylko wants to have a guaranteed contract, not one where the structure has multiple-year club options.
This is not how Przybylko’s contract currently is with the Union. He’s under contract with Philly until 2023, but the years following that are option years that swing the control, and fate of the player, to the club. This seems to be the main problem for Kacper, and it could be why he wants out of Philly now.
Guaranteed Contract seems to be the sticking point
As far as control over the length of the contract, this is something the Union has shown they will do for some but not for all. It’s clear that players the Union sees as indispensable, are getting contract extensions (see Jakob Glesnes and Jack Elliot contract extensions.) Przyblyko’s contract is now in the club’s hands until 2023.
Kacper is likely looking for something more solid. The 28-year-old striker is in the prime of his career, and he thinks his contributions to the Union should be enough to warrant him a guaranteed contract. When looking at his salary demands of $915,000 and how that price will likely increase in a longer-term contract, things become more clear from the club’s standpoint.
It’s clear that the Union is not going to give Kacper a contract extension that gives him guaranteed years at a guaranteed salary. While he is the clubs leading scorer over the last few seasons and has stats that rival club legend Sebastien Le Toux, he seems to not be in the club’s long-term plans. Kacper has been the lone healthy/ consistent striker for Philly, but Philly’s front office may be seeing that the need to go in a different direction at striker if they want to compete for and win MLS Cup.
So what’s next for Kacper, if he is indeed on his way out of Philadelphia?
Kacper to Chicago Fire?
One of the deals mentioned in the swirl of rumors was one inside MLS to Chicago Fire. This move would make a lot of sense, as Chicago doesn’t have a starting striker at the moment. They are rumored to offer Kacper a three-year guaranteed contract with a salary of $1 million! This is why Kacper has been on the record saying he would agree to a deal that would send him to Chicago if the Union and Fire can agree to the terms of the transfer.
Kacper is currently valued at $3.30 million according to Transfermrkt. There’s no way Ernst Tanner and the Union let Kacper go for less than that, especially to an MLS team in the same conference as the Union. It’s now a day over the time frame mentioned in the rumor. Could that be because Tanner is trying to get Kacper’s full worth? We’ll have to wait and see what happens.
Przybylko was at the Union’s first training session of the preseason this morning. While that’s not a determining factor on what’s gonna happen, hopefully, a decision is made sooner rather than later. While the Union will want to get their full value for Kacper, it will be hard to have him on the team in 2022 if he wants out. A swift conclusion to this would be the best for the player and the team, let’s hope there is one so the focus can shift to how the team is preparing on the pitch.
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