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With Jonathan Spector arriving at Orlando City SC on Tuesday and Kaylyn Kyle bidding goodbye to Orlando Pride on Wednesday, Thursday saw the dramatic departure of long-time Lions star Kevin Molino.
Traded to Adrian Heath‘s Minnesota United alongside Patrick McLain, Kevin Molino‘s trade is now firmly among the most expensive deals in MLS history.
As part of the deal, Jason Kreis‘ Orlando City SC have now received $450,000 in General Allocation Money and $200,000 in Targeted Allocation Money, totalling $650,000.
Not only significant due to the fact that Kevin Molino is a fan favourite in Central Florida and undoubtedly one of our most talented players, the Trinidad & Tobago international’s exit now means the last remaining player from the Lions’ debut 2011 roster is gone.
Orlando City trades Kevin Molino, Patrick McLain to Minnesota United FC.
Read | https://t.co/EKVUF1Mv3V pic.twitter.com/vbjXMmQ7Qy
— Orlando City SC (@OrlandoCitySC) January 27, 2017
Now reunited with City legend Adrian Heath at Major League Soccer new boys Minnesota United, the Loons have picked up a player who was ultimately unhappy at Orlando City SC.
In the exclusive from the Orlando Sentinel’s Alicia DelGallo, who broke news of Molino’s exit last night, comments from Lions General Manager Niki Budalic revealed Molino was a player with his eyes elsewhere.
Reiterating Orlando City SC wanted to keep Kevin Molino, Budalic also claimed: “We talked contract, new contracts, we had several discussions in person and on the phone, we dealt with his agent — at the end, we all agreed it was best to go our separate ways.
With OCSC naturally in a frenzy when the news broke last night, Orlando City UK ran a poll asking our followers whether Orlando City SC had made the right call to cash in on Kevin Molino.
#OrlandoCityUK POLL | Was selling Kevin Molino to @MNUFC the correct decision!? ???#OCSC#MLS
— Orlando City UK (@Orlando_CityUK) January 26, 2017
With nine hours left to run on the poll today, the majority of respondents still believe Jason Kreis‘ side made the right call in allowing Kevin Molino to depart Orlando City Stadium.
At the end of the day, although Orlando City UK are simply gutted to lose a player of Kevin Molino‘s skill, guile and goalscoring abilities, keeping an unhappy footballer on board is never a good idea.
It just remains to be seen whether Jason Kreis will now spend the new funds at his disposal or alternatively, give more consistent starting opportunities to either Brek Shea or Carlos Rivas.
With the news having now sunk in, here’s how Twitter reacted to the news last night…
Thanks for the memories @kevinmolino10! ??⚽️??@OrlandoCitySC appearances / goals@USL 8️⃣7️⃣ / 2️⃣7️⃣@MLS 3️⃣7️⃣ / 1️⃣1️⃣#OCSC #MLS pic.twitter.com/rWpCj5vP7h
— Orlando City UK (@Orlando_CityUK) January 26, 2017
@Orlando_CityUK absolutely gutted to lose him, been a true legend to the club. Let’s use the money wisely and bring in a top player
— Danny Wells (@DannyWells97) January 26, 2017
@Orlando_CityUK @jacksb7 But according to @OSAliciaD club tried to keep him & resign him, he wanted out… what are they going to do?
— daguru (@daguru9) January 26, 2017
@Orlando_CityUK pissed off
— Kyle (@KyleHenson4) January 26, 2017
@Orlando_CityUK @OSAliciaD extremely sad to see my favorite player go, need to get someone who can score goals w/ that cash.
— Michael T (@mm24_mm) January 26, 2017
@Orlando_CityUK @OSAliciaD gutted. Brilliant player, would be valuable in the new season
— Charlotte (@KirbyHazard) January 26, 2017
@Orlando_CityUK devastated. Also, we’ll lose Larin in the future as well. Money talks, I guess
— Erin Magill (@TrueBluecoltfan) January 26, 2017
@OrlandoCitySC pic.twitter.com/JcUb3NaD2p
— Matt Chappell (@mattchapp96) January 27, 2017
@OrlandoCitySC Onward and upward. Thanks for the memories, Kevin. Could be good for all parties. #VamosOrlando
— Citizen David (@Drstrunk) January 27, 2017