Tipped by Grant Wahl on Twitter this morning, it appears that Oguchi Onyewu will spend at least another year with AC Milan after he renewed his contract with the Rossoneri.
But here's the kicker: By Gooch's own request, and because he lost the entire season due to the knee injury he suffered in October, he has waived any compensation.
That's right, Onyewu will play in Italy for free next year.
Without some additional thought, I'm hesitant to react forcefully to this news. On the surface, it's a stand up move by Onyewu; he got paid for a year in which he didn't play, and obviously would still like a chance to prove himself in Serie A. Voluntarily taking no pay shows a level of personal commitment and integrity that is rarely seen in the world of professional sports.
But there's a flip side, a practical one, that makes the move rather dangerous. AC Milan was none too happy about paying Onyewu's salary this season after he was injured while on international duty; this move essentially compensates them for the lost season, but out of Onyewu's pocket. This type of thing would never, ever, fly in an American sport where players unions hold sway; playing for free is just about the craziest thing a professional athlete with a short career can do.
One has to wonder if Milan told Onyewu and his representatives that they weren't planning to bring him back after "losing" the funds paid to him this season. Coming off of an injury, and with essentially the same resume he had prior to landing in Milan, Gooch's options were to either head out of town with his tail between his legs or suck it up and take a bullet to get a second chance to prove he belongs.
Again, I'm still processing this. We may need to flesh it out in the comments to get it covered from all of the appropriate angles. Is this good or bad?
One more note: with camp opening in Princeton today, I hope to have some thoughts to share on the various question to be answered as some point soon. As the World Cup preparations begin to hit high gear, I'll be putting up shorter-than-usual posts with news and musings as they come up.
*UPDATE*
- Thanks to Sully below, I have to scratch everything I wrote that insinuated it would be 2010-11 in which Gooch would be unpaid. He essentially just tacked an unpaid year to the end of an extension. He'll play for free in 2012-13, provided he's still in Milan. Damn me, apologies for the confusion. This changes things a bit from the "danger" perspective and make it just a good faith move on Gooch's part.
