The Nut of the Crew’s Striker Search

The Columbus Dispatch’s Shawn Mithcell takes the Columbus Crew’s quest for Maciej Zurawski to the “real” newspaper today, providing impressive detail on where things stand. The apparent pivot point in this deal shows in the following:

“How much Celtic is asking for the transfer and how much Zurawski is asking to be paid has not been made public, although it is estimated that both figures would be between $250,000 and $1 million.”

“McCullers would not divulge any dollar amounts related to the deal, including how much ownership was willing to spend. He said only that Hunt Sports Group was treating the situation in a ‘prudent’ fashion.”

And, it bears noting, Mitchell quotes Columbus coach Sigi Schmid as being “not as optimistic” about the deal as he was a couple days back.

That little slug of information prompts a couple related questions? First, is Zurawski worth as much as $1 million to the Crew? (Or is it $2 million? With all due respect to both Mitchell and the editorial staff at the Dispatch, the language on the money involved isn’t as clear as it could be; would “both” mean the combined figures for the transfer fee and Zurawski’s salary amount to $1 million, or does that mean each of them would total between $250K and $1 million? This isn’t a slam – I’m sure I post baffling language five times a day – but it is a significant distinction.) Second (after the long digression), should the Crew just suck it up and take the chance?

With the “other designated player options” cited by McCullers duly noted, I’d pull the trigger – assuming a $1 million total; push it to $2 million and the other options take on a fresh, new shine. Simply put, the Crew needs strikers. And, if they’re convinced Zurawski is good for it, they should just sign the man.

(UPDATE: For what it’s worth, MLS Rumors is charging Sigi with coyness…albeit very indirectly.  By that I mean, they’re reporting the Zurawski signing as a done deal.  We shall see…we shall see…).