The scoop on Alphonso Davies

By Aaryn Vivian // @aarynvivian

Shortly after 11am PT this morning, the Vancouver Whitecaps announced that they had completed the record-breaking transfer of homegrown midfielder Alphonso Davies to Bayern Munich, ending days of intense speculation about the 17-year-old wonder kid. 

According to the Whitecaps’ media release, the deal itself contains “a fixed transfer fee and additional compensation that could total more than $22 million US, the most ever received by an MLS club in the league’s 23-year history.”  Davies will remain with the Whitecaps until the end of the 2018 MLS season then will head to Bayern Munich in January 2019 when the international transfer window re-opens.

Of concern to many Caps’ fans and supporters is where the record-breaking transfer fee is going to go. At the recent Supporters’ Town Hall, Whitecaps co-owner, Jeff Mallett, shocked attendees with the information that the $2M US transfer fee obtained from Chilean side Colo-Colo for striker Octavio Rivero in 2016 had already been spent.

Mallett stated the money had been reinvested into the club, but for a side who has fallen to the lower half of league spending on players, this answer seemed unacceptable to supporters. In the team’s media release today, Mallet did indicate that “Our ownership group is committed to investing 100 percent of the funds back into the sporting side of the club” and there is little doubt the supporters intend to hold Whitecaps ownership accountable to that statement.

Today is a day Vancouver supporters have both been eagerly awaiting and utterly dreading. For those who spent sunny Sundays watching 15-year-old “Phonzie” at WFC2 matches out at Thunderbird Stadium, located on the University of British Columbia (UBC) campus, to seeing his meteoric rise in the MLS, the moment is bittersweet.

So many of the supporters’ hopes for the Whitecaps team were on the shoulders of Alphonso Davies, and after what can only be called a frustrating season on the pitch, many are wondering where the organization goes next. For now, they have a few months to figure out how to say “Farewell Phonzie”.

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Reference for Whitecaps media release:  https://www.whitecapsfc.com/post/2018/07/25/whitecaps-fc-agree-mls-record-breaking-transfer-homegrown-midfielder-alphonso-davies

Featured image: @WhitecapsFC

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