Chicago Fire Acquire Gilberto Off Waivers: Welcome Back Gil, Maybe It’s Really Your Time To Shine!

Gil's on Fire!

Gil’s on Fire!

It was inevitable wasn’t it?  That Gilberto would come back to MLS but in no way would he be able to come back to Toronto FC – Core DP or no.  And well, he’s baaaack (in pog form!).  After rumblings the past few days that things had soured at Vasco de Gama – not to mention his lack of production of late – there came talk that he was looking to return to MLS.  What we didn’t know was that Vasco had terminated the loan and that he was indeed on his way; but of course TFC already have the league maximum of three DPs so he had to put on waivers.    As Chicago is last in the league – ooh, being in the basement has some upsides! – they are first at the top of the waiver pile…Plus the league just let Didier Drogba go to Montreal for a pile (we assume it’s a pile) of Garberbucks, so off to the Windy City goes Gil.  It’s Gil’s time to shine!

There’s no predicting what effect Gilberto will have on the Fire; they’re a team that is in a season long freefall, with coach Frank Yallop the favourite to win the sack race.  But they are desperately in need of help; with Magic Mike McGee just recently back from injury and Harry Shipp nowhere near the form he had last season.  Is Gil the answer?  Quite possibly – it will depend on whether he can regain the form he had earlier in the year and doesn’t have the same adjustment period as he did last season.

I of course am happy to see him back, but not to a rival – I was/am a fan of his (I wrote this when he left) and I think that TFC cast him aside for newer, shinier toys as they often have in the past.  So to that end I hope he lights it up and does as well as Matias Laba has been doing for the Whitecaps; though it pains me everytime I see him in something other than TFC red.   Welcome back Gil, hope those wolves are long gone.


Still the best thing ever

Author: Kristin Knowles

Raised on basketball and baseball, Kristin soon saw the error of her ways when enrolled in a local football league as a child. Geography dictated she choose TFC as her team and ten years later she's still yet to flee the city. Cynically optimistic, she now channels her inner hooligan by singing random pop songs and making poor puns in the stands. May contain adult content. Find me on the internet machine @kzknowles

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9 Comments

  1. The collective noun for Garberbucks has always been pile, just like a murder of crows or a swarm of Giovincos.

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  2. so many things to like about that clip. the fight beforehand, the cartoon running on the spot at the start of his run up, the goal itself, the reaction afterwards, magnificent stuff all round.

    I think there were 3 possibilities for how we ended up here
    1) new cba negotiations, there were was obvuiously going to be a 4th dp spot of some kind, but owners couldn’t garee on what, TFC were gambling it would allow them to keep gil as well, it didn’t. see Tim leiweke ranting about how the new rule penalises toronto a few weeks back

    2)they never wanted gil back and were hoping he’d do well enough to persuade someone to buy him or at the very least for vaso to keep him on loan rather than give him back early, he obviously didn’t, they didn’t and so here we are.

    3) and this is where my money is, much like laba when bradley became available, they got a chance to improve their team and just jumped all over it, and didn’t really give much thought to the what to do with gil question. they improved the team, if they had to take a bath on their investment in gil, oh well, it’s chump change. ideally they’d get something, but if not, oh well who cares we have altidore and giovinco now, so whatever.

    I think he’ll do ok at chicago, get maybe 5 goals, which wouldn’t be bad at all in the games they have left, interested to see what they do with him considering they have accam and igboanike up front and magee and shipp in midfield already. best of luck to him really.

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    • First the story that is Matias Laba and now Gilberto Oliveira Souza Júnior the TFC management need a “mis” at the beginning of that noun.

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    • I think you’re right and it’s most likely 3. Still doesn’t make me happy though – as I said, they went for newer, shinier toys.

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  3. I was waiting to read your response to this news Kristin! We are almost certain to see Ol’ Gil score against TFC. It wouldn’t be too surprising either if he goes goalless in his first 11 games, and then on the 12th, breaks the drought when they play in Toronto. It would be too perfect.

    Realistically, I think he will do much better than that, and good luck to him.

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    • Thanks Mark! Honestly I’m trying to keep my anger tamped down. What’s done is done but it only adds to my frustration. And yet nine years and counting, right? I really hope he comes in and surprises everyone.

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  4. I enjoyed reading on twitter that “TFC deserve to be compensated” for him. They fucked up their own salary cap so they should get whatever the going rate is for people on waivers.

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