The Vancouver Whitecaps brought one center back in but failed to retain another on Wednesday, adding Diego Rodriguezon a one-year loan deal from Uruguayan Primera side Club Atletico Juventud de las Piedras and failing to re-sign Irish veteranAndy O’Brien.
The changes make the Whitecaps back line significantly younger, with the 24-year-old Rodriguez slotting in for the 35-year-old O’Brien, who made 26 league appearances for the ‘Caps last season.
"Over the last few weeks, we've had very, very good discussions with Andy but we've been unable to come to an agreement," Vancouver head coach Carl Robinson told reporters in a conference call on Wednesday afternoon. "We're probably going to be moving in a different direction now and Andy's exploring things over in Europe at the moment."
The loss of a veteran presence like O'Brien, who has been with the Whitecaps since August 2012, will leave a void in Vancouver. He might not be the only ‘Caps defender to move on this winter, though, with Robinson hinting that Honduran center back Johnny Leveron may be leaving town, as well.
"We're still speaking to Johnny at the moment," Robinson said. "We're going to have 40-plus games next year, so I want to build a strong squad. If that means that's with Johnny, then great. If that means it's not with Johnny, then we'll move on.
"At the moment we're in talks with him and his agent but we're not very close to agreeing anything. We're just keeping our options open on that one. I don't know if we'll come to an agreement or not, which is why I've made the move [for Rodriguez] now."
Robinson looks set to move forward with a central defensive pairing of Rodriguez and Costa Rican Kendall Waston to start the new MLS season. Although they’ve never played together, Robinson is excited for Rodriguez to pair up with the 6-foot-5 Waston, who showed very well in 10 regular season games after signing with the ‘Caps last August.
"Bringing Kendall in last year was an excellent signing for us," Robinson said. "I didn't know how quickly he would adapt to Major League Soccer but he hit the ground running. I hope Diego can do the same. He's a big boy. He's 6-foot-2, obviously Kendall is even bigger.
"He wants to learn. One of the first questions when I sat down with him that he aimed at me was 'How can you make me better?' From a manager's point of view, that's actually refreshing to hear. A player is asking you the question as to how you can make him better and what can you do to let him progress to the next level. He's got the right mentality and mentality in this game is a major thing."
