Maurice Edu secures UK work permit, completes Rangers transfer

                                                                Photo by ISIphotos.com

U.S. national team midfielder Maurice Edu received his UK work permit on Friday, clearing the way for his $5 million transfer to Glasgow Rangers.

Edu will join U.S. national team teammate DaMarcus Beasley at Rangers, where he is expected to challenge for a starting central midfield role.

"I'm excited about this new chapter in my career,"  Edu said in a statement released by Toronto FC. "I will miss Toronto, and the team's amazing supporters and fans. Toronto FC will always have special meaning for me because it's the club that gave me my professional start.

The 2007 MLS rookie of the year after being drafted no. 1 overall in the 2007 MLS Draft, Edu joins Jozy Altidore and Brad Guzan as national team players to make moves from MLS to Europe this summer.

What do you think of Edu's move? Think he'll flourish at Rangers? See him making a bigger move before long? Sad to see him leave MLS?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

[Dave]

Edu will be golden for Rangers...who will still lose to Celtic...hopefully.

[Robert]

Excellent news albeit not to a club poised for current success in Europe. Hopefully he can be a dominant player and move on to greener pastures in the future. There's always next season for Rangers anyway. Kudos to the Scots for picking up another American. Our stock is rising overseas ;)

[walker]

who cares about no european success? one step at a time, please.

first, if they had been qualified for the euros, they would've had more money available and would've bought someone better than edu. so, be glad he's there.

and second, what did he have to win in Toronto? stop being so picky. an SPL title and having rangers on your resume is a good thing.

and third, how the hell did he secure a permit when guzan couldn't last window? are Scottish laws different?

[bangersandmash]

>. an SPL title ... on your resume is a good thing.

Problem is, he signed for Rangers. ;) (come on, someone was gonna say it!)

[KirkBhoy]

I hope he crashes and burns at Rangers. Sorry Mo, it ain't personal.

[walker]

">. an SPL title ... on your resume is a good thing.

Problem is, he signed for Rangers. ;) (come on, someone was gonna say it!)"

right, well, the CHANCE of a title with Rangers. not going to happen, though.

[Johnny]

A great stepping stone for Edu.

[satan]

mo needs to prove himself at Rangers, cuz he sure didn't prove himself at TFC. He was signed on hype rather than on actual on-field performance at the club level.

[mig22]

He WAS the rookie of the year. He does play occasionally for MNT. I'm just saying...the kid already has a bit of resume. :)

I worry, as with all americans going overseas, about playing time. Even Beas doesn't always start for Rangers, even when he is healthy.

[Mark]

how did he secure a work permit so quick / easily??

[DCM]

Walker,

English permit is handled differently than a Scot permit.

[The Athority]

It's a lot easier to get a work permit in Scotland than it is in England.

[Ossington Mental Youth]

Remember to demand to play for us when you come back Edu!

[RK]

I care about European success -- so that I might have a chance at watching him!

Viva Villarreal! (as if ESPN would ever put them on)

[Dillon]

I hope he and beasley score a hat-trick every game and rangers lose every match 6-7.

[Joel]

Haha...we sold him for grass. And we got the better end of the deal IMO!

[Thom]

Great for him and us USA national supporters.

Scotland & Holland are by far the best location for our developing players to go and ply their trade, receive good instruction, be treated fairly and maintain high enough visability with the big 4 leagues as they become better and more marketable. Stay out of England or Germany until they are willing to come pay for you. (Spain & Italy?- we have no real track record to speak of)

[TCompton]

It's been a good summer for the American boys. The last two years we've seen nice little "changing of the guard"

Edu for Reyna (I guess?)
Alitore for McBride
Guzan for Keller

Actually, I'd like to see a list of the number of youth that have made the jump overseas each year for the last 10 - 15 years. It seems like we have more and more Americans playing abroad than ever before.

[Matt]

I'm not a Scottish football fan but Rangers is a talented club. I think Edu will struggle with inconsistency and be a squad player for the first year. Maybe after a year he'll earn a place in the starting lineup. As for making a "bigger" move? I think that's a bit presumptuous right now.

[A.S.]

To repeat what others have asked: HOW did he receive the permit?

My understanding is that you need to have played in 75% of the national team's games over the past 2 years. I don't think Edu has done that - he only has 8 caps.

[A.S.]

And if it correct that a Scotland work permit is easier to get than an England work permit - why would that be? They are both part of Great Britain. The entity granting the permit is the British Home Office, not the English or Sottish Home Office.

Just like all the arcane MLS allocation/cap rules, this type of non-play-related stuff frustrates the hell out of me.

[Ossington Mental Youth]

Not that playing for TFC would have stunted his growth as a player but its definitely a good move on his part.

As for his permit, its prob diff for the SPL than it is for the EPL as well as, and dont quote me on this, he may have a nigerian passport through his old man.

[Dave]

There is a loophole for getting a work permit. I think it reads: " A work permit shall be granted on appeal if it is determined that the player has a the ability to make a significant contribution to the development of the Scottish game."

Basically, if you are a high-profile club and you have high-profile people vouching for the player's talent to the appeals board then you can get one most of the time regardless.

[Dave]

By the way, here is a good link:

http://www.workpermit.com/news/2005_08_30/uk/sports_stars.htm

[scott47a]

Too many good U.S. players go to Europe just the watch from the bench or even the stands.

Here's hoping Edu actually gets to play, because he holds promise of eventually being one of the best holding midfielders the USA has ever produced.

He won't get that way watching soccer, though.

[Eric]

I am glad for Edu, he has shown real promise with the NT.

Who is he competing with to start in the middle? They havent said anything about trying to turn him into a defender, have they? I am not really interested in seeing that happen to him again.

[redrocket08]

TFC TV is having a live interview with Edu
http://websvr01.neulion.com/tfc/console.jsp

[Nik]

It's a good move for Edu, but he's got his work cut out for him to make the first XI. Walter Smith's signing of Mendes proved to be a brilliant acquisition in his first match last week and he's signed midfielders Steven Davis and Aaron Níguez Esclapez, plus the eventual return of Ferguson (well down the line) Mo will have to work very hard just to reach the bench. Best of luck to him

[bryan]

good luck Edu! fight hard for that starting spot and DO NOT let it go. play well, play hard, and then move on to a bigger club.

[Dan K]

Yea i think it is like what Dave said about the loophole, im pretty sure celtic used it to get another japanese guy, not nakamura, and they appealed the decesion and said he would be a great player for the team and would be very important, blah blah blah...so im sure that rangers used the same thing to get him

[KingSnake]

First time in living memory I've seen "Rangers" and "talented" in the same sentence in living memory ...

[Hector]

i find solace in an american player getting signed by one of the 2 top teams in a european league and actually having a fighting chance of making the first team rather than a second division team hoping for promotions (see: eddie johnson loaned to cardiff city). it just seems as if american players aren't being signed by manchester united or real madrid than it's not step in a direction forward.

& to say that he is being signed by hype is an insult to the professional scouts who thought enough of him to consider signing him.