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Eleven MLS players waived - a summary
Six of Major League Soccer's 10 teams made roster moves today in preparation for the 2002 season, as 11 players were made available for Thursday's MLS Waiver Draft. All 11 players, including F Eric Wynalda and All-Star F Cate, are now eligible for the MLS Waiver Draft scheduled for Thursday, January 17, at 3:00 p.m. (ET) via conference call from the league's headquarters in New York. Unsigned free agent John Harkes is also available.
The Chicago Fire (4), Colorado Rapids (4), Columbus Crew (1) and New England Revolution (2) waived players. D.C. United's A.J. Wood announced his retirement from professional soccer, while the San Jose Earthquakes announced that forward Ronald Cerritos received his green card, opening up a Senior International slot on the defending champions' roster.
In a trade at the waiver deadline, Chicago acquired F Aleksey Korol and Nike Project-40 M Miguel Saavedra from the Dallas Burn in exchange for the Fire's sixth round pick (68th overall) in the 2002 SuperDraft and a conditional draft pick.
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CHICAGO (Tuesday, January 15, 2002) - The Chicago Fire today announced two major moves, acquiring 24 year-old forward Aleksey Korol and Nike Project-40 and U.S. Under-18 player Miguel Saavedra from the Dallas Burn in exchange for the Fire's sixth round pick (68th overall) in the 2002 MLS SuperDraft and a conditional pick. The Chicago Fire has also released veteran striker Eric Wynalda, defender Andrew Lewis, defender/midfielder David Vaudreuil and forward Jamar Beasley in order to meet the league's roster regulations.
Korol has made 36 MLS appearances scoring seven goals and four assists for 18 points in his two years with Dallas. The Indiana University product set the Dallas Burn rookie record for points (13) and goals (5) in 2000. The Burn drafted the 5'10" forward in the first round (fifth overall) of the 2000 MLS SuperDraft. Korol rounds out the Fire's Senior International crew with fellow Ukrainian Sergi Daniv and Bulgarian Hristo Stoitchkov.
Saavedra comes to Chicago after spending a year in residency camp with the United Stated Under-18 National Team. The 18-year-old Mexican-American midfielder was drafted in the sixth round (67th overall) by Dallas in the 2001 MLS SuperDraft and did not appear in a game for Burn Head Coach Mike Jeffries. Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on July 3, 1983, Saavedra played club soccer with Milwaukee's Mequon United F.C.
"I'm very excited to join Chicago," said Saavedra. "It's an excellent team, and I'm happy to join players such as Carlos Bocanegra and DaMarcus Beasley, guys my age who have proved themselves as very talented, young Americans. I'm grateful to Peter [Wilt] and Bob [Bradley] for bringing me to such a great environment. I'm ready to play my game and help the Fire in any way possible."
Wynalda, 32, was the team's leading scorer during the 2001 season after being acquired from the New England Revolution on May 3, 2001. The all-time leading scorer in U.S. National Team history notched 10 goals and five assists for 25 points during the campaign and added a goal and assist in the playoffs. Lewis joined the Fire in the 1997 MLS Expansion Draft after spending a season with the MetroStars. The 27 year-old Princeton product played 54 games for Chicago in the back line. He helped Chicago to the 1998 MLS Cup and 1998 and 2000 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup championships, registering six points on two goals and two assists during his four-year tenure with Chicago.
Beasley scored four goals and three assists for 11 points in 18 games with the Fire in 2001. The older brother of Fire midfielder DaMarcus Beasley scored more goals with Chicago than in over three years time with the New England Revolution, where he was acquired from on April 10, 2001. Veteran defender Vaudreuil was acquired on July 3, 2001, as a Discovery Player after playing with D.C. United, the Miami Fusion, and the Colorado Rapids from 1996-2000. The versatile 36-year-old started every game for the Fire in the playoffs and registered four points on four assists during 2001.
Aleksey Korol
Position: Forward
Height: 5'10" (1.78 m)
Weight: 160 lbs. (72 kg)
Born: October 14, 1977 in Kiev, Ukraine
Hometown: Rochester, NY
Citizenship: Ukraine
College: Indiana University
Last Club: Dallas Burn (MLS)
How Acquired: Acquired via trade with Miguel Saavedra from the Dallas Burn on January 15, 2002, for a sixth round pick (68th overall) in the 2002 MLS SuperDraft and a conditional draft pick
Pro Outdoor Experience: Chicago Fire, MLS (2002-present); Dallas Burn, MLS (2000-2001)
MLS Career: Has made 36 MLS appearances -- registering seven goals and four assists for 18 points in his career ... Set the Dallas Burn rookie record for points (13) and goals (5) in 2000... Made his pro debut vs. Chicago on 3-18-00 and scored his first goal on 6-7-00 vs. Columbus... 2001: Saw action in 15 games, starting three... Registered his first assist of the year on 8-18 @ MIA... Scored the Burn's lone goal on 8-4 @ NE... Netted his first goal of the season on 6-16 @ COL... Saw his first action of the season, coming on as a substitute on 4-21 vs. Chicago... 2001 PLAYOFFS: Played two games logging 31 min. in the MLS Cup Playoffs Quarterfinals series loss to the Chicago Fire... 2000: Set a Burn rookie record for points with 13 and goals with five... Scored two goals, including the game-winner on 8-16 vs. Chicago...Scored the Burn's lone goal on 8-5 @ Tampa Bay... Assisted on the Burn's lone goal on 7-19 vs. Miami... Tallied a goal for the second consecutive game on 6-10 @ Columbus... Scored his first career goal and registered an assist on 6-7 vs. Columbus... Started his first game, playing 100 minutes vs. LA and registering his first point with an assist on the Burn's lone goal... Made his professional debut, playing the final minute on 3-18 vs. Chicago... Selected in the first round (5th overall) of the 2000 MLS Draft...2000 PLAYOFFS: Played one game logging 45 min. in the MLS Cup Playoffs Quarterfinals series loss to the MetroStars... Started his first playoff match, but yielded to Ted Eck at the half on 9-20 vs. MET in 2-1 loss in Game 2 of the MLS Cup Playoffs Quarterfinals.
College: A three-time First Team All -Big Ten Selection at Indiana University (1997-1999) and a First Team NSCAA All-American in '99... Was honored as the 1999 Big Ten Player of the Year... Was named Soccer America's 1999 College Player of the Year and was also named to the Soccer America Team of the 1990's... Finished his collegiate career with 57 goals and 35 assists becoming one of only 13 players in IU history to tally 100 career points... Concluded his final campaign as a Hoosier in 1999 by leading IU to their second consecutive NCAA Division I championship, assisting on the game-winning goal in the title game... Finished fourth in Hermann Trophy voting in '99.
Personal: Closest friends in the league are former Indiana teammates Dema Kovalenko, Nick Garcia, and Chris Klein as well as Fire midfielder Sergi Daniv... Is ten hours shy of a degree in sports management... Played ice hockey while growing up in Ukraine... Most memorable soccer moment is winning back-to-back NCAA Championships with Indiana in 1998 and 1999... Most famous person he's ever met is Gordie Howe... Favorite non-soccer teams are the New York Knicks, Detroit Red Wings, Buffalo Bills and the New York Yankees... Single.
Miguel Saavedra
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5'11" (1.81 m)
Weight: 155 lbs. (71 kg)
Born: July 3, 1983 in Milwaukee, WI
Hometown: Milwaukee, WI
Citizenship: USA
Last Club: Dallas Burn (MLS)
How Acquired: Acquired via trade with Aleksey Korol from the Dallas Burn on January 15, 2002, for a sixth round pick (68th overall) in the 2002 MLS SuperDraft and a conditional draft pick
Pro Outdoor Experience: Chicago Fire, MLS (2002-present); Dallas Burn, MLS (2001)
MLS Career: Acquired via trade with Aleksey Korol from the Dallas Burn on January 15, 2002, for a sixth round pick (68th overall) in the 2002 MLS SuperDraft and a conditional draft pick... 2001: Did not play in a MLS game in his first season with Dallas due to spending the year in residency with the U.S. Under-18 National Team... Drafted in the sixth round (67th overall) of the 2001 MLS SuperDraft by Dallas.
U.S. National Team: Spent 2001 in residency with the Under-18 national team... Appeared in four games and started two for the U-18s in 2000, all as a part of the United States Amateur Soccer Festival in Rhode Island ... Made his first appearance on Aug. 1, when he entered as a substitute and scored the U-18's lone goal in a 1-1 draw against USASA - Midwest ... The U-18's went 1-0-3 in his appearances, on their way to a 10-5-4 record for the year ... Tentatively set to join the U-18's for a training camp in Florida from February 4-11, 2001 ... Selected to the Wisconsin Olympic Development Program at the U-15, U-14, and U-13 levels.
Prep: Played three full varsity seasons at Milwaukee Trade and Technical High School from 1997-1999, all as a starter ... Was the team's leading scorer and MVP in each of those seasons ... Played only six matches his senior season, tallying 11 goals and two assists before leaving to join a top level amateur team ... As a junior was named conference player of the year and received consideration for Wisconsin's Player of the Year honors ... Finished his prep career with 96 goals and 38 assists ... Netted 33 goals as a junior, 30 as a sophomore, and 22 as a freshman ... Maintains a 3.6 grade point average, and needs to complete one additional class to graduate from high school this spring ... Received scholarship offers from the University of Virginia, Duke University, Indiana University, and the University of Wisconsin - Madison.
Club: Played club soccer as a member of Milwaukee's Mequon United F.C. ... In addition to playing with the club's U-18 squad, Saavedra also joined Mequon United's top amateur team, which traditionally consists of players 18 years of age and older, bypassing the majority of his final year of high school eligibility ... Captured the Wisconsin State Cup as a member of Mequon United's U-14's.
Personal: Born July 3, 1983 in Milwaukee, WI to Martin and Victoria Saavedra ... The fifth of seven children ... Older brothers Martin and Daniel play collegiate soccer at Mount Senario College and UW - Milwaukee, respectively ... Other siblings include older sisters Maria del Lourdes Martinez and Maria de Rocio Saldana, younger sister Maritza and younger brother Gerardo.
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