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For at least a year, there have been persistent rumors that Raúl Ruidíaz could return to Peru to play for Universitario — the team where he got his professional start and is considered a bit of a club legend — as they celebrate their centennial next month. This has always been considered a long shot, but recently was given some credence by journalists in Peru who claim Ruidíaz is “doing his part” to make a move happen.”El tema con Ruidíaz sigue avanzando. El jugador está poniendo de su parte y pronto tendremos más novedades”Información de @Gustavo_p4#L1Radio🎙⚽👉 https://t.co/A3agmo3Ub2 pic.twitter.com/XIwxuk7s6f— L1 MAX (@L1MAX_) July 11, 2024
What does “doing his part” mean? Good question, but it strikes me as more public relations than anything actionable.From everything I’ve been told, the Sounders are not interested in buying out Ruidíaz, who has about $1.2 million remaining on his contract, nor are they willing to effectively pay him to play somewhere else. The reality is that even if Ruidíaz has lost his starting spot, he’s still been reasonably productive — he’s tied for the team lead with eight goals — and recently has looked pretty good off the bench. Unless the Sounders are planning to make use of the Designated Player spot that Ruidíaz currently occupies, losing him is a net negative.Still, I do think they’d be willing to let him out of his contract early if that’s what he wanted, but I suspect he’s only willing to do that if Universitario is planning to effectively make him whole on their end. I’ve seen nothing that indicates they’re prepared to do that.As recently as last month Universitario’s president said signing Ruidíaz was prohibitively expensive and that “today I would say that it is impossible.” My understanding is that the highest paid Universitario players make about 20% of what Ruidíaz is owed. Unless they’re thinking about busting their budget to sign Ruidíaz, he’d need to walk away from about $1 million. I’d be totally shocked if that happened.
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