Skip to content

McCarty criticises Red Bulls' handling of trade to Fire

Geoff Burke / Reuters

Three weeks after the New York Red Bulls traded Dax McCarty to the Chicago Fire in exchange for $400,000 in General Allocation Money, the crimson-topped captain had some choice words for the club and manager Jesse Marsch.

"I’ve had a lot of time to think about and a lot of time to try to be measured in how I talk about the Red Bulls because it’s an organization that I love, but I thought it was not done in an appropriate way, especially for a club and a team that preaches family," McCarty said Tuesday, courtesy of Sam Stejskal from mlssoccer.com.

"This is a team that preaches togetherness and a brotherhood and having each other’s backs - 'trust' is a big word that they use."

McCarty said during a conference call that he understands that, at the end of the day, it's just business, though the 29-year-old six-time capped USMNT international added he "didn’t think the (Red Bulls) handled the situation in a very classy way."

With 23-year-old third-year Homegrown player Sean Davis adequately filling in for McCarty during the captain's absences last season, Red Bulls understandably opted for the cheaper option.

"If you’re moving a veteran player on a high salary for business reasons and you have players who you think can step in and do the job that have lower salaries, that are younger, that you need to give minutes to, I’m the first one to say it’s a great move."

While McCarty adds he can comprehend the reasons behind the trade, the Florida-born midfielder takes umbrage with not being informed about the move in advance.

"There’s no player that’s bigger than any club and that’s something that I understand full well," McCarty offered. "But I do think if you’re a club that preaches family and you’re a club that preaches doing things the right way and trying to treat players the right way, then I don’t think you go and trade a guy who you say you relied on a lot and that is your captain behind his back without at least telling him that, ‘Hey, these are some possibilities, unfortunately we have to move you'.

"I thought that I at least earned that."

McCarty's frustrations are directed at more than just the club he joined in 2011 from D.C. United, with manager Jesse Marcsh the recipient of his criticism for comments that he didn't "think that the trade and the way it happened honored the relationship."

"I saw the story and I saw the quotes that he made and I don’t really know what quite to make of them," McCarty admitted. "Because at the end of the day you could tell it was a decision that was his decision."

Even with the undesirable circumstances that shrouded his Red Bulls exit, McCarty admits he has shifted his attention to the Chicago Fire. "And as of now, my focus is to try to make the Chicago Fire a better team and I wish the Red Bulls nothing but the best."

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox