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Just-signed Luis Rodriguez, the newest player for FC Sheriff Tiraspol, comes from the club of C A Temperley in Argentina (shown)BUENOS AIRES (Tiraspol Times) - In a coup for Transdniestrian soccer (football), a talent scout for FC Sheriff Tiraspol signed Argentinean soccer hope Luis Rodriguez to the team this Thursday.
The "Latin American Idol" will now be calling Tiraspol his new home, having signed with FC Sheriff as midfielder for the 2008 lineup. Luis Antonio Rodriguez - who is known as "Lucho" to his fans - is packing his bags from Argentina to be the third player from this country to arrive in the capital of Transdniestria (the new and emerging country which is also known as Transnistria, but which is officially named Pridnestrovie according to its Constitution).
For the past year, the midfielder has played for Club Atlético Temperley, which is the home team of the city of Temperley (founded by British industrialist George Temperley) located south of Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina.
The next Maradona? Luis Rodriguez from FC Temperley in Argentina, and a former Arsenal FC player, has been signed to FC Sheriff Tiraspol, the #1 club in Transdniestria.
" - I would like to go to Tiraspol, because the monetary difference is substantial," Luis Rodriguez told the management of Temperley when asked to change his contract. However, none of the clubs have released details of the sums involved.
" - We let him go, because we can't deny the boy this great chance of making financial progress," said the first VP of the Argentinean club, Gustavo Caccace.
- Financial windfall
Rodriguez still has four months left on his contract with Temperley, but according to Intercele, a news source, FC Sheriff negotiated a buy-out which resulted in a financial windfall for Temperley as well as for the player himself. As a result, the player will not be in the lineup in Saturday's match against rival team Defensores.
Before signing with Temperley in 2007, Luis Rodriguez played for Arsenal FC, another Buenos Aires team which is known locally as "Arsenal de Sarandí." The same year, this team went on to play in the international Copa Sudamericana cup, and this year it is in the Copa Libertadores; another South American cup.
Professional contract players from a total of ten different countries are now signed to FC Sheriff, assuming that Transdniestria is counted as a separate country since it currently meets the requirements for statehood under international law.
Apart from the Argentinean and Brazilian players, the team also has eight Africans from three different countries: Benin, Togo and Burkina Faso. The remaining players are either local or come from nearby countries such as Moldova, Ukraine, Georgia, Romania and Belarus.
- Top team of the region
The club was founded in 1997 by the Sheriff company, which in 2002 constructed the luxurious Sheriff Stadium in Tiraspol to serve as the team's home ground. It has dominated regional football since 2001, winning all the championship titles in both Transdniestria and Moldova since then.
In his home country of Argentina, fans of new player Luis Rodriguez show up at his games with banners like this one which pays homage to his nick-name "Lucho".
The Transdniestrian team also won the Commonwealth of Independent States Cup in 2003, becoming the first team from the region to win an international title. No Moldovan team has ever attained this status.
From the 2001/2002 season onwards, the club has tried to reach the group stage in the UEFA Champions League every year, but failed in the second qualifying round every time.
The team has a big fan-base from all of Transdniestria. When it plays against teams from Moldova, FC Sheriff has rival relations.
In those matches it is normal to see fans of the team hold banners asserting the independence of Transdniestria from Moldova.
See also:
» More Brazilian players signed to FC Sheriff [1]
» Lokomotiv signs FC Sheriff player for €2.6m [2]
» FC Sheriff Tiraspol player on contract with Denmark [3]
On the web:
» Lucho: Player profile [4]