Ricketts signs with Valerenga, but waits on Romanian Football Federation By Steven Sandor Posted on August 31, 2012 Comments Off on Ricketts signs with Valerenga, but waits on Romanian Football Federation 0 748 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Norwegian side Valerenga announced on transfer deadline day that the Edmonton native has been signed to a contract that will see him finish out the season. But there’s a very big IF involved. At the end of Valerenga’s announcement, it reads (translated from Norwegian) that “the transition requires that the Romanian Football Federation release Ricketts international players’ license.” (CLICK HERE) The club’s website features an image of Ricketts’ signing the contract. If the RFF does indeed stop playing hardball and does release his papers, Ricketts will be with the club for its final nine matches of the Norwegian season, while the team decides if it wants to bring him back for next year. “Tosaint has slipped nicely into the team here and is a player who can play both edge and point,” Valerenga manager Martin Andresen was quoted on the team’s wbsite. “He is very quick and we hope to take advantage of it in the games remaining this season.” Fellow Edmontonian Lars Hirschfeld tends goal for Valerenga. Hopefully, this will end what has been a painful odyssey for Ricketts. In 2010, he signed with Romanian side FC Politehnica Timisoara. In 2011, the club got a spot in the qualifying rounds of the Champions League, but was later forced to give up that spot and was relegated to the Romanian second division because of financial issues. For the final five months of the 2011-12 season, the club began missing Ricketts’ paycheques. He appealed to the Romanian Football Federation for a release, and when he was told to go home last May, he thought the affair was settled. After weighing several offers, Ricketts had a successful trial with Dynamo Dresden of the Bundesliga 2. But, just as he was to sign a deal with the club, the Romanian Football Federation warned the Germans that it considered Ricketts’ contract with Timisoara to be valid, and would not release his transfer papers. Dresden chose not to battle the RFF, and Ricketts returned to Edmonton without a deal. He left Edmonton last week to go to Valerenga. By publicly signing him, the club is showing some willingness to stare down the Romanian authorities, something Dresden wasn’t willing to do. VALERENGA HAS POSTED VIDEO OF RICKETTS’ FIRST INTERVIEW, click here.
