Whitecaps extricate themselves from Jarju deal; club back at minimum Canadian standard

The Whitecaps have been able to erase what was the club’s worst roster move of the 2011 season.

Heck, the signing of Belgian second-divison star Mustapha Jarju to a Designated Player contract was the worst move any MLS club made in 2011, period.

Jarju couldn’t make the move up from Belgian second division to MLS. He didn’t score and looked lost at this level. (And, yes, MLS is a significant step up from the Belgian second division in terms of level of play. Make no mistake about it.) Jarju signed with the Whitecaps just three weeks after he told the Belgian press that he fully intended to re-sign with his old club, RAEC de Mons.

On Friday, the club announced that it has been able to free itself from the Jarju deal by mutual consent. On a sadder note, the team also announced that Canadian Philippe Davies won’t be back with the club in 2011.

Davies, a graduate of the Residency project, was arguably on the Whitecaps’ roster last season so the club could meet the minimum Canadian-player requirement. Davies never played a minute of MLS action for the Whitecaps.

The club said it could not come to an agreement on a new contract with Davies, so it declined the option on his current deal. Translated into real people’s English: Davies would not take a pay cut.

Vancouver still holds the right of first refusal on Davies, so he can’t join another MLS club unless that team makes a deal with the Whitecaps. If past history is any indication, the Whitecaps will jealously hold onto that spot. Last year, after Kyle Porter left the Vancouver fold to trial for Montreal, the Whitecaps made it clear that the team wasn’t going to cede his MLS rights. Montreal couldn’t commit to a player it could only keep for one season before moving to MLS, so Porter went to FC Edmonton, where he just got a call up to the U-23 Olympic team’s training camp.

Of course, with Davies gone, it bring the Whitecaps down to the bare minimum of three, ahem, “Canadians.” Youngsters Bryce Alderson and Russell Teibert are on the roster, as is Canadian-born but totally Swiss defender Alain Rochat.

As it stands, the Whitecaps will go into its March 10, cough, “all-Canadian” MLS opener against the Montreal Impact with no Canadians on the field. Montreal may have Patrice Bernier as its only Canadian starter.