After two seasons on loan with the San Jose Earthquakes, English attacker Simon Dawkins could be coming over on a more permanent basis.
Quakes coach Frank Yallop said Tuesday that the club is in talks with EPL giants Tottenham Hotspur – who lent Dawkins to San Jose and retain his contract through next summer – to bring back the 24-year-old, who scored eight goals and added an assist in 29 league appearances this season.
“It’s still in the works, but we’re expecting Simon to be back next season,” Yallop told reporters in a conference call on Tuesday to mark his winning the 2012 MLS Coach of the Year Award.
Yallop said that team president David Kaval and general manager John Doyle have already traveled to London to work on a deal with Spurs, who are a club partner of the Quakes.
“We’re in negotiations with Tottenham right now,” Yallop said. “Hopefully it will be positive.”
Dawkins grew up in the Tottenham academy system, was dropped by Spurs in 2009 after injuries derailed his career, then signed back with them in 2011 after getting healthy. He was loaned immediately to San Jose, where he had six goals and two assists in 26 MLS matches.
Because of FIFA transfer-window rules, no move can be made until January, but the Quakes would like to have a deal struck as early as possible to avoid having Dawkins join them late in the run-up to the regular season, as has happened in each of the past two years.
“We’re trying our best to get that solidified and get that OKed before we start any sort of pre-season training,” Yallop said.
Geoff Lepper covers the Earthquakes for MLSsoccer.com. He can be reached at sanjosequakes@gmail.com.
