CARSON, Calif. – Jaime Penedo's decision to depart the LA Galaxy, a move he hopes leads to a long-term contract elsewhere, stunned his teammates.
While sorry to see Penedo go, the Galaxy are excited that Donovan Ricketts is returning to the club.
The Galaxy acquired Ricketts in a trade with Orlando City that was announced Thursday, bringing back the Jamaican veteran who manned the Galaxy nets from 2009-11.
Penedo, LA's No. 1 goalkeeper since signing following the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup, asked out of a contract that he said, in an Instagram post, “doesn't meet all the conditions that can give me stability, for my family and as a soccer player.”
The club placed him on waivers earlier this week after his duty was completed with Panama's national team at this year's Gold Cup.
“It's, obviously, probably a shock to everybody,” Galaxy captain Robbie Keane said following Thursday morning's training session at StubHub Center. “But listen, he's been great for the club, and I'd like to wish him well going forward. … He's been a credit to the team.”
Penedo, 33, started 54 MLS regular-season matches, posting 17 shutouts and a 1.09 goals-against average. He played in 66 competitive matches for LA, posting 23 shutouts and a 1.04 GAA. He'd played in 16 of the Galaxy's 23 league games this season, with five shutouts and a 1.19 GAA.
“Jaime is, first of all, just a good person, one of the nicest guys I've ever met,” defender A.J. DeLaGarza said. “He had to make a decision for himself and his family, and you can't fault someone for looking out for their family.”
Penedo was the incumbent when Matt Reis retired to become the Galaxy's goalkeeper coach last season.
“He worked extremely hard every day and, for me as a coach, he did everything I asked of him,” the former New England Revolution star said. “He was kind of my first pupil, so to speak, and I couldn't have asked for anything more. He gave me everything he had.”
Penedo in his Instagram post called his decision “difficult, but it was the decision that I had to make because of principles.”
Ricketts, 38, signed with the Galaxy before the 2009 season. He spent three seasons with LA, playing in 78 competitive matches (with 40 shutouts and a 0.93 GAA), but missed through injury the stretch run and playoffs when they won the 2011 MLS Cup title.
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The 6-foot-4, 215-pound 'keeper played for Montreal in 2012, Portland in 2012-14 and had made 10 MLS starts this year for expansion Orlando City. After maintaining a GAA of 1.03 or better in his three years with the Galaxy, three of his last four seasons have seen GAAs of 1.38 or higher, albeit for teams that either missed the playoffs (Montreal, Portland in 2012, Portland in 2014) or are outside the playoff places (Orlando in 2015).
However, Ricketts won his second Goalkeeper of the Year award in 2013 after recording a career-best 14 shutouts and a 0.97 GAA.
Ricketts, who no longer plays for Jamaica's national team, will join the Galaxy in suburban Denver, and his availability for Saturday night's game against the Colorado Rapids (9pm ET, MLS LIVE) will be determined when the coaches “see what he's like,” head coach Bruce Arena said.
“He's a proven goalkeeper in our league, with a lot of experience, and, hopefully, he gets here and we can get him in as soon as possible,” Arena said. “We think he's a good goalkeeper and is going to do a good job for our team.”
Backup goalkeeper Brian Rowe has started 11 competitive games this year for LA, including the last six – plus two friendlies – while Penedo was with Panama's national team. The Galaxy also have Brian Perk, who hopes to return next month from an ankle injury that has sidelined him all year, and rookie Andrew Wolverton on their roster.
“I love Donovan,” associate head coach Dave Sarachan said. “First of all, I respect him as a goalkeeper, but more importantly as a person and a guy. He's a good locker-room guy. Those kind of guys, you always welcome back. As a goalkeeper, regardless of age and all of that, he's got loads of experience, and he's been part of this before [in LA]. This is not a new thing for him.”
