Sheanon Williams was a part of the Philadelphia Union’s 2010 expansion team, helped lead the club to their only playoff appearance the following year, and has played more career games for Philly than anyone else in club history.
Naturally, then, letting him go in a trade on Thursday did not come easy for Union head coach Jim Curtin. The trade sent Williams and an international spot to the Houston Dynamo in exchange for allocation money and future considerations.
Curtin has always valued Williams' talent, tenacity, and heart. But it was a move that the coach said had to happen in order to free up some money to pursue other targets during the summer transfer window, including Swiss winger Tranquillo Barnetta.
“He represented the badge incredibly well,” Curtin said of Williams. “This is a very difficult one for me. We exhausted every possible option to not have that be the way we went about things. But at the same time, it was what was best for the club and for Sheanon moving forward.”
In the end, the emergence of Ray Gaddis as Curtin’s preferred starting right back made Williams expendable. But what was once a position of depth now becomes very shallow as the Union have few fullback options besides Gaddis and starting left back Fabinho heading into Sunday’s pivotal game against D.C. United (5 pm ET, ESPN2).
Williams also gave the Union some extra cover at center back, where Richie Marquez is doubtful for Sunday with an ankle injury and Maurice Edu and Ethan White both picked up knocks in Tuesday’s grueling US Open Cup win over the New York Red Bulls.
“We knew making this move we’d be taking a bit of a risk going into Sunday,” Curtin said. “We have a plan for who would move back there if unfortunately Ray or Fabi takes a knock or is sent off. I have an idea for short-term for Sunday to get us through that game and longer-term there are also some ideas of ways to get some depth there. It’s no secret we are thin at the outside back spot right now. It’s a bit of a risk we took but it’s one we thought we needed to make to free up some things for us.”
Curtin pointed out that midfielders Michael Lahoud and Andrew Wenger can serve as emergency fullback options -- though that does the Union little good Sunday as both are out with injuries.
Whether or not the team’s long-term plan involves finally signing a true standout left back remains to be seen, but Curtin has said in the past that’s a spot on the field he’d like to see solidified.
Either way, the Union will miss everything Williams brought to the club, not the least of which were his extraordinary throw-ins that gave the team extra offense from their fullback spot and helped the 25-year-old amass 19 assists since 2011.
“Sheanon had a weapon,” Curtin said. “That is gone. It’s a tough sacrifice we made but one there is a plan in place to fix.”
“I think this is a really good opportunity for Sheanon,” Union technical director Chris Albright added. “Sheanon’s a guy I played with and respect a ton. I love his mentality, love the way he battles, and I wish him the best.”
Dave Zeitlin covers the Union for MLSsoccer.com. Email him at djzeitlin@gmail.com.
