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Jermaine Jones displeased with New England contract offer
United States midfielder Jermaine Jones said he would like to return to New England Revolution, but he expressed displeasure about the Revs’ offer to retain him next season.
Jones’ current 18-month deal with MLS and the Revolution expires at the end of the month. The 34-year-old midfielder said in October he hoped to sign a long-term deal to take him through the 2018 World Cup and planned to weigh offers from the Revolution and overseas clubs as he contemplated his next move.
Revolution executives expressed an interest in retaining Jones’ services for next season at several points since the end of the campaign, but Jones revealed on Friday night that the club offered him a significant pay cut on a new contract.
“I would like to return to @nerevolution but they have offered me less than 20% of what I made last year,” Jones Tweeted on Friday night.
I would like to return to @nerevolution but they have offered me less than 20% of what I made last year.
— Jermaine Jones (@Jermainejunior) December 19, 2015
The exact details of that contract offer -- both in the length of term and the wages offered -- remain unknown at this stage. Jones made $2.8 million in base salary and $3 million in guaranteed compensation this year, according to MLS Players Union documents.
Several factors complicate the path toward a mutually satisfactory resolution, even with Jones’ stated desires to return to the Revs and MLS and the Revs’ willingness to retain him next season:
* Jones faces a six-match suspension for referee assault after a physical confrontation with referee Mark Geiger in the Revolution’s 2-1 defeat at D.C. United on Oct. 28. The ban also carries over to any other federation, pursuant to FIFA guidelines.
The particulars of the suspension create some contractual hurdles for both club and player. The suspension rules him out of a significant portion of the 34-game regular season in 2016 and underscores the need for cover during that period. It also raises compensation and structural issues with the contract because the suspension is unpaid, according to U.S. Soccer bylaws.
* The magnitude of any potential pay cut. Jones is likely in line for a salary reduction given his age, his health (18 regular-season appearances after a pair of hernia surgeries this year), his international commitments and his suspension. Those realities factor into the deliberations, but Jones is unlikely to accept a massive cut given his contract last season, his contributions to the Revs over the past 18 months, his status as a regular in the U.S. starting XI and the wages doled out to U.S. teammates Jozy Altidore ($4.75 million in guaranteed compensation, per Players Union documents), Michael Bradley ($6.5 million million) and Clint Dempsey ($4.6 million) by their MLS clubs.
* The term of the contract. Jones outlined a desire to sign one last contract to take him through the World Cup in 2018, but the Revs are unlikely to present him with a longer deal than the one he previously signed given his age and health.
Those issues are not insurmountable -- particularly if Jones does not generate or locate any suitable alternatives overseas -- yet they do exist at the present time. It remains to be seen whether both sides can sort through the issues to reach an agreement in due course.
