Philadelphia Union secure Andre Blake with new deal

This afternoon the club made it official. Jamaican International, former first round draft pick out of UConn and causer of headaches for other teams Andre Blake has officially signed a multi-year deal.

From the press release, we know it’s been agreed upon with the use of Targeted Allocation Money, but terms of the deal for the 27-year-old were not disclosed.

“It’s always good when there’s a place you can call home,” Blake said in a news conference Wednesday. “I’m just excited and ready to go and looking forward to it.”

For what it’s worth, this is the first of what will hopefully (not holding my breath here or anything) be several steps in the right direction for a club that has had a quiet offseason to date.

Goalkeepers of Andre’s quality don’t just wander in all the time so locking him up to even a two-year deal to stay in Chester is a good step.

Andre has probably earned whatever he’s making, which is now believed to be among the highest earning goalkeepers in the league (his $186,500 in compensation was 12th in the league as of September 2017) as his statistics and numerous accolades have shown.

Two years ago was an absolute clinic for Dre, with his efforts snagging him Best XI, All-Star and Goalkeeper of the Year honors. Really this article could be 800 words long of just “Cool things Andre Blake did.” Hopefully for the Union he keeps doing those cool things for years to come.

How long he stays in blue and gold though still remains a question since continuing to play the way he has for club and country is bound to attract offers from abroad. When asked if his long-term goal is still to go to Europe, Blake said his focus is on the season ahead.

“Right now my main focus is Philadelphia,” he said. “I’m not worried about the future. I’m just going to live in the now and let my performance speak for itself.

Without knowing the parameters of the deal, do you agree with it? Let us know in the comments!

UPDATE: Jonathan Tannenwald tweeted yesterday saying that a source told him Blake’s deal is three years guaranteed with a club option for a fourth.