The Union say they’re in talks with captain Alejandro Bedoya about a new deal

The Union made their big end-of-year roster announcement on Monday, and the headline was that the team is in talks with midfielder Alejandro Bedoya about a new contract.

Bedoya’s existing deal is about to expire. Manager Jim Curtin and many Union players have said publicly and loudly that they want their captain back for another year, even though he’ll turn 37 in April. Bedoya has also said plenty about feeling like sporting director Ernst Tanner has been a little too cold in talks about the future.

There may yet be a way to resolve this, especially given the campaign from inside the Union’s locker room, but it will probably require Bedoya reducing his salary, and more importantly, his playing time. Jesús Bueno (who just signed a big new deal), Leon Flach, and Quinn Sullivan are waiting in the wings to give the Union’s midfield the shot of new energy that it needs.

“We’ve talked internally, and we made some mistakes in communication — all of us made some mistakes in communication,” Curtin said at a news conference Monday, in a tone that signaled he’d rehearsed his remarks on the subject.

“Now we have an opportunity to rectify those,” Curtin continued. “We’ll have to find a solution that is best for Alejandro, that makes sense for the club, that makes sense for him, his family, and that’s our hope. … Finding and declaring that new role for Alejandro moving forward, whatever it might be, it has to be a fit.”

» READ MORE: MLS gives Union’s Alejandro Bedoya another honor for his humanitarian work

Curtin has a significant role in finding that fit, because he gives out the playing time. Will he willingly reduce Bedoya’s minutes next year?

“That’s something we’ve discussed internally and it’s something that we have to discuss, and I’ll talk with Alejandro about that,” Curtin said. “He’s a competitor, he’s still in good shape, and because of his soccer IQ and brain, and his ability to stay fit, he still contributes in a big way to the group.”

Tanner kept his words polite with the cameras on, compared to the terse exchange he had on the field after a practice in mid-autumn.

“Nobody doubts about what Ale Bedoya has done for the club,” he said.

But he didn’t hide from the truth.

“We also need to see where we are going in [the] future,” Tanner said. “We basically are thinking in cycles, and the future cycle for the next five years is definitely too long for a player who is 36, turning 37 years of age, that’s clear. But at the same time, there are possibilities, and we need to see what kind of role we can foresee for him.”

At a certain point, it will be Bedoya’s turn to decide whether to put pen to paper. He wasn’t on the podium Monday, so Curtin took that side of the discussion for a moment.

“He has to weigh on his side, as well, what makes the most sense for him, his family and his future,” he said. “And I’m confident, and hope, that will be here in Philadelphia.”

» READ MORE: 11 big questions facing the Union this offseason following their playoff exit

The Union also said they’re in talks with out-of-contract left back Kai Wagner about a new deal. That may just be semantics if he still wants to go to Europe. But it may also be a sign that Wagner couldn’t find a team overseas that will pay him what the Union have offered — with all those numbers below what Wagner thought he could find elsewhere this winter.

“There’s an offer out for him [from the Union], and I got the feedback that it is very much appreciated, what we offered,” Tanner said. “There is no decision yet, and I’m just waiting for the feedback. I won’t tell you the deadline, but it will be soon.”

If Wagner comes back, he’ll have one game left on his three-game suspension for directing a racist slur toward an opponent in the Union’s playoff opener. He’ll also have to win back the trust of a fan base that long wanted him to stay but turned against him after the incident.

“He is regretting everything, he is doing a fantastic job with this psychologist who is helping him to get over that,” Tanner said, referring to the educational programs MLS has mandated for Wagner. “We stay with Kai, and it’s his decision if he wants to stay here or go abroad, and I have full understanding for every decision.”

If Bedoya and Wagner don’t re-sign here, they’ll become free agents.

The Union picked up contract options on backup goalkeeper Holden Trent, centerback Damion Lowe, midfielders Flach, Jeremy Rafanello, and Joaquín Torres; and forwards Julián Carranza and Chris Donovan.

Carranza still might get sold overseas this winter, so don’t assume he’ll be back next season. But since the 2024 preseason starts in a month, he could start the year here and move abroad later.

Torres staying is notable because he didn’t play much this year, until a big moment in the playoffs when he stepped up to help in the first-round playoff win at New England.

The only player whose contract option the Union declined is left back Anton Sorenson, a 20-year-old prospect from the team’s youth academy. When he turned pro at the start of last year, he was ticketed as Wagner’s successor, but he never really got it together. If he does in the future, which there’s still plenty of time for, it seemingly will be elsewhere.

Lastly, the Union also said goodbye to backup goalkeeper Joe Bendik, who’s out of contract. Tanner said he’ll look elsewhere to fill that spot. There are also some notable prospects in the pipeline.

» READ MORE: The Union start building next year’s squad with midfield prospect Sanders Ngabo