KANSAS CITY, Mo. – In one way, Sporting Kansas City got Roger Espinoza back six months early. But in another, they had to wait six months longer than they hoped to bring the Honduran midfielder back from England.
Espinoza was reacquired on a free transfer from Wigan Athletic on Tuesday, after being released from a contract that would have kept him with the Championship side through the end of the current English season. And following the news conference to announce his return from a two-year absence, Espinoza told reporters he had tried to make a similar move last summer following his second World Cup stint with Honduras.
“I left from the World Cup, went home,” he said. “The coach in England gave me about two and a half weeks, and I was up in Vail, Colo., just thinking about it: 'Where's my next move going to be? I have a year left.'”
Espinoza had fallen out of favor after Wigan's relegation from the Premier League in May 2013 and the subsequent departure of former Wigan boss Roberto Martinez to Everton. Still, the Latics wanted him to sign a contract extension.
He decided to wait, and upon his return to England made a call to Sporting manager and technical director Peter Vermes. The two had parted on good terms and stayed in touch, with Vermes keeping the door open for Espinoza's return, and Espinoza was ready to take him up on the offer.
“I went to preseason, called Peter and said, 'Listen, I think I'm ready to come back. I've made my decision,” he said. “I thought about it really hard for three weeks, a month, and decided that it was time for me to come back. I didn't want to go anywhere else in the world.”
Sporting wasn't the only club interested, Espinoza said, but he was set on returning to the club where he spent his first five years as a pro.
“There were opportunities to go to Italy, stay in the Championship or stay at Wigan, sign for another few years,” he said. “But Peter said yes, he would take me back. I went to the chief executive and the coach [at Wigan] and told them I was ready to come back home.”
There was a hitch, though. While the Latics had not paid anything for Espinoza when they acquired him following the 2012 MLS season, they weren't yet prepared to let him go without a transfer fee – something Vermes repeatedly said he would never pay because Sporting had not received any money for the initial move.
Espinoza also didn't think the lack of a transfer fee should have held up the deal.
“I would have been fine with a transfer anywhere else in the world, but not Kansas City,” he said. “I'm not OK with that because I left here on a free, and they got me on a free over there. I think it was just fair for them to return the favor back. I kept telling them, 'I'm not going anywhere else but Kansas City.'”
His desire to get back to Sporting didn't waver through the first half of this Championship season, and this time it paid off. Espinoza was released from his contract after his last appearance, which saw him come off the bench on Dec. 30 against SheffieldWednesday.
Espinoza returns to a club where he not only enjoyed success – winning the 2012 US Open Cup and seeing Sporting finish atop the Eastern Conference standings in his last two seasons – but also helped build the foundation for it.
“I think he was a major component of building the club into the style that we have today,” Vermes told reporterson Tuesday. “And I think it's easy to recognize when you see him play, what his attributes are and how they mesh so well with who we are today. So I think everyone realizes that him coming back is a really good fit.”
Steve Brisendine covers Sporting Kansas City for MLSsoccer.com.
