Offseason Changes Already: Jack Price and Diego Rubio Leaving Already?

COMMERCE CITY – The 2023 Colorado Rapids season has been over for less than 24 hours, but it’s still inflicting emotional pain on Rapids fans. Via their social media, we could already have confirmation of Jack Price and Diego Rubio leaving the club.

Less than five minutes after the fulltime whistle, Rubio tweeted “Thank you Colorado, my family and I will miss you!”

On Sunday afternoon, Price tweeted “Thank you Colorado Rapids fans, me and my family have had the best 6 years. The support and love shown towards us from day 1 has been top class. Wish the lads all the success in the future. An honour and immense pride to captain this club for 4 years. Cheers, Pricey.”

That’s almost as good as a press release in confirming they won’t be back. Rubio joined in December 2018 in a trade with Sporting KC. He was a great compliment to Kei Kamara. Last year, he had one of the greatest seasons for a Rapids striker in history with 16 goals and seven assists.

Burgundy Wave believes Price was the second highest guaranteed transfer fee in club history. He arrived and got 10 yellow cards in 16 league games. He then settled in as another great holding midfielder. He was a good passer. He led the Set Piece Kings of MLS. He embodied Keep Fighting. He was everything a Rapids fan would want in a No. 6.

Both players were great players, leaders, and stewards of the club. Both had injurie issues, especially this year. Both are 30-years-old. There’s logic in both of these breakups.

Rubio will be a free agent for the first time in his MLS career. He’s probably going back home to Chile, to an MLS team that will pay him what he’s worth (he made $714K for Colorado this year), or give him a chance to win a trophy. Colorado can’t offer those things.

Burgundy Wave has heard Price’s family situation was a variable in his future. Club President Pádraig Smith said earlier this year that his health and return to play plan will be a determining factor for the club. It’s unclear who initiated this parting of ways. That said, Price surely can rehab at the Wolves facility and should have suitors in the EFL Championship and League One. Salop Twitter is already trying to speak it into existence.

Where the club goes from here is a good question. That’s a lot of goals and assists they’re losing with Rubio gone. The offense by committee approach has yet to work. Can Cole Bassett, Sidnei Tavares, and Rafael Navarro provide that production?

Connor Ronan does a lot of Jack Price things really well. He’ll need all offseason to grown out the beard though. That’s more of a like-for-like replacement than filling Rubio’s shoes. Pair him with a good midfielder to double pivot (Bassett, Ralph Priso, Oli Larraz, a new signing?) and it can work. That feels more certain than the team’s attack with their non-DP talisman gone.

Photo Credit: Mark Shaiken.

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