Photo courtesy Philadelphia Union
Long believed to be a creature of myth, the fabled “DP striker” has arrived in Philadelphia.
The Union completed the transfer of Mikael Uhre from defending Danish champion Brøndby IF on Thursday, spending a reported club-record transfer fee in the process.
The Inquirer’s Jonathan Tannenwald pegs Uhre’s transfer fee at $2.8 million, to go along with a yearly salary of $1.5 million. Uhre is signed for three years, with an option for the fourth year.
“We are always looking for ways to improve the quality of our roster and we believe Mikael, having become a top player in Denmark, is a good fit for our system and will be an integral piece in our continued growth as a club,” Union sporting director Ernst Tanner said in a press release.
Uhre, 27, scored 21 goals for Brøndby in 2020-21, with his 13 league goals earning him the league’s Golden Boot and Player of the Season awards. That pace has continued this season, with 14 goals spread across all competitions.
He earned his first cap for the Denmark national team in a World Cup qualifier this past November, coming off the bench in a 2-0 defeat to Scotland. Denmark have qualified for the 2022 tournament, which will take place in Qatar in November and December.
Uhre, who is 6’2″, worked his way up the ranks in Denmark, beginning his career at SønderjyskE in 2013. He spent two years on loan at second-division side Skive before returning to SønderjyskE, ultimately joining Brøndby in 2018.
For more on Mikael Uhre, make sure you read our piece from Danish journalist Toke Moller Theilade, which breaks down Uhre’s career and what he brings to the Union.
The move caps an offseason remaking of the Union’s striker corps, coming after last year’s group managed no goals in 33o minutes of playoff football. Kacper Przybylko, the club’s leading goal-scorer each of the last three years, was dealt to Chicago Fire last week for $1.15 million in allocation money, while 21-year-old Julian Carranza arrived on a year-long loan from Inter Miami at the end of December.
Uhre will wear No. 7 for the Union, previously worn by Matheus Davo, Andrew Wooten, David Accam, and Brian Carroll.
It remains to be seen whether there will be more additions or subtractions before Philadelphia kicks off the 2022 season on February 26. With the transfer window closing in Europe in less than a week, all eyes will be on left back Kai Wagner, who has made no secret of his aspirations to move back to the continent. Union manager Jim Curtin said last week that the club had yet to receive a concrete offer for the MLS All-Star.
Uhre will link up with the Union as they continue to train in the Philadelphia area, ahead of departing for the warmer climes of Clearwater, Fla. on Tuesday. The first scheduled preseason scrimmage will be on Feb. 3 at 11 a.m. against FC Cincinnati.
Upgrade complete. Time to start announcing U2 signings and away we go.
The only questions left is who might still leave before the window closes in Europe?
Very exciting. Two extremely promising additions to the attacking corps, and no significant subtractions in MF or D.
Maybe I’ve missed it, but I thought we were in danger of losing Montiero this winter. I hope he stays, but a few months ago it seemed so unlikely that he would stay. Has his family been allowed to join him here in the US?
If the season starts with the roster as it currently stands, I am highly optimistic
DOOP!!!!
Let’s go. Can’t wait to see this team back in action. I’m expecting good things from Uhre and Carranza up top.
It’s going to be very strange to enter a season with high expectations…
This. But I love it.
There is this weird feeling I can’t shake… going into a season not in denial about glaring holes that are not filled, not wearing rose colored glasses on prospects for the season, publicly expecting great things (while secretly knowing I’ll spend large portions of the season on the Cliff of Despair)… F! man!.. I think with the defense still in one piece, and this sudden avalanche of strikers, can we can expect to tear this league up this year.. amiright!
Lol! Love the reference to the Almighty Cliff! I am a rose glasses wearing kind of guy and the addition of 2 striking players,one a DP no less, is the cure for the winter blues! As for time on the C.O.D.? I drove by after the season ended last year to see if anybody needed a ride home, except for a handful of disheveled humans wandering about the place looked like a ghost town!! Even the cookie stand was closed! Wont be back there for a while I hope!
No not at all. The League on a whole has also gotten better. Toronto, DC, Orlando & even Chicago all made some upgrades. Good thing is Nashville is out of the East. Hopefully the stability of most the team staying together and the same coach should give them a slight advantage to start the season.
John, I really hope that is the case. I like to think I’m a realist and not a pessimist. But I do recognize it will take Uhre some time to adjust both to the league and to the team, as well as the team to adjust to him. Here’s to hoping that time is reasonably short.
I’m also hoping that Uhre’s strengths as a passer and finisher translate easily; from the scouting report, he’s not going to replace Ilsinho as a dribbler! Definitely looking forward to the finishing!
I am also hoping that Curtin will make the move of giving Bedoya a break and saving his legs, either as a spot starter or as a first-in or first-out sub. He’d also need to spell Bedoya with someone who can well play to the strengths of our new strikers. This isn’t to knock Ale–he’s given a lot to the team over these years, but just isn’t as young as he used to be (checks mirror–neither am I!).
Bring on the season, with hope for a strong finish and a return to CONCACAF play.
Honestly, I wouldn’t mind seeing Montiero sold to open up playing time for Aaronson/McGlynn/Sullivan/Flach. Seems we have a logjam of young talent to develop sitting on the bench.
You’re a brave man… I totally agree though. When he’s at his best it’s a joy to watch but I think his heart is now somewhere else and he takes games off.
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My pet peeve with him is he’ll slow the play down to often and has a tendency to receive the ball and do a 180 but I think teams have scouted that and now it’s usually back into a defender. It’s one of the reasons I think Kacper stopped making runs to the box.
The best course to chart seems to be to move Monteiro & Martinez and add a playmaking piece to the midfield.
Christmas tree saves Bedoya’s legs a bit (you know he will not sit down) and gets the kids on the field.
My only worry is the late loss of Wags-but it seems like all the departures will likely wait until summer at this point.