| Chandler- L'Amour trade wins praise Sudwerk Manager Off The Hot Seat -- For Now By Joseph Hunter DAVIS, Calif., May 2 (Reuters) -- FC Sudwerk's spectacular 2-1 victory on Sunday has earned the club's embattled manager Ramal Werdna a reprieve. The German expatriate, known for his chain-smoking and profanity-laced tirades, has faced growing criticism since the red-and-black's disastrous spring opener, which it lost 6-0 to The Green Door. Rumors quickly spread after the defeat that Werdna was on his way out, two years after he helped establish the Northern California superclub. On Monday, California's sports press hailed Sudwerk's performance. "Brilliant!" read one headline. "Bravo, Werdna" blared the Sacramento Tribune. "I was wrong," lamented one Internet soccer columnist who two weeks ago advocated firing Werdna. The president and CEO of FC Sudwerk revamped the team over the winter in an attempt to reverse the fortunes of the club, which lost its last seven games of the fall season and suffered its worst defeat ever on the final day of the season, 10-0. Werdna overhauled the club with a mix of young talent and proven internationals. Only nine of the spring team's 20 rostered players are holdovers from last year. But the spring opener reportedly rankled the secretive board of directors that oversees the club's finances and holds authority over Werdna's employment. In perhaps his boldest move to date, Werdna last week picked up Joseph L'Amour, a veteran midfielder and striker playing with Paris St. Germain, and has since sent controversial defender Patrick Chandler packing. With L'Amour scoring Sunday's winning goal, the transaction has won praise and apparently redeemed Werdna's standing among the club's directors. On Tuesday, club officials announced they had signed L'Amour to a season-long contract and made room for his salary by sending Chandler to the Los Angeles Galaxy. A marquee player acquired from Arsenal in 2001, Chandler immediately became the foundation of the Sudwerk defense. The 25-year-old delighted fans with his unique blend of sublime skill and brute force. Few strikers ever beat the masterful sweeper, and if they did, they often found themselves on the ground. Chandler also displayed uncanny flair when he joined the offensive attack, making penetrating runs through midfield, deftly holding the ball and launching blistering, long-range shots. But with each passing season, Chandler's demands escalated, and he showed up late and out of shape for the club's spring training after a contract holdout. While Sudwerk players labored to prepare for the season, paparazzi photographed Chandler cavorting through Milan discos with various European supermodels and racing down the German autobahn in a red Lamborghini. Reports even surfaced in German papers that Bayern Munich hosted Chandler for a tryout without FC Sudwerk's knowledge, a flagrant violation of his contract. Chandler's superstar attitude and unrelenting demands reportedly irked club officials, who said they could increase his salary by only one free beer a week, far short of the lavish perks and big bucks the soccer star said he deserved. "I have mixed feelings about letting Patrick go," Werdna told reporters. "He's obviously a very talented player, and our defense won't be the same without him. But, we can't give him what he wants and so this is perhaps best both for Patrick and the integrity of the club." ## |