The Alamo City Battle have officially signed Theirry Henry and Kenny Cooper as the club's two designated players for the 2013 BSL season. Both men are coming off of outstanding years and are aiming to have an even more successful 2013 campaign. For Henry, he'll be trying to return the Battle to the BSL Cup Final in hopes of capturing the league championship. Cooper finally returns to the club after having been all over the world the last few years.
"It was tough, but I had to do what I thought was best for my career at the time," said Cooper. "Going to Germany taught be quite a bit about the game and myself. When I came back, of course I wanted to come back to AC but we just couldn't work it and Gateway was the best option I had. If I were able to come back here initially, I would have. This is my home here in the BSL and I can't wait to get this season started. Alamo City showed their confidence in Mr Cooper by trading their first round pick to Gateway for Cooper's rights. "It was a no brainer, seriously. Cooper is a first class striker. 18 goals last season and before that when he was last here, with us, he was on a pace for even more than that. Cooper is an Alamo City player and we're going to have a hell of a lot of fun this year," stated Battle management.
A hell of a year is what Thierry Henry is coming off of. A 27 point season certainly qualifies Henry as an elite player. 15 goals and 12 assists being the split pretty much ensures him being the most dangerous player. "He's the guy on the pitch that makes your entire team better. There's no secret, Henry is the best overall player in the league. There's no way he's not with us," said Alamo City management. At the start of the off-season that didn't seem to be the case. The club opened up its entire roster for negotiation, including Henry. "Yes, we all sat and decided that it was best for all of the players and for the club to weigh every option available," said Henry. "We couldn't do that unless every option was truly available." Through the course of negotiations no deal was found suitable for both Henry and the club.
Now Alamo City has Henry back in the fold, and Cooper is back home as well. That's 33 goals coming back for the Battle. Nobody has that kind of firepower already lined up. Alamo City is also hoping to swing a few more deals before the deadlines hit, and the draft begins.
