Toronto FC: Club President Bill Manning responds to Giovinco rumors

After increasing speculation about Sebastian Giovinco’s future with Toronto FC, club president Bill Manning took to the airwaves to offer his side of the story.

On Monday, we suggested that Toronto FC should come out and clarify Sebastian Giovinco’s future. Well, ask and you shall receive.

TFC club president Bill Manning appeared on TSN 1050 on Tuesday morning, to discuss all the recent speculation surrounding Giovinco. And he had a lot of interesting things to say.

From all the comments Giovinco and his agent have previously made, the preference is to remain in Toronto. This seemed to allude to TFC not being clear about their intentions for the 2015 MLS MVP, and potentially being ready to move on without him.

However, this is not the case, at least according to Manning. As reported by TSN, he said:

"“I think we’ve made a significant offer to keep him but we’re still not there yet. When you ask me what my goal was, that’s certainly the goal, to re-sign him.”"

So what’s the issue? As is so often the case in professional sports, it comes down to money.

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As much as Giovinco claims he wants to stay in Toronto, how much is he willing to compromise on salary? In 2018, he had the top cap hit in MLS at just over $7.1 million per year, which was the cap hit for all four of the seasons he’s played in North America.

TFC are now asking the 32-year-old to take a slight drop in wages. However, he’d still receive designated player money and, as Manning points out, he’d still be among the top five or six paid players in the league.

Manning went on to tell TSN 1050 that Giovinco’s age is becoming a factor, with the Reds now looking to the future. Throw in the reality that the front office spent $9 million more than the next closest team, but failed to make the playoffs.

Certainly, Manning makes a compelling case for the team, almost to the point where you now wonder if it is Giovinco who is being unreasonable. However, as the saying goes, when there are two versions of events, the truth is often somewhere in the middle.

There is still no denying that Giovinco has done an awful lot for Toronto FC, helping the team ascend to the next level and win their first ever MLS Cup. He is the best player in franchise and –arguably — MLS history.

There is also no doubt the Italian international can still play a pivotal role for the Reds. Even as the club struggled around him in 2018 he performed at a high level, averaging a goal contribution in 28 MLS appearances (13 goals and 15 assists) and being named player of the tournament, on the run to the CONCACAF Champions League final.

By the same token, Giovinco must surely appreciate Toronto FC’s position. It’s not as if they don’t want him, as evidenced by Manning admitting the club received an offer for the player last week and immediately rejected it.

Giovinco says he wants to remain in Toronto and they would also like him to stay past this season. However, it seems like we’re getting to a point where we’re about to find out to what extent the desire to stay in Southern Ontario is compromised by how much money he can make.

How do you see all this playing out with Giovinco? Will he sign an extension with Toronto FC, be traded, or stay until the end of the 2018 season and then leave? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.