Dielna admits he's gone, but others would like to stick around

FOXBOROUGH — In contract-based, professional sports — especially in a league like Major League Soccer where the terms of a player’s personal contract are so secretive one needs a crowbar to pry the information loose — you sometimes don’t know who’ll return for the next season right away. Revolution manager Brad Friedel said Sunday evening that players are expected to find out next week whether or not they will return to Gillette Stadium in 2019, but the club will not make any roster decisions known to the public until late November.

“We’ll be having meetings over the next week,” he said. “The players that we do take along with us (into 2019) will be committed players… we’re very much looking forward toward preseason starting.

But after several conversations in the hour-plus aftermath of Sunday night’s 1-0 Revolution win over Montreal, we have a definitive gone from one player, and a hope to return from several others.

As expected, centerback Claude Dielna will not return to Route 1 next season. The Frenchman — who was the club’s lone designated player and started the 2018 season wearing the captain’s armband — fell out of favor in July during the aftermath of the Revolution’s 3-2 defeat at the hands of LA Galaxy on July 14.

Two matches later, Dielna played what turned out to be the last match of his New England career against the eventual Supporter’s Shield winners, the New York Red Bulls on July 21.

Since then, supporters following Dielna on Instagram have seen pics of him enjoying himself on match days while the club is on the road. It led to speculation about Dielna’s future in Foxborough.

Post-match Sunday night, wearing a black knit cap, white-framed glasses, a gray pea coat over a purple hooded sweatshirt along with black warm-up pants, Dielna faced the music of the Revolution press corps to answer about his future.

When asked where he planned to play next, he replied, “It’s going to be somewhere else. I will not stay here next season.”

In not so many words, Dielna eluded to his displeasure with his lack of playing time over the last three-plus months of the season.

“I have nothing to say. I said already, this was the choice of the coach, so yeah, unfortunately I didn’t play the second part of the season,” he said. “I’m a competitor, so of course, I wanted to play. I was ready to play, so like a professional, I respect the choice.”

Dielna does not yet know where he will play in 2019, if it will be here in MLS or elsewhere.

“I need some time with my family. I’m going to discuss it with my agent, but for sure, in January  I will be back on the pitch with a lot of energy like I showed for one year in New England,” he said. “This is life in football: I came here (midseason 2017), everything was well. A new coach come… and um, but I can adapt my situation with every coach. This season was a little bit frustrating for the second part of the season for me, but like I told you, I’m a competitor. I’m a soldier, and I know in January you guys will hear about me.”

Left back Gabriel Somi, who was one of Friedel’s preseason acquisitions in January, also fell out of favor in early August.

While noting that he has “a contract, guaranteed, for next year,” he was realistic that he may not be here when the team reconvenes in January.

“My situation haven’t been so good with the playing time, but we’ll see,” Somi said. “I have to sit down with my agent and speak about it.

“I want to play, whether it’s here or somewhere else. Of course, you’re not guaranteed to play anywhere, but we’ll see.”

Somi added that the only message conveyed to him about getting back into the squad was “keep working hard.”

“It’s the coach’s decision to choose the squad, and you just have to accept it and work hard,” he said. “Even though we had a record where we didn’t win games, he didn’t play me. So of course it’s frustrating. I won’t stand here and lie. You just have to work hard.”

Fan favorite midfielder Kelyn Rowe, who still has a year remaining on his contract, was uncharacteristically bullish about his situation with the club — but at times maintained his sense of humor about it all.

“Things stand kind of unknown. (Friedel) and I haven’t had a meeting yet, he had a meeting with the whole group,” he said. “Individually, we’ll have it next week, figure out what he wants from me in the offseason coming into next year, where he wants me to play — obviously we know that I can play multiple positions throughout the year for the third year in a row.”

When asked about the status of his contract and whether his future sits at Patriot Place or elsewhere, he replied, “That’s a question for (general manager) Mike Burns.”

He stiffened slightly when asked if his moving around in the Revs formation has hindered his career, especially when his preferred position is in the center of the midfield — a position a good segment of the fandom would have liked to see him in after the departure of Lee Nguyen to Los Angeles in May.

“I’m here to play games. I’ve said it many times, and as many ways as you guys want to ask, I will be on the field and that’s happiness for me,” he said. “Whether it be right back, goalkeeper, left back, or center mid. I’m playing the game that I love to play every day, and yes, I hope it’s in the center of the midfield. I hope it’s higher up. If it’s not, I’ll do the best I can, and I still get to play the game.

“When you guys talk about contracts, it’s not up to me. You guys know it’s out of my hands. You know this league, you guys know I’m not hitting any free agency. It’s out of my hands. It’s for Mike Burns, it’s for my agent, it’s for other clubs to deal with.”

Other players we spoke with are now entering their option year in their contract:

“I just want to be back so I can fight and keep (a centerback) spot,” Antonio Delamea said.

“I’ve loved my time here, and I’m going to continue to work hard for this organization, and see what happens,” Teal Bunbury said.

“I’ve been in the league seven, eight years, just got off the field; I know not to answer questions like that,” said Juan Agudelo, adding that he wants to be a part of the club’s future. “We’ll see.”

Andrew Farrell also has an option year.

Diego Fagundez said that he was in his option year, too. The Revs’ first Homegrown player kept mum about his future.

“Whatever happens with me, we can start talking about it,” he said. “Don’t get me wrong, I like playing for these coaches. You can tell they’re hungry to make playoffs and hungry to win games and win cups.”