More on Jean Philippe’s end..

As CLS reported earlier on Tuesday, San Jose Earthquakes forward Peguero Jean Philippe is being placed on the season-ending injury list, meaning that his loan from Danish side Brondby is over.

The reason given by the Quakes for Jean Philippe’s ouster is that his right knee, which underwent reconstructive surgery back in 2006, could not withstand the rigors of MLS, with continued swelling preventing the Haitian from playing on a consistent basis.

“We had hoped that [Jean Philippe] was going to be what he was a few years ago with New York,” said Quakes’ General Manager John Doyle. “So we were willing to take a risk on that. It’s just unfortunate that his knee didn’t hold up.” 

It is thought that Jean Philippe reinjured his knee on May 10 against Columbus, but Doyle stated that the team knew the forward’s knee was suspect when he arrived, and he believes that the original injury was the root cause of the problem.

“I think [Jean Philippe’s] knee was never repaired correctly,” said Doyle. “Our doctors saw that when they did the MRI on his arrival; that it was shaky at best. But we were hoping that…he could manage it. Peguero thinks that he did something that made it a little worse, but we think the damage was already done.”

Of course, the move raises as many questions as it answers. How much of Jean Philippe’s salary are the Quakes on the hook for, and did they lose their place in line as it relates to signing former MLS players intent on returning to the league?

Doyle revealed few specifics as it related to Jean Philippe’s salary, other than to say the way the deal was constructed, it was a “no-lose situation” for San Jose. Doyle did add that San Jose did not lose their place in the pecking order for former MLS players wanting to return to the league. The Quakes had first dibs on Jean Philippe when he returned to MLS, and had the Haitian stuck around, they would have moved to the bottom of that list. Now that Jean Philippe is gone, that is no longer the case.

When pressed further about the financial impact of Jean Philippe’s departure, Doyle would only add, “We didn’t lose anything.”

Head coach Frank Yallop did confirm that last week’s deal that brought Jovan Kirovski and Kelly Gray to San Jose from Colorado in exchange for Preston Burpo and a 2009 fourth round pick, was precipitated by Jean Philippe’s injury as well as Kei Kamara’s impending absence with the Sierra Leone national team.

What Jean Philippe’s next move will be is unclear, with Yallop hinting that additional surgery might be necessary.

“[Jean Philippe] is just trying to figure everything out right now,” said Yallop.