Jean Philippe lands; physical begins

For those of you wondering why there is still no official comfirmation of Peguero Jean Philippe’s signing on the Earthquakes’ web site, the reason is simple. He has yet to pass his physical. Exactly when the Quakes expect that to happen, no one is saying and that includes general managner John Doyle who said he wouldn’t comment on Jean Philippe’s status.

Yes, the roaring silence raises the eyebrows a bit. But my take is that given the severity of the knee injury Jean Philippe sustained back in 2006, San Jose is being extra careful to make sure that the Haitian will hold up physically, and the only way to know that is to watch him train for a few days and see how he recovers.

I will say this: Jean Philippe made a good first impression based on his performance at practice on Tuesday. He looked reasonably sharp in his movements, and didn’t look like a guy coming off major knee surgery. He also looks to be a different kind of player when compared to Gavin Glinton and Kei Kamara. Jean Philippe is bigger than both of those performers, and appeared to be a bit more explosive and powerful. Again, it all comes down to how his body recovers.

Could the Quakes back out of the deal? Since it was contingent on Jean Philippe passing the physical, I would think yes, but this is MLS, and things such as voodoo and phases of the moon often dictate how they make decisions. If nothing is announced by Friday, I’d say the deal is in danger of being scuttled.