San Jose Earthquakes trade Ryan Johnson to Toronto FC for Alan Gordon, Jacob Peterson, and Nana Attakora

In a move that came out of nowhere this morning, the San Jose Earthquakes traded midfielder and Jamaican international Ryan Johnson, an undisclosed amount of allocation money, and an International player roster slot for a trio of Toronto FC players. Falling victim to TFC head coach Aron Winter's roster make-over and headed west to California are forward Alan Gordon, midfielder Jacob Peterson, and defender Nana Attakora.

I spell out the details of the trade over at Center Line Soccer, but key for both teams was getting something of value for some increasingly superfluous parts. Johnson has endured a rather uneven season and many fans were ready to see the Jamaican move on. In order to make him attractive enough to Toronto, the Earthquakes also had to include allocation money and their International player slot through the 2012 season. While they do get three players back, including two that fill holes at right midfielder and central defender, the Quakes will be on the hook for another $80K in prorated salary for the remainder of the 2011 season.