Colorado Rapids sign two-time reigning Swiss Golden Boot winner to DP deal

The Colorado Rapids scooped up a Designated Player on Deadline Day, as MLS buzzed with activity almost as much as any top flight in Europe.

The name is Shkëlzen Gashi, and he’s the twice-reigning leading scorer in the Swiss League, where he spent the last two seasons with Basel. The 27-year-old Albanian has one goal in 10 caps for his country, scoring against Armenia in 2016 Euro qualifying.

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The Rapids have seen plenty of roster tumult and transfer gossip action this offseason, with Clint Irwin and Drew Moor finding new homes and names like Ale Bedoya and Tim Howard linked with Colorado.

From ColoradoRapids.com:

“Shkëlzen was our top attacking target this offseason,” said Paul Bravo, Technical Director and VP of Soccer Operations. “He has proven to be a prolific goalscorer in his club’s domestic and European success. In addition he has been instrumental in his national team’s qualification campaign for Euro 2016. We are delighted to sign him on a permanent transfer and look forward to seeing him in burgundy.”

Gashi joins forward Kevin Doyle in the ranks of DPs in Colorado. He was the Footballer of the Year in Switzerland for 2014.

The move is extremely interesting in making a comparison between the status of the Swiss Super League and Major League Soccer. In form, Gashi is a nice litmus test for those of us interested in a status report.

And judging by the picture, Colorado’s crazy about a sharp-dressed man.

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