Vancouver Whitecaps Present New Left Back Alain Rochat

VANCOUVER, BC - With preseason training set to begin next week, Vancouver Whitecaps FC announced today the signing of Canadian-born defender Alain Rochat to the club's Major League Soccer roster - pending his international transfer certificate. Per club policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.

"We're delighted to add Alain to our MLS squad," said Whitecaps FC head coach Teitur Thordarson. "He brings a wealth of experience and has won titles in a top-flight European league and has played in prestigious European club competitions like the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup."

Initially acquired from FC Zürich by Whitecaps FC during the 2010 USSF D-2 Pro League season on August 17, the 27-year-old spent the remainder of last year on loan at the Swiss Super League outfit. The 6-foot, 170-pound defender - who can play left fullback as well as centre back - started all 14 appearances during his loan spell with FC Zürich.

"I'm excited by this new challenge to play in North America and in Major League Soccer,” said Rochat. “Vancouver is a beautiful city, and Whitecaps FC have been very welcoming to me and my family, since I made the decision to first sign with the club last summer."

The native of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, first joined FC Zürich on loan during the 2006-07 season from Stade Rennais FC of France’s Ligue 1 before making his move permanent the following season. In four-and-a-half seasons with FC Zürich, Rochat made 154 appearances, scoring nine goals, and recording 10 assists. During this time, Rochat helped FC Zürich to Swiss Super League championship titles during the 2006-07 and 2008-09 campaigns. In the 2009-10 season, Rochat helped FC Zürich reach the group stage of the UEFA Champions League, where they faced Spanish giants Real Madrid, Italian powerhouse AC Milan, and France's Olympique de Marseille in Group C.

Prior to his recent spell with FC Zürich, Rochat joined Stade Rennais FC at the start of the 2005-06 French Ligue 1 season and appeared in 11 matches for the Brittany-based club. From 2001 to 2005, the defender played four seasons with Switzerland's Berner Sport Club (BSC) Young Boys. Rochat started his professional career in 1999 with Yverdon Sport FC, who were then members of the Swiss Super League.

Rochat, who moved from Canada to Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland, when he was two, appeared for Switzerland at the youth international level before making his senior international debut on June 4, 2005, as Switzerland claimed a 3-1 away victory over the Faroe Islands in Group Four of European qualifying for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.

Malould Akloul owes me Lunch!

So as some of you may know I get the pleasure of hosting many of the Whitecaps half-time events and contests. This affords me the opportunity to interact with all kinds of people. So last Wednesday when the 'Caps hosted Miami I had a very special interaction with a couple of the players which is quite a treat for someone who is a fan above all else. So I'll paint the picture for you.

I was going over the script of our contest (kicking a ball blindfolded from 30ft at 10 bowling pins) with some of the other interns from the club and we were not really successful in our attempts at knocking the pins down. Actually almost everyone missed the pins completely. If you happened to catch the actual contest at half-time the results were much the same.

So we tried and we tried. Testing moving the kicking position closer, not using a blindfold, etc, etc; then Teitur came out and in his infinite knowledge told us we would be far more accurate if we didn't take any lead up steps and just stood there and kicked the ball from a standstill position. Then he kindly demonstrated by covering his eyes and from 30 ft away. STRIKE! every pin! He did it on multiple occasions.

As our pregame set up of the stadium progressed some of the players decided that they were going to give it a shot. So Chris Williams and Mr. Akloul had a go as we watched and I politely informed them of Teitur's earlier success.

This created a situation where the always entertaining Malould Akloul challenged me to do it and if I knocked em down he'd buy dinner. So I stepped up and covered my face with my arm. The result is displayed to the Left. Since Wendy's is a sponsor I think I deserve a Classic Triple and a Large Frosty.