Personally I'm a bit shocked RE Garber's words about the Mellberg situation. I'll eat some crow on that one. I never thought last summer that the league would have interfered so judgmentally in a specific player signing. I figured if the league had interfered, it would have been due to TFC's overall DP situation (e.g., Frings + Koevermans injured but still on the books + JDG to Dallas but a big chunk of his salary still covered by Toronto + the hasty Hassli signing + Mellberg???).

Now mind you, MLS probably did interfere more vigorously in the case of TFC due to our history -- overpaying JDG; Mista; overpaying for Ecks & many others since 2007; the Plata signing & not knowing there was a hefty transfer fee due for him; etc. etc.

Also, it does seem like Garber lied, changing his story between this interview & his earlier words quoted above. I'm generally not happy with the league's lack of transparency. However, there is one explanation that would tie these changing stories together somewhat: likely Mariner & Co. wanted Mellberg, but perhaps MLS went to the MLSE owners and convinced them that Mellberg wasn't worth it: too much money for a defender in a lost season.