Rumors have abounded in recent weeks that legendary Spanish midfielder Vero Boquete will not return to Utah Royals FC next season, with SB Nation reporting she could be headed to AC Milan in Italy.
On Monday, Boquete said she will not be back with URFC next season, and she indeed intends to go to Europe, although she did not say what club she might play for.
In an appearance on El Patio, a Spanish women’s soccer podcast, Boquete said, “This season I will return to Europe,” she said in part. “Soon we will know where, but it will be soon.”
.@VeroBoquete: “Esta temporada volveré a Europa sí o sí. Pronto sabremos dónde, pero será cerca”.
— El Patio (@El_Patio__) November 2, 2020
👉 https://t.co/L6Ra6ZSV5l pic.twitter.com/2huqGn27R4
URFC made a huge splash in January 2019 when it signed Boquete, who has long been one of the best midfielders in the world. The thought was that adding her to an attack that already included Christen Press and Amy Rodriguez would make URFC very high-powered.
Boquete largely did her part in helping spearhead that attack, but URFC faltered down the stretch in 2019 and missed the playoffs. Then head coach Laura Harvey, who was a big draw for Boquete to sign with Utah, departed. The 2020 season was disjointed because of the pandemic and the URFC organization is in disarray, which makes Boquete’s revelation unsurprising.
Besides organizational upheaval, URFC faces plenty of roster questions heading into 2021, one of which is now how it will get its attack going in the midfield without a player of Boquete’s caliber.