Photo courtesy of Haverford College

Senior writer Adam Cann is leaving The Philly Soccer Page to take a job with Philadelphia Union.

He departs PSP on a free transfer. We saw the writing on the wall and did not try to wrangle a transfer fee out of MLS. It’s an absolute steal for the Union. Adam is their best acquisition since Sebastien Le Toux and Danny Califf.

Now that we’ve gotten the jokes out of the way, let me be clear. Yes, Adam is truly leaving PSP for the Union.

Adam will work for them as a staff writer and soccer analyst for PhiladelphiaUnion.com, doing some of the same things he did for PSP and likely a whole lot more. He was someone the Union identified, recruited, and wanted to acquire. (I read the job ad. It’s clear they basically wrote it for him.)

If the Union are smart – and I think they are, whatever criticism the club’s recent play warrants – they’ll eventually transition Adam to the technical side as well. He would make a fantastic scout, analyst, and more. If not, I expect to see him as American soccer’s top media analyst for years to come.

We see him off with regret on one hand and the loudest possible cheers on the other. Honestly, it’s more cheers. I’ve hoped for years to see the day I could write this post.

We don’t devote a post to every departure at PSP. Only former PSP managing editor Ed Farnsworth earned one previously. It’s not because he’s moving onto a job with the local pro team either, as multiple PSP alums work for the Union.

Adam is special.

A bit about Adam’s role in creating and shaping PSP

Adam has been crucial to PSP since day 1.

His specialty has obviously been his close tactical analysis. There is no one who writes tactical analysis about American soccer as well as Adam. Nobody goes deep like Adam. Nobody articulates a team’s broad structural trends like Adam. In sports, we tend to focus on the individual, but nobody captures the interrelations of teams as a whole like Adam Cann.

But he’s done far more than that.

He’s an excellent interviewer because he’s naturally curious, thoughtful and humble.

He’s an excellent writer, and that talent was there well before he came to PSP. Did we help him as editors? Sure. But that’s because Adam is the sort who constantly seeks out ways to improve himself. He wants critique. He wants advice. That self-reflection and constant drive for self-improvement are what turns good writers into great ones.

He’s funny as hell, tossing in random non sequiturs and comparisons that sneak up on you — yes, “not good” equals Taylor Twellman screaming, for a recent example — and are so uniquely from the mind of Adam Cann that I can’t even replicate one right now. (Readers, feel free to share your favorites in the Comments section below.)

And Adam has been crucial to PSP’s identity. He has constantly sought to learn and maintain core journalism ethics, while writing at a high intellectual level that generally raises the bar for readers. Adam Cann helped set the standard of quality for PSP, and every other writer strives to match it.

When six of us first got together over beers at The 700 in Northern Liberties on Nov. 9, 2009 to discuss launching this publication, Adam was there. He even helped come up with the name. In fact, it may have even been his idea.

Of the four posts that ran on PSP’s first day, Nov. 16, 2009, he wrote two. Since then, he has written 868 total, more than anyone but Ed Farnsworth.

Adam is one of four core PSP originals who stayed with us for the long haul, along with Ed, Mike Servedio, and me. Adam didn’t just help build this publication. He’s also our friend.

Like most of PSP’s original contributors, Adam played in Philadelphia’s Casa Soccer League when we started PSP, suiting up for West Philly FC, PSP’s most reliable talent pipeline. After finishing his soccer career at Haverford College, he was known as an extraordinarily smart defensive midfielder, and his style of play speaks volume about his approach to soccer. Mike Servedio once told me his soft-spoken teammate racked up more yellow cards than anyone without getting suspended. Adam understood exactly how and when to commit the perfectly timed tactical foul.

In fact, I regret the fact that only now did I think of naming Adam’s column “The Tactical Foul.”

How PSP replaces Adam Cann

You don’t replace someone like Adam Cann.

PSP will not replace his tactical analysis column like-for-like because, simply put, it can’t be done. Nobody writes tactical analysis of American soccer as well as Adam Cann.

Instead, we will replace Adam’s column with a general postgame analysis piece. While you may find some tactical analysis in it, it won’t be as heavy on tactics as Adam’s pieces. It will be similar to what we used to do prior to breaking out Adam’s tactical analysis as a regular feature. We hope you like it.

Adam will continue writing for PSP until he starts work for the Union, which will be sometime in May or June. We’re making full disclosure now about Adam’s departure so that you are aware of his pending new job when you read his final pieces for us. (Note: Adam’s column that ran yesterday was originally scheduled to run today, after this piece, so that this disclosure came first. It ran early due to an oversight. It will be updated to include a full disclosure note.)

After that, we’ll direct you to PhiladelphiaUnion.com to view Adam’s work. We know Adam well. We know his intellectual integrity. We trust his analysis. Adam’s future employers have told him that he’ll be able to honestly call things how he sees them. That’s smart. After all, look at how MLSsoccer.com has evolved. Matt Doyle, Bobby Warshaw and others are calling it straight and providing excellent analysis, with reporters with legitimate journalism street cred like Paul Tenorio and Dave Zeitlin writing for the site. As a result, MLS fans read MLSsoccer.com in a way that nobody reads other professional leagues’ websites.

We expect the Union to maintain a similar standard because they likely understand the value of honest brokers providing such content: It ensures that people actually read your site. (And yes, we know it was different back when friends of PSP Kevin Kinkead and Kerith Gabriel, both solid journalists, had to face down pressure from certain superiors at the Union, but those days are past and key faces have changed.) We’re looking forward to reading Adam’s work there.

Going back to Philly

Recently, Adam mentioned to me something about not being from Philly, and it’s true, he’s not originally from the area. He arrived for college at Haverford and stayed till he left for a PhD program at Texas Tech University.

But I had to correct him.

Adam’s work for PSP has made him a treasure for the Philadelphia soccer community. He may be ending his time with PSP, but, with his return to Philly, he’s also coming home.