There are many things that make Major League Soccer so different from other leagues around the world. Forced media appearances, playing on turf, mid-season trades and league admin initiatives are just a few of them. For 22-year-old midfielder Franco Ibarra, a mid-season loan away from a contending team he’s been a massive contributor to was the last thing he was expecting.

Two days after Atlanta United informed Ibarra he would be loaned to Toronto FC, so ATL could comply with MLS’s Under-22 initiative, which offers clubs salary cap flexibility but limits teams to just three players, the Argentine is still coming to grips with his new reality.

“I’m trying to accept all of this,” Ibarra told The Athletic. “I have thousands of questions. But there’s no point in dwelling on this. That’ll make it worse for me… If I’m highly valued then send me to a better team. Don’t send me to the worst team. I understand that this is a business, but send me to another team.”

A casualty of Atlanta’s roster mismanagement, Ibarra was the player forced to make way, despite playing an important role for head coach Gonzalo Pineda. Colombian winger Edwin Mosquera returned from his loan at Argentina’s Defensa y Justicia which is what put Atlanta United over the allowance with Mosquera, Ibarra, Santiago Sosa and Erik López all signed as U-22 initiative players.

Atlanta sporting director and former USMNT captain Carlos Bocanegra was the one to break the news to Ibarra on Wednesday evening. Ibarra refused to accept the situation.

“Carlos told me that he was going to close the deal that same night and that I had to go,” Ibarra said. “I told Carlos that he didn’t have to close that deal. That I wasn’t going to leave Atlanta. I’m not going to that team.

“I didn’t know when I had to leave for Toronto, where I’m going to live, what I’ll have to do with my visa. I was completely in the dark. I told Carlos that I understood that there are rules. I get it, but I’m not going to Toronto.” 

Ibarra turned up at Atlanta’s training ground on Thursday morning for a normal day of work. He was not allowed to participate and told to go home.

“I was told that I didn’t need to change because I was already a Toronto player. That Atlanta had closed the deal,” Ibarra told The Athletic. “Carlos told me that he was really sorry. He said he needed to cut the roster down. I reiterated that I wouldn’t go to Toronto. It doesn’t benefit me at all from a football standpoint. It’s obvious where Toronto is at the moment versus Atlanta.” 

As much as Toronto FC fans don’t want to hear that an incoming player is upset about joining the club, it is easy to understand why the 22-year-old feels that way. The Reds have been a disaster this season, with just three wins from 22 games, despite having the highest payroll in MLS and two of the most marquee names the league has ever had. Ibarra may grow to enjoy the club

“I’m hurt and it bothers me how you’ve done this and where you’re sending me,” Ibarra revealed about his conversation with Bocanegra. “You can’t call me out of the blue to tell me that I have to move to another country. If you tell me a week ago that there’s a problem and that I no longer have a U-22 slot, that’s different. But instead I found out last night that (Bocanegra) had to get rid of one of the four U-22 players.”

According to Felipe Cárdenas of The Athletic, Ibarra spoke with Toronto FC general manager Jason Hernandez who empathized with the player’s situation. Ibarra was told that Atlanta would work diligently to improve his chances for a European transfer upon the end of his TFC loan. 

“I mean, are you serious? I still don’t know when I have to be in Toronto,” said Ibarra about his conversation with Bocanegra. “These are things that should be talked through. Is it good for me? Is it a bad move for me? But instead I showed up to train and they didn’t let me train. I had to turn around and go back home. Legally I have to go. I have to show up there. I’m a Toronto FC player now. Even if I wanted to try and stall the deal by saying that I didn’t want to go to Toronto, I couldn’t. The deal was already closed. It bothered me how they did this.”

Ibarra bid farewell to Atlanta fans with a heartfelt Instagram post on Friday admitting he was filled with “pain and sadness” and that he had “insisted on staying in Atlanta.”

He is a young midfielder that is not afraid to get stuck in and do the dirty work. Exactly what a TFC midfield without Michael Bradley needs and landing him at this point in the season with as many suitors as he likely had, is a real coup for the Reds.

“Players here think this type of thing is normal,” Ibarra said. “For the Latino players it’s more of a blow. The same happened with Josef. But Andrew Gutman was also sent to a last-placed team (Colorado) and he was like, ‘I have to go. Bye.’ It’s normal here. They just leave.”

“In the end it’s me who has to pick up the pieces for the club or for Carlos or whoever. I finally told him that if I had to go because of the U-22 rule, fine. I’ll do it, but let me go to a club that’ll benefit me. I told him I didn’t want to leave Atlanta. I’m good here and we have a chance to fight for the league championship. We’re a different team than last year.” 

Toronto FC have yet to announce Ibarra’s loan. With a more positive atmosphere in camp, at least publicly, after the appointment of Terry Dunfield, Ibarra may settle in quickly and find there’s more quality in the team than TFC’s record would indicate. Or, maybe not.