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A few weeks ago, Union manager Bradley Carnell<\/a> said something that caused ears to perk up, before fading into the waves of the team\u2019s winless rut. <\/p>\n But it hadn\u2019t quite been forgotten.<\/p>\n In an interview on Apple\u2019s studio show before the March 7 game vs. San Jose, Carnell was asked about Cavan Sullivan<\/a>\u2019s progress to start the year.<\/p>\n Carnell\u2019s answer started with praise for the teenager\u2019s work, then turned in an unexpected direction.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been working closely with Man City as well,\u201d the manager said. \u201cEveryone\u2019s having a collective approach into the development, as we do with every player, and we\u2019ve seen good returns so far.\u201d<\/p>\n What exactly did Carnell mean by \u201cworking closely\u201d with Manchester City, the English Premier League giant that Sullivan is set to join at the end of next year for $5 million?<\/p>\n And why was Carnell mentioning that deal in the first place? When Sullivan turned pro with the Union at 14 in May of 2024, City couldn\u2019t say another step was coming, because of English labor laws on minors.<\/p>\n \u00bb READ MORE: Union\u2019s Bradley Carnell recognizes the \u2018unique situation\u2019 his club is in heading to Montr\u00e9al<\/a><\/p>\n The Union have also been about it all, though more by their choice, and Carnell isn\u2019t the only team staffer who has named City in recent months. Interim sporting director Jon Scheer did so too at the United Soccer Coaches Convention in January.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s one thing to have a handshake deal for down the road, and another to say \u201cworking closely.\u201d That merited asking around about. On Thursday, Scheer gave some answers, and some clarity.<\/p>\n \u201cI think any time you have a player that will be at another club in the future, the better Cavan does, it\u2019s going to be better for both of us,\u201d he told The Inquirer. \u201cBut to be really clear, Cavan is our player, and he\u2019s got to perform well here every single day and every single week. So we\u2019re in contact with Manchester City, but yeah, in terms of what Cavan does in our environment, that\u2019s up to us.\u201d<\/p>\n There are conversations, and Scheer said the dynamic is similar to the ones the Union have with U.S. Soccer about Sullivan\u2019s progress with youth national teams. And just as Sullivan sometimes joins those youth teams, he has gone over to Manchester a few times for training stints with the club\u2019s youth squads.<\/p>\n \u00bb READ MORE: What\u2019s it going to take for the Union to snap out of their downward spiral? Here are two ideas.<\/a><\/p>\n But there are boundaries, Scheer said, and he said Manchester City is fine with not crossing them.<\/p>\n \u201cThe technical people that we are in touch with are really respectful and professional in all this,\u201d he said. \u201cThey give us, and they understand, where there\u2019s a line and Cavan\u2019s our player. So they don\u2019t cross that line. And we\u2019re just trying to make the most out of Cavan, so the better he does, the better it is for everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s still an unusual dynamic, at least by MLS standards. This sort of thing is increasingly common in the soccer world \u2014 and not always enjoyable to be sure, but governing bodies aren\u2019t stopping it.<\/p>\n Philadelphia saw another notable example during the Club World Cup<\/a> last year. Brazilian rising star Est\u00eav\u00e3o played for Palmeiras against Chelsea, the club he was going to join as soon as the tournament ended, and scored a terrific goal<\/a>. Chelsea won, knocked Palmeiras out, and Est\u00eav\u00e3o switched sides a few days later.<\/p>\n (Coincidentally, he might be back in town this summer with Brazil\u2019s World Cup squad for the Sele\u00e7ao\u2019s group stage game against Haiti.)<\/p>\n What happens if the Union have to go through this again? It will probably be awkward. But Scheer was sure footed before Ernst Tanner\u2019s suspension<\/a>, and believes he\u2019ll be ready to handle it.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to project out in the future, and we have a lot of talented youngsters in our club, so, yeah, we\u2019re always going to evaluate what\u2019s best for every single player and what\u2019s best for our club,\u201d he said. \u201cSo if it makes sense, we\u2019d be open to the communication. We\u2019re happy that Cavan\u2019s career starts with us \u2014 but we\u2019re focused on every single day with him.\u201d<\/p>\n