Costa Rican International Bryan Ruiz set to leave Fulham for Sporting Lisbon

Bryan Ruiz is leaving again. Or he isn't. We've been down this road before. He was loaned to PSV after not getting along with Magath, but returned after the season. After a great World Cup run with Costa Rica, he was expected to be sold last off season, but the window closed and he was still around; even though Magath wouldn't play him. A deal with Levante was said to be finalized in January, only for a paperwork problem to stop it. Ruiz's contract was set to expire in June, only for Fulham to exercise the option for one more year. So is this the time he really goes?

It's a deal that makes sense. Fulham only picked up the option to sell him. So his value isn't that great. The €2M fee reported by Portuguese paper A Bola is something Sporting Lisbon could readily afford. And it fits with their history of buying players on the cheap.

Sporting Lisbon do have a player who fits a similar role in Fredy Montero. However, he's subject to transfer rumors of his own. If they could fetch near his market value of €10M, it would be a tidy profit on the just over €2M they paid for him. Giving them more than enough money to pick up Ruiz and still pocket the difference.

Sporting Lisbon is also set to compete in the Champions League next season. For a player like Ruiz, that could be a very attractive proposition.

The report says a deal is expected this week, so we should know sooner rather than later if this gets done. I don't expect Ruiz to be here next season, but I'll be sad to see him go. He might never have been a perfect fit. And he might never have lived up to the £11M fee Fulham paid for him. But I always enjoyed watching him play.