TORONTO — New head coach Robin Fraser added to his coaching staff Friday with Toronto FC making a deal to pry loose two of his former assistants from the Colorado Rapids.

To get assistant coach Neil Emblen and video coach Jase Kim on board, Toronto sent its first-round pick in the 2026 MLS SuperDraft to the Rapids. As part of the deal, TFC may receive US$175,000 in general allocation money and retain a sell-on percentage if the pick turns out to be one of the top three in the drafts.

“I’m really happy that we were able to get them,” said Fraser. “I know it comes at a price but I think it’s worthwhile … I do feel like this project needed a fresh kind of feeling. And certainly these are people that I’ve been through a lot with and have a great deal of trust in.”

The two new additions join incumbent goalkeeping coach Simon Eaddy, director of performance Cesar Meylan and performance analyst Peter Galindo.

TFC left Friday for Spain to continue its pre-season preparations.

Emblen has spent the last seven years with Colorado, where he served as both an assistant coach and “the main coaching link to the recruiting department.”

A former defender and midfielder whose playing career stretched from 1987 to 2011, Emblem had stints with Tonbridge Angels, Sittingbourne, Millwall, Wolves, Crystal Palace, Norwich City and Walsall in his native England before moving to the Southern Hemisphere to play for the New Zealand Knights and Waitakere United.

“They still chant his name at Wolves,” said Fraser.

“I love his character. I love his enthusiasm for the game,” he added. “He’s a very good coach.”

Emblen coached Waitakere to three straight New Zealand league titles between 2010 and 2012. He managed New Zealand at the 2012 London Olympics before serving two matches as New Zealand’s interim head coach in 2014.

Kim joined Colorado in January 2018 as a first-team video analyst after serving first as a performance analyst and then head performance analyst for the New Zealand national team. Kim was also part of the New Zealand technical staff at the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 17, 2025

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press

DENVER, Colo. (KKTV) – One of the largest rental companies in the country is facing two separate lawsuits, including from Colorado’s Attorney General, Phil Weiser. He says Greystar Real Estate Properties is charging local tenants hidden fees.

Greystar says these accusations are not true. Another federal lawsuit accuses Greystar of coordinating with other property management companies to manipulate rent. Greystar also denies these claims.

“Whether you are working at a restaurant or grocery store or you’re a teacher or a nurse it is too expensive to live in our communities and specifically we’re feeling that impact in terms of housing,” Denver-area lawmaker Javier Mabrey said.

Mabrey says his proposal prevents two or more landlords from coordinating rent prices. It specifically bans any software that allows landlords to share information. Something that the Department of Justice has already banned.

“Coloradans need to know that landlords have been using a technology that the Department of Justice thinks is illegal to do illegal collusion in the rental market,” Mabrey said.

In a lawsuit announced earlier this month, the Department of Justice alleged that Greystar, which operates several locations in Colorado Springs, allegedly that software.

In a statement, Greystar says:

“Greystar has and will conduct its business with the utmost integrity. At no time did Greystar engage in any anti-competitive practices.” (FULL STATEMENT HERE)

The FTC and Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser are also suing Greystar, Saying they deceptively advertised rent prices, and then charged hidden fees.

Weiser claims the alleged tactics are spreading to other rental companies saying in part:

“Other corporate landlords are not advertising their all-in pricing and are engaging in similar tactics, they are on notice that such conduct is illegal and will not be tolerated in Colorado.” (FULL STATEMENT HERE)

Greystar responded to the accusations by Weiser and the FTC saying in part:

“The idea that this is done with the goal of hiding fees from consumers is patently false. No resident at a Greystar-managed community pays a fee they have not seen and agreed to in their lease.” (FULL STATEMENT HERE)

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