As the captain of the Mexican national team, Rafael Marquez is one of the most hated soccer players in the US. Marquez, considered a thug by many fans, is known to lose his cool when playing the Americans, and was red carded in US's famous 2:0 World Cup win over Mexico in 2002. But could that hate turn to love if he is signed by Metro?

Marquez's name was making the rumor rounds recently, but we finally have a verification. According to ESPN Deportes, "MLS sources confirmed to ESPN that Rafael Marquez will be in New York to negotiate with the Red Bulls and the chances of signing with this team are 75 percent."

According to Univision, "a source close to the club stated that it is only a matter of hours for Marquez to transfer to the Red Bulls. The transfer is almost buttoned down and will shortly be made official."

Marquez captained Mexico at the last three World Cups. He has been capped 94 times, scoring 11 goals. On the club level, Marquez started with Atlas before moving to Monaco in 1999. In 2003, he joined Barcelona, where he was teammates with Thierry Henry at Barcelona, helping the Catalan giants to four La Liga titles and two Champions League crowns.

Marquez is still under contract in Barcelona for two more years, so a transfer fee would be required. According to ESPN, "Barcelona would be asking for about seven million euros".