On Monday, it was revealed that Toronto FC captain Michael Bradley would undergo surgery following a severe ankle injury suffered during the 2019 MLS Cup loss to the Seattle Sounders. Given the fact that it’d been 71 days since the final and with the club now reporting for preseason, news of Bradley being sidelined for approximately four months was met with confused anger throughout Toronto.
A new video has surfaced featuring an emotional phone call between Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez and his parents discussing his move to Los Angeles and the beginning of his retirement.
When The18 launched back in the summer of 2014, we were essentially codependent on the life and times of Javier “Chicharito” Hernández. Our business was Chichagols, and business was damn good.
First David Beckham. Then Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Now Chicharito.
With Ibrahimovic gone, LAFC looking stacked ahead of 2020 and no global stars on the current squad, the LA Galaxy needed to do something to maintain their status as the MLS glamor club. So they did.
Rhian Brewster wasted little time in scoring on his home debut for Swansea, striking in the 19th minute to bring the Swans level with Wigan at 1-1. The 19-year-old did well to sense an opportunity and made a perfectly timed run onto fellow loanee Conor Gallagher's slip pass into the box, burying his shot in the lower right corner for his first senior goal.
He was named Swansea fans' Man of the Match for his performance in the 2-1 victory over Wigan which saw the Swans move up to fifth place in the Championship.
On Jan. 4, Bayern Munich announced the acquisition of Schalke goalkeeper Alexander Nubel for the beginning of next season. Nubel, named club captain by new manager David Wagner ahead of the 2019-20 campaign, will see out his contract with the Royal Blues and sign for Bayern on a free transfer. Nubel's exit represents the latest occurrence of a worrying trend for Schalke, which has seen several players depart for free over the years, leaving the club emptyhanded.
Norwich City has ventured into the transfer market this month in a bid to boost its chances of Premier League survival. Manager Daniel Farke has brought in Ondrej Duda from Hertha Berlin and Hoffenheim's Lukas Rupp in hopes they will be able to help turn around the fortunes of the struggling Canaries.
Duda arrives on a loan until the end of the season, while Rupp was purchased outright for $570,000. Their signings continue the trend of Farke scouting the German leagues he knows so well; the two represent his 11th and 12th additions from Germany since his 2017 arrival.
Tottenham could be left without star striker Harry Kane until the start of next season, according to manager Jose Mourinho. Kane left Spurs' 1-0 New Years Day defeat to Southampton with an injury, revealed after scans to be a ruptured tendon in his hamstring. The North London side was initially hopeful Kane would be able to resume training in April, but Mourinho has now suggested that may be too optimistic.
Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen could soon have his wish of leaving Tottenham granted. Eriksen has voiced his displeasure with the club and intends to leave the Premier League to go elsewhere. Serie A side Inter Milan has focused its sights on the 27-year-old and is prepared to offer him quite the lucrative deal. Eriksen could be earning $130,000 a week after taxes according to The Times.
Deyna Castellanos, perhaps the biggest international college soccer player in the history of the game, has no interest in playing in the NWSL.
The Venezuelan international who starred at Florida State for four years, will instead join Atlético Madrid. The 20-year-old inked a two-and-a-half-year contract through the 2022 season on Thursday.