After the recent signing of Liverpool star Steven Gerrard, the Los Angeles Galaxy have gone forward and signed Mexican forward Giovani Dos Santos.
Spanish report outlet El Periodíco Mediterráneo claimed that Dos Santos had turned down a deal from big spending Mexican Club Tigres.
The Mexican attacker agreed to terms and is set for a four and a half year deal. He is expected to cost $7 million and will earn less than $6 million per year, according to Los Angeles Times
Recent reports also brought up whether playing in the MLS would affect how Dos Santos played for the Mexican National Team.
Although U.S. National Team coach Jurgen Klinsmann does not like his players moving to MLS, Mexico’s National Team coach Miguel Herrera had no problem and stated, “There’s no reason it would affect anything.”
Herrera also said that “teams try to sign important players as leading figures and if Galaxy has considered Gio [it is because] they think, and I think too, that they would be getting an important player.”
Los Angeles had acquired interest in him since 2011. “There’s a lot of things that have to happen for a deal of this magnitude,” Galaxy President Chris Klein said. “We’ve had an interest in Giovani Dos Santos. And I think he’s always had an Interest in us.
“It’s going to be a challenge for him,” Galaxy coach and general manager Bruce Arena told Los Angeles Times. “He’s not been at a club yet where he’s had those kind of responsibilities. And he’s in a community where he is going to be sought after. He’s going to have to be mature about it.”
Dos Santos is currently busy with the Mexican National Team in the CONCACAF Gold Cup and will report to the Galaxy after Mexico is done with the tournament.
The Mexican forward spent several years within the FC Barcelona system, where he then transferred to Tottenham Hotspur. He went on to have various loan spells but eventually returned to Spain, joining Mallorca and now Villarreal. Dos Santos has scored 12 goals in 57 La Liga appearances for Villareal. He has capped 86 appearances for the Mexican National Team, including winning the 2009 and 2011 editions of the Gold Cup, and also winning the gold medal in the 2012 London Olympics.
