Jordan Henderson to leave Saudi league, LAFC buys Grasshopper, and more: Thursday Freedom Kicks
Happy Thursday, everyone. It’s still cold out, we got snow on the ground, and sounds like we could get a bit more this evening. So, while you sip your hot coffee or cocoa, here’s some links to review:
Jordan Henderson: Ajax close to signing England midfielder from Saudi club Al-Ettifaq (BBC)
Jordan Henderson appears to be leaving Saudi Arabia after 6 months, and reportedly without getting paid a single pence. He’s already damaged his image in the eyes of many, and it looks like his bank account hasn’t seen any deposits either.
LAFC buys majority stake in fallen Swiss giant Grasshopper (ESPN)
Grasshopper FC has a new owner: LAFC. The Swiss team will be added to LAFC’s many investments.
Mallory Swanson signs long-term deal to stay with Red Stars through 2028 (The Athletic)
Mal Swanson has signed the largest contract in NWSL history, signing for 5 years and $2 million to remain in Chicago.
SSFC Spotlight: Nkosi Tafari earns first USMNT call-up (SSFC)
Nkosi Tafari is poised for a breakout year, and it could begin this weekend with the national team.
Ballon d’Or winner Benzema considering Saudi exit (ESPN)
Now, Karim Benzema is thinking of leaving Saudi Arabia. Where he will end up is anyone’s guess.
Luca de la Torre had a sick goal for Celta Vigo during their Copa del Rey match yesterday:
Christian Pulisic interview: ‘I want to show the world what the U.S. can do’ (The Athletic)
Christian Pulisic believes the USMNT can win Copa America this summer. We’re all ready to watch them compete.
Norwegian FA president urges FIFA to publish report on Qatar World Cup (The Guardian)
FIFA was supposed to publish its report on the successes and failures of the World Cup, as they do for each of them. However, the one for 2022 has not yet been released, and Norway is calling for its release.
Busy football schedule risks mirroring NBA – PSG’s Mbappé (ESPN)
Kylian Mbappé believes that the more schedule congestion becomes a problem, the higher the chances of soccer borrowing from the NBA in having players rest certain games due to “load management.”
Salary caps to shootouts: how US soccer could transform the game (The Guardian)
The Guardian believes that the world can learn something from the quirky soccer rules here in the United States.
Stay warm, y’all!
Kevin Parades is USMNT young player of the year!
The Reynas say otherwise….
I almost talked about how many regular players for the US are eye poppingly young still- Musah is only 21, for example, and has started a lot of games for AC Milan. But cool that they took the young player of the year in the spirit it was intended
Well this is hilarious: Orlando City’s new stadium name is Inter & Co Stadium.
Only way it could be worse is if it were “Inter Miami is my Daddy Arena”
Inter and Co. But of course 🤣😉
That’s why our home stadium should be named Buzzard Point, dammit!
Okay OGDC can we just make the Cherry Blossom Kits the home kit? Because the new kits are very bland….
Here are all the Home and Away kits for this season for MLR: https://www.majorleague.rugby/news/home-and-away-kits-for-all-11-clubs-unveiled-for-2024/
The US Eagles Men’s 7s continue HSBC World 7s Series play in Perth, Australia later this month (26-28 January). The US is currently sitting 6th in the overall standings on 22 points. That’s 2 points behind Canada in 5th. All pool play matches will be available with a free account no RugbyPass TV, with the semifinals and finals also available on Peacock.
https://www.goffrugbyreport.com/news/experienced-usa-mens-team-perth-sevens