The World Cup showcases the best in team play. Unfortunately, Major League Soccer does not. Yet the recent signings of these three high profile foreign based players has many analysts and fans alike buzzing. Let’s take a look at a few of them and attempt to make sense of it all.
Kaka: Orlando City FC (2015)
What a welcome! #KomingSoon pic.twitter.com/dMZewVwATn
— Orlando City SC (@OrlandoCitySC) June 30, 2014
While Orlando FC will not be joining MLS until their 2015 season, they announced the signing of Brazilian legend Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite as its franchise player, although the soccer community knows him simply as Kaka. Since play is still a year away, Kaka and AC Milan have mutually agreed to terminate the contract, and he will play next year in Sao Paulo until Orlando City picks up. Kaka has said for some time that he would like to play football in the United States, and it is no small coincidence that the owner of the Orlando City team (Flavio Augusto da Silva) is himself Brazilian. While he is 32 years old and his best years may have past, this international star still has some football left and will prove to be a great ambassador for football in the United States and beyond.
David Villa: New York City FC (2015)
A footballer who just completed his World Cup career playing for his native Spain, David Villa has a long and storied career with top flight club teams (Barcelona and most recently Atletico Madrid) and has over 100 caps (and 59 goals) as a Spanish international striker. Like Kaka, he is currently on loan to Melbourne City until the start of the 2015 MLS season. At 32 years of age, it is thought that this striker still has plenty left and will make an excellent choice as franchise player for New York City FC. While terms were not disclosed, it is known that #7 was looking for more than a salary, and it would surprise no one if he were given a stake in ownership or possibly a percentage of his merchandise sales, which in a market like New York City can be expected to be substantial.
Julio Cesar: Toronto FC (2014 after World Cup play concludes)
Júlio César Soares de Espíndola is the starting goalkeeper for Brazil in the World Cup. Currently on loan from Queens Park Rangers in England, he is plying his trade for the MLS’s Toronto FC franchise.
Why would a man of his pedigree and talent be playing in the MLS and not his EPL team? The answer is quite simple, really. The manager of the Brazilian national team, Luiz Felipe Scolari, chooses his players from current club starts, and Queens Park Rangers’ manager Harry Redknapp has opted to start Robert Green, relegating Cesar to a back-up role. A loan deal was negotiated on Cesar’s behalf in Toronto, and he is currently the starting keeper for Brazil in absence of his MLS team. While it is doubtful he will remain in Toronto after this season, it has been quite a feather in MLS’s cap to feature the starting Brazilian keeper.
