Chicharito should finally make the move to Major League Soccer
Word is the Orlando City Soccer Club wants to bring Mexico striker and star Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez to Major League Soccer. That word came from the Daily Mail, an English newspaper that, it should be said, has been known to traffic conjecture as much as it does facts.
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But this rumor – and it most assuredly is only that at the moment – isn't such a leap. It's been contemplated for years. Ever since Hernandez thrived in his first season with Manchester United in the 2010-11 season, scoring 13 league goals – still his single-season high in Europe – he has been considered the dream signing for the North American league.
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What better draw, after all, to both the stadiums and television sets, than one of the biggest Mexican stars of all time. Especially when that sizable Mexican population stateside has been fairly aloof towards the local league, preferring instead to watch the games beamed in from south of the border. Hernandez is famous, talented, handsome and, at 26, in his prime.
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This season, United manager Louis van Gaal saw no use for him – in spite of his 33 league goals in his first three seasons, followed by a meager four-goal campaign last year – and loaned him off to Real Madrid, where he has had nary an impact. With Karim Benzema producing prolifically and consistently as Real's first-choice striker, appearances – and goals – have been hard to come by for Chicharito.
And so, with van Gaal still firmly in the job in Manchester and Real unlikely to buy Hernandez outright, it would seem he could be on the move again when the European season ends at the end of next month.
He would certainly have options in Europe. Any club just below Europe's elite – and probably a few in that rarified atmosphere – would be delighted to snap him up. According to the Mail, Southampton, Stoke, West Ham and Everton are interested, for what that's worth.
But if he has no interest in returning to the Liga MX, where his boyhood club Chivas Guadalajara sure could use him, MLS makes a lot of sense. Hernandez could quite possibly earn more money than in Europe, commanding the sort of above-market $7 million-per-year contract doled out to the stars who can truly elevate the league, like Toronto FC's Sebastian Giovinco and Chicharito's would-be Orlando teammate Kaka.
Meanwhile, by being closer to home, and planted squarely in the rich American economy, his potential for endorsement earnings would probably increase considerably as well. With as much as a decade of earning years left, the payoff for making the return voyage across the pond could be vast.
But this will all probably hinge on what Hernandez's ambitions are. He's already shown that he can deliver for a top club in Europe. Nobody questions that if he finds playing time at another major club – and he can surely do better than the aforementioned foursome of potential destinations – he would resume scoring regularly.
MLS, however, could offer him something different, tapping into the ego that we don't know Hernandez has: He could be a building block. He could be remembered for having done as much, or more, as laurelled last names like Beckham and Henry.
In Europe, he could continue to have a good career.
In the United States, he could leave a legacy.
Leander Schaerlaeckens is a soccer columnist for Yahoo Sports. Follow him on Twitter @LeanderAlphabet.
