LOS ANGELES — Chicharito to the LA Galaxy? Count Carlos Vela among those who'd like to see it happen.
LAFC's star attacker acknowledged he's talked to Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez about coming to Major League Soccer says his teammate with Mexico's national team would be a huge addition to LAFC's archrival.
“Of course [I'd like to see him join LA],” Vela said after LAFC's first preseason session Monday at its training center on the Cal State Los Angeles campus. “He's a scoring machine. He's always there looking to score goals, also he does a really good job defending for his team.
“I think it's really important if [the Galaxy] get [Hernandez], because he's a good player and I think can be a good signing for everybody if it happens.”
Hernandez, 31, is a three-time World Cup veteran and Mexico's all-time goals leader with 52 in 105 international appearances. He joined Sevilla from West Ham United in September for a transfer fee of about $8.7 million but has played in just two leagues games since Nov. 2.
Extratime on Chicharito vs. Vela in El Trafico
Galaxy general manager Dennis te Kloese told the Los Angeles Times the club is in discussions with Hernandez's representatives, and Spanish newspaper Marca reported Sevilla is willing to let him go for $10 million.
The Galaxy are looking for a forward to replace Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who signed with AC Milan after scoring 53 league goals in two seasons for LA, 30 last year to lead the club to its first postseason berth since 2016.
Vela, who won the Landon Donovan MLS MVP award last season after scoring a league-record 34 goals and assisting 15 more to lead LAFC to the Supporters' Shield, played with Hernandez in the 2010 and 2018 World Cups.
He said Hernandez's presence would amp up LAFC's rivalry with the Galaxy, especially in a city with a massive Mexican presence, both in terms of population and culture.
“It's always good to have a good player in the side of the team, so I like it [for the rivalry],” Vela said. “The Mexicans will be excited.”
