Atlanta United ships Villalba to Paraguayan club
ATLANTA >> Atlanta United has given up another key player from its MLS Cup team, selling popular midfielder Tito Villalba to Paraguay’s Club Libertad Friday.
The 25-year-old Argentian was United’s first designated player and made an immediate impact in the expansion club’s debut season in 2017. He started all 34 matches, tallying 13 goals and 11 assists.
His playing time diminished over the next two seasons, though he did score seven goals while making 21 starts in 2018 as Atlanta won the MLS Cup championship.
During an injury plagued 2019 campaign, Villalba never seemed to click with new coach Frank de Boer. He scored just one goal in 20 appearances, including 10 starts.
Villalba was dealt to Club Libertad for an undisclosed transfer fee, following the departures of key players such as Julian Gressel, Darlington Nagbe and Leandro Gonzalez Pirez.
Inter Miami gets Crew captain Trapp
MIAMI >> Inter Miami acquired longtime Columbus
captain Wil Trapp from the Crew for $100,000 and an international roster spot.
Columbus could receive up to an additional $200,000 if other undisclosed conditions are met.
Trapp, a 27-year-old midfielder, captained the Crew for the first time in 2014 and had been permanent captain for the past three seasons. He appeared in just over 200 games with the Crew over seven seasons and has made 20 appearances with the U.S. men’s national team.
Trapp has been to the MLS playoffs four times and was an All-Star in 2016.
Robinson transfer to AC Milan falls through
A proposed transfer of American defender Antonee Robinson from Wigan to AC Milan has fallen through.
Wigan said the clubs had agreed to a transfer fee and Robinson traveled to Milan for a physical ahead of Friday’s transfer deadline. Wigan said Robinson had a medical examination with AC Milan and “further medical tests with the Italian authorities were required, which were subject to a 72-hour deadline.”
Born in England and eligible to play for the U.S. and England, Robinson made his U.S. national team debut in May 2018. The left back has played in seven international matches, all friendlies.
FIFA launches global project led by former coach Wenger
ZURICH >> FIFA launched a global program led by Arsene Wenger on Friday to help close the gap on Europe’s dominance by improving coaching and identifying young talent.
It’s the first major project for Wenger since the former Arsenal manager was hired in November as FIFA’s head of soccer development.
FIFA said it will offer member federations an expert analysis of their “high-performance ecosystem” in men’s and women’s national teams, domestic leagues, scouting projects and academies.
“The difference in the level of play between Europe and the rest of the world has become bigger,” Wenger said, suggesting some federations were too focused on senior national teams instead of developing young players.