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MLS Ticker: Wenger open to another Henry loan, FC Dallas’ Hernandez retires, and more

By JOSE M. ROMERO

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger seems interested in the return of striker Thierry Henry, now with the New York Red Bulls, to the Gunners, according to the British press.

Henry spent eight years with Arsenal (1999-2007), then came back for a month on loan in  January of 2012. He’s currently training with the club in England.

Henry, 35, has 337 career appearances and 228 goals as an Arsenal player. His return makes sense because Arsenal could lose current players to international tournaments early in 2013.

It’s been a storied career already for the Paris-born Henry, who after a stellar career with Arsenal, FC Barcelona and the France national team joined the Red Bulls in 2011. He’s since been named an MLS All-Star and scored 32 goals in league play.

Read after the jump for more MLS news of the day:

FC Dallas leader Hernandez calls it a career

Daniel Hernandez, one of the main ingredients in the FC Dallas mix over the past four seasons, announced his retirement from playing on Wednesday and will transition into an assistant coaching role with the club.

Hernandez, a holding midfielder who captained FCD in 2010 during its run to the MLS Cup, appeared in 89 matches for the team between 2009 and 2012. Now 36 years old, his soccer career spanned 15 seasons, including when he came back to MLS and his native Texas from the Mexican First Division, where he played for three clubs.

Prior to his years in Mexico, Hernandez played for four other MLS clubs beginning in 1998 with the L.A. Galaxy. Two of those four clubs, the Tampa Bay Mutiny and MetroStars, are now defunct.

Hernandez played for FC Dallas coach Schellas Hyndman at SMU, so it seems like a logical fit on the coaching staff with the two knowing each other well.

“Being able to play out the past four seasons of my MLS career in front of my friends and family here in Dallas has been very memorable,” said Hernandez in a statement from FC Dallas. “I am excited to start the next phase of my MLS career with FC Dallas.”

Boskovic departs DC United

Citing family matters to attend to, DC United midfielder Branko Boskovic and the club parted ways Wednesday. Boskovic, who started all four of DCU’s 2012 playoff matches, had his contracted terminated.

Boskovic came over from Austria in 2010 and was signed as a designated player. He appeared in 43 MLS matches with 21 starts since June of that year, and scored two goals to go with seven assists.

Boskovic scored a key goal in the Eastern Conference final series against the Houston Dynamo, though the Dynamo eliminated DC United.

MLS honors Seitz, Petrescu

FC Dallas backup goalkeeper Chris Seitz was named MLS Humanitarian of the Year on Tuesday, acknowledged for ending his season in August to undergo surgery to donate marrow to an anonymous leukemia patient.

Also, Silviu Petrescu was voted MLS Referee of the Year, the first time in MLS history a Canadian official has ever won the award. Petrescu received half of all media votes and 36.78 percent of player votes.

Ian Anderson was named Assistant Referee of the Year.

Comments

    • In most cases the team that is getting the loaned player pays that part of his salary but with MLS being in the off-season I am not 100% sure that is true. I would assume the club gets something out of it other wise they would not risk a player being injured.

      Reply
      • Arsenal would pay part of his salary. I don’t think it’s worth it for a player of his age though. He needs to recuperate or be sold. Henry didn’t seem to have his full heart in it this year.

      • I would have to agree. Seeing Henry berate RBNY players all season in games. Then seeing him grin ear to ear at Emirates last week struck me.

    • I don’t know that I agree. IF he can make more money doing that, he is going to do it.
      It is a job too.

      IF NY thinks he shouldn’t because they are paying the real money, then they should say no.

      Not the first to do so and it is not only the guys going back to old glory days while living current ones that do it.

      Reply
  1. Re Seitz: +1. Great guy.
    Re Daniel Hernandez. Good guy too, real soccer smarts. Will be a good coach.
    Re Metros/RBNY: They’re not “defunct”, that’s just the way they play.

    Reply

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