Bacary Sagna became the latest of European veterans to make their way to MLS in 2018. The Frenchman will return to the Montreal Impact next season, after signing a one-year deal on Monday.
Sagna made nine appearances with the Impact since his move from Manchester City, accumulating 810 minutes of playing time. He tallied one goal, and helped the Impact to a 5-1-3 record during his stint in Canada.
“I am very satisfied that Bacary carries on with the club,” said Impact head coach Rémi Garde. “He played a big role in our good second half to the season in 2018 and I am sure he will once again be an important part of the Impact in 2019.”
A 10-year veteran of the English Premier League, Sagna totaled 267 appearances between his time with Arsenal and Man City. He lifted an FA Cup and League Cup, while also being named to the Professional Footballers’ Association’s Team of the Year in both 2007-08 and 2010-11.
Sagna won 65 caps with French National Team, participating in the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups.
Dynamo acquires Slovenian defender Aljaz Struna via Targeted Allocation Money
The Houston Dynamo added an experienced defender to their roster ahead of the start of 2019.
Houston acquired Aljaz Struna on a full transfer from Serie B side Palermo on Monday, utilizing Targeted Allocation Money. The 28-year-old has made more than 200 career professional appearances across all competitions.
Struna has won 12 caps with the Slovenian National Team, including six of them coming in 2018 World Cup Qualifying. He began his professional career with Slovenian outfit FC Koper in 2009, making 63 appearances for the club over two seasons.
“We are excited to bring a player like Aljaž Struna, who has experience playing in Europe and is in the prime of his career, to our team. He is a top defender, not only in Italy, but for his Slovenian national team, and we believe he will bring leadership on and off the field,” said Dynamo Head Coach Wilmer Cabrera. “He wants to win with the Houston Dynamo and he has accepted the challenge to play in MLS over other possibilities, and that shows his commitment to this league and to our club.”
He joined Palermo in 2012 and saw loan spells with Carpi and Varese along the way. Struna made 63 appearances with Palermo, scoring two goals while also wearing the captain’s armband.
FC Cincinnati to lay down new turf ahead of inaugural MLS season
FC Cincinnati’s inaugural campaign in Major League Soccer will feature new turf at Nippert Stadium.
FCC vice president of operations Dan McNally admitted that the old turf was rolled up and shipped out last month, and new turf will be installed in January. Also, the previous players lounge will be the team’s new locker room.
“With the turf we had for three years was good, it was good for the players and it was successful,” McNally said. “But we felt moving to Major League Soccer we needed to upgrade to a new, slightly different surface which will be up to Major League Soccer standards, but also will be really good for the University of Cincinnati’s football program, which was very important. I think everybody wins in this situation.”
McNally expects the renovations to be complete by the end of February and the club will be able to train on the newly-laid turf before FCC’s home opener against Portland on March 17th.
The team will play at Nippert Stadium for two more seasons before the grand opening for the club’s West End stadium.