Chris Mueller is in his fourth season with Orlando City, and it will be his last one with the team.
Scottish Premiership club Hibernian announced Thursday that Mueller has signed a pre-contract and will join officially in January 2022. Orlando City stated on Wednesday that they had been in talks with Mueller over a new contract, but that the 24-year-old winger informed them of his decision to move abroad at the end of the 2021 MLS season.
“Chris was someone who was brought to our attention a number of months ago,” said Hibs head coach Jack Ross. “We worked long and hard to make this deal happen.
“Chris is an exciting signing and his recent performances with Orlando have been terrific. He has a skillset that we think is going to be really well suited to Scotland.”
Mueller will finish out the current campaign with the team that drafted him sixth overall in the 2018 MLS Draft. The U.S. Men’s National Team player has made a total of 96 regular-season appearances for Orlando City since then, starting 63 matches, scoring 20 goals, and delivering 22 assists.
This season, Mueller has started in seven of the 13 MLS games he has featured in. He has recorded two goals and four assists thus far.
Mueller will become the third American to play for Hibernian, joining past signings Emerson Hyndman and Jonathan Spector.
edinburgh is a cool city. and he’s set up for success since there’s no way he over-estimated the SPL.
Is Scotland really a step up in play compared to MLS?…not impressed but perhaps this was his only chance….
Well, I think he has enough potential that he deserves a better club. Hope he does well and can then go to a better league/better club.
Orlando City just got sold, that could be definitely holding up some things. (Dike’s transfer, Mueller situation) I think, he could’ve transferred out of the MLS last year, then again I’m biased. OCSC! Benji playing well, opposite Nani is the biggest reason I see as to Mueller not playing as much. It’s possible he’s been nicked up! Pareja likes to rotate players.That has been his track record, or M.O., since he was at FCD. Mueller is versatile enough to play both wing positions and the 10. When he was drafted, he started mostly at LW. Looking forward to seeing him progressing!!
You do have to wonder if Pareja was playing games with him because he wouldn’t re-sign. Oscar was in charge when FCD had trouble with Fabian Castillo and when they kept telling Kellyn Acosta wait until next window for two years until he got injured and lost Euro interest. I guess we’ll if his playing time changes the rest of the season.
not to be too pedantic but the whole point of brexit to its advocates was defining the UK back as non-european. you have some brits who think the channel matters a lot and there’s england and then there’s the continent. so anyhow they are in UEFA but gone from the EU.
not sure why we’re talking about a “market” or he’s being coy if he cut OC off and has a pre-contract.
According to paragraph 2 line 1: “Orlando announced on Wednesday evening that Mueller had signed a pre-contract with a European club.”
Ok Larry completely rewrote the story, but it is still paragraph 2 that states he has signed a pre-contract.
you’re missing my point which is in the UK for decades people of certain trumpian political persuasions have deliberately defined themselves as british or whichever home nation and not european. and they got their way and they’re out of EU. they are technically UEFA still but about half britain would clench at being called european. fair or unfair.
and you’re missing my other point which is the original article always referenced a pre-contract but also him having a market. they put a ring on it. he doesn’t have a market for at least a year. tis the point to a pre-contract — when he could have let it run out and gone on a free transfer at expiration.
Ok not sure what the point of your comments were, it’s appropriate to refer to England or Scotland as a part of Europe because you know geography and as you point out the E in UEFA stands for Europe. I’m pretty sure England, Scotland and Wales all participated in the European Championship and even hosted many matches. As for the word “market” once you are within six months of the end of your contract you enter the free transfer market and may negotiate with any interested parties. Mueller has been in the “market” for the last few weeks and has chosen Hibs.
you’re trading in american cardboard cutout stereotypes or geographic essentialisms. in case you missed it, the UK dropped out of the EU ie brexit. if you’ve ever lived in the UK — and i did for a period — they break down in two major categories. those who see themselves as european, geography, politics, etc. those who see britain as a separate thing off the shore of the “continent,” distinct in language, politics, etc. brexit in part reflects the second view. i’m making my point because a substantial chunk of english people — a minority, but a sizeable one capable of winning an election to leave the EU — would give you a funny look if you described signing in the UK as “europe.” i fully understand the geography and how we are taught to see it. i am telling you around half the english would disagree — politically, culturally — about how you described them. or brexit never passes.
and on your other point, it’s irrelevant whether 3 weeks ago he had a market if you’re writing an article referencing his supposed other suitors/market while announcing his pre-contract. they put it a ring on it. there is no market anymore.
more pointedly, i took signing in SPL to be saying i don’t care if GB ever calls me because i don’t really think he wants me. ergo i will sign where i want. i see a basic contradiction in chatting up someone’s market when they just made a decision some would view as making more difficult any chance to make the NT. i took it as i don’t see myself in the team this cycle so i’m pursuing this ambition. if he thought he had a chance this cycle i’d have expected a different choice. this is a long term european ambitions choice, get a foothold on the periphery and work your way up.
Really wish we had him in the Gold Cup
Totally agree — wish he had been named to the squad ahead of Lewis to begin with, and if not, then at least add him when Arriola got injured. Perhaps there was something about the state of ongoing negotiations with “the European team” in question?
This is the kind of stuff we do not know about. So many moving pieces the fan is not aware of.
Such simple observations from Curtis and Ross, but so underrecognized, regarding the complexity of the squad selection process. I wish people were able to keep that in mind before freaking out about roster decisions. I’m not 100% onboard with every single decision taken by the manager, but I’m 100% sure he’s in a better position to make those decisions than I am.
Again, totally agree, Jamie — the lack of humility on these boards amazes me at times, when folks think they have it all figured out, but actually have no idea of the complexities and “moving pieces” involved in squad selection.
Hope this move to Scotland is only a stepping-stone for Mueller — I like him as a player, but worried that he might stagnate a bit in Scotland and then just come back to MLS in one or two years…not the end of the world if that happened, but I think he has potential for more.