Soccer <\/p>\n
Your calendar eyes don\u2019t deceive you: February looms, which means opening day 2026 is almost upon us.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
In fact, we\u2019re less than a WEEK away from the first matchnight<\/a> of Concacaf Champions Cup<\/a>, which features San Diego FC<\/a> vs. Pumas UNAM, the year\u2019s first competitive fixture involving an MLS club.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Old heads know the real transfer-window action tends to run late, though \u2013 procrastination and brinkmanship are just human nature. That\u2019s a big part of why the league just announced\u00a0adjusted dates<\/a> for this year\u2019s windows, along with a raft of amendments to the 2026 Roster Rules and Regulations that, in essence, make it easier and more attractive to get deals done.<\/p>\n You can find plenty of in-depth analysis of this news elsewhere. The bottom line for our purposes? The primary (winter) window is shortening, so the secondary (summer) window can extend into September, allowing MLS teams to stay in the European game until closing time, when bargains and bombazos<\/em>\u00a0often materialize. It\u2019s what many chief soccer officers have been crying out for. Case in point: Charlotte FC<\/a>\u2019s Zoran Krneta to this correspondent<\/a> in August 2024.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n It seems Austin FC<\/a> have well and truly clambered into the ranks of MLS\u2019s big-time spenders. After splashing north of $30 million on transfer fees over the past few windows, they just dropped another $10 million or thereabouts to bring Uruguayan winger Facundo Torres<\/a> back to MLS in a deal made official<\/a> last Friday.<\/p>\n \u2018El Cuervo\u2019 lit it up in his three seasons at Orlando City, bagging 47g\/25a in 123 matches across all competitions as the Lions won the 2022 US Open Cup<\/a>, enough to earn a big move<\/a> to Brazilian heavyweights Palmeiras just over a year ago. That proven MLS productivity is a major plus, and at 25, he\u2019s still young, at least in Designated Player terms.<\/p>\n Still\u2026 some doubts linger around the Verde & Black. ATX\u2019s issue in 2025 wasn\u2019t the attacking talent available to head coach Nico Est\u00e9vez so much as the way it all fit together \u2013 or didn\u2019t, as it were. They seem to be crying out for an orchestrating presence to sustain possessions and deliver quality service, and as the above numbers suggest, Torres is more of a box arriver than a string-puller. Let\u2019s see how it goes!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n After the difficult news of another season without Catalan maestro Riqui Puig<\/a>, the LA Galaxy<\/a> seem to have (understandably) concluded there\u2019s little sense in attempting to replace one of MLS\u2019s most unique stars, and have tacked in another direction entirely.<\/p>\n How else to contextualize the Gs\u2019 intriguing move for\u00a0St. Louis CITY SC<\/a> No. 9 Jo\u00e3o Klauss<\/a>, who will fill Puig\u2019s DP slot but is a completely different sort of player?<\/p>\n The cash-for-player trade<\/a> is made that much more intriguing by LA\u2019s extension of their loan of Klauss\u2019 younger countryman, Matheus Nascimento<\/a>, from Botafogo. Nascimento\u2019s 6g\/4a in 28 appearances last year wasn\u2019t exactly all-conquering, but perhaps he\u2019ll be more settled in \u201826 and benefit from the mentorship of a well-traveled compatriot.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Alex Freeman<\/a>\u2019s quantum leap from unknown youngster to MLS All-Star and potential\u00a0FIFA World Cup<\/a> starter for the\u00a0US men\u2019s national team<\/a> was easily one of North American soccer\u2019s best stories of 2025.<\/p>\n A good kid grinding through adversity \u2013 remember, in his teens the marauding right back didn\u2019t make the cut at his hometown club, Miami, and so moved up Florida\u2019s Turnpike to join the academy of rivals\u00a0Orlando City<\/a> \u2013 and putting it all together in the year of his 21st birthday? That\u2019s the good stuff, y\u2019all. And now Freeman\u2019s making the logical next step, reportedly jumping to Villarreal CF, a Spanish side with a track record of player development and competing on a budget.<\/p>\n The presence of MLS alums Tani Oluwaseyi and Tajon Buchanan at Villarreal should help him adjust to a new language and culture, and doing this deal now \u2013 reportedly $4 million up front, plus $3 million in add-ons and a sell-on clause \u2013 ensures Orlando get some return on investment before he enters the final year of his contract.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Orlando City SC (@OrlandoCitySC) October 30, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n New York City FC<\/a> have a reputation as something of a black box in MLS circles, where not much transfer gossip leaks and their access to City Football Group\u2019s global scouting network makes for a different approach to recruitment. Yet we\u2019ve finally gotten a few scraps of information about how last year\u2019s Audi MLS Cup Playoffs overachievers might be reinforcing.<\/p>\n The Pigeons are said to have nearly completed a swoop for French-Malian striker Moussa Sylla from Schalke 04, the fallen German giants currently leading the promotion race in the 2. Bundesliga, for a fee reportedly in the neighborhood of $7-8 million or so. Not a bad response to the severe knee injury that will sideline Alonso Mart\u00ednez<\/a> for months to come.<\/p>\n On the other side of the ball, Kai Trewin<\/a>, a defensive midfielder who can also play center back, is leaving CFG sibling club Melbourne City to become the Cityzens\u2019 second Aussie alongside Aiden O\u2019Neill<\/a>.<\/p>\n There are outgoings, too. Juli\u00e1n Fern\u00e1ndez<\/a>, the talented but inconsistent winger who never quite hit full stride in Gotham, is returning to Argentina<\/a> to join Rosario Central. And pricey U22 Initiative spearhead Jovan Mijatovi\u0107<\/a>, who played just 262 league minutes for NYCFC in 2024 before heading off to Belgium on loan, has reportedly cut short his time at OH Leuven to start a new loan at 2. Bundesliga side Eintracht Braunschweig.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2139\ufe0f Moussa Sylla is close to completing a move abroad and is not included in our squad today. FC Schalke 04 and his future club have reached a basic agreement.#S04<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/37lxqlFixQ<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 FC Schalke 04 (@s04_en) January 25, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n We recognize this winter\u2019s Transfer Roundups have spent a lot of time on the litany of winter moves made by the MLS Cup 2025 champs<\/a>, and how this risks antagonizing those among us who may be suffering from\u00a0Inter Miami<\/a> fatigue.<\/p>\n But look, if you\u2019re one of those\u2026 just imagine how their MLS counterparts feel! So far, the Herons have added Dayne St. Clair<\/a>, Micael<\/a>, David Ayala<\/a>, Sergio Reguil\u00f3n<\/a> and Facundo Mura<\/a>, completed the permanent acquisitions of Rodrigo De Paul<\/a> and Tadeo Allende<\/a>, the latter without requiring a Designated Player slot. Now, The Athletic’s Tom Bogert reports<\/a> they\u2019re shipping a cool $15 million to LIGA MX giants CF Monterrey for Germ\u00e1n Berterame.<\/p>\n Oh! And before settling on the Mexican-Argentine striker, Bogert adds<\/a>, they cheekily tried to reel in Denis Bouanga<\/a> from LAFC<\/a> with a comparably sized offer, which the Angelenos summarily rejected. The writing on the wall: IMCF aspire to dominate this (parity-oriented) league like Bayern Munich do the Bundesliga, or Paris Saint-Germain do Ligue 1. I\u2019ll quote our own Armchair Analyst Matt Doyle<\/a>: \u201cMiami managing owner Jorge Mas is very pointedly trying to build the best club in the Americas.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s a sobering thought for the competition.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n