Brian Rodríguez is tempted by possible Inter Miami move
Brian Rodríguez suffered Club World Cup heartache last weekend as his Club América side lost 2-1 to his former club, Los Angeles FC, in their playoff match. Rodríguez came on as a substitute at halftime but could not help his team to a victory.
Rodríguez has spoken about recent transfer speculation, including a return to MLS. The player was quoted by the sports journalist Rodri Vázquez, saying (translated from Spanish), "Inter Miami's interest is real. We've been talking about it for a couple of weeks. I spoke with Luis Suárez about the club and it was an honor to talk to him.
"There is a possibility of going to Spain, I prefer to go to Spain, but on the other side is going to play with Suárez and (Lionel) Messi, that weighs on me. I'm also going to talk to Marcelo (Bielsa) to see what he thinks. I've already spoken to him before about a possible move to Fiorentina, he spoke to Fiorentina at the time."
Rodríguez is a Uruguayan international who started his career in his home country with Peñarol. He then transferred to LAFC before moving on to América. For a player to possibly turn down a move to Europe to go to Miami shows the pull that Suárez and Messi have at the club.
The winger is 25 and should have ambitions of playing at the highest level. He has had a taste of European soccer whilst playing for Almería in La Liga 2 on loan from LAFC. However, the player seems more interested in tagging along with his heroes rather than testing himself in Europe.
Adrian Hanauer was not happy with the Seattle Sounders' protest
Before the Seattle Sounders' 3-2 loss to Minnesota United in MLS last weekend, their players protested about not being allocated a fair share of the league's prize money from FIFA for their participation at the Club World Cup this summer.
The Sounders players wore shirts in their warm-up that read "Club World Ca$h Grab. Fair Share Now." However, this did not go down well with the hierarchy at Lumen Field. According to GIVEMESPORT, "Sounders owner Adrian Hanauer angrily addressed the team in the locker room following their match."
It remains to be seen how this falling out will be solved. The MLS Players Association has backed the Sounders players' protest, writing in a statement, "FIFA's new tournament piles on to players' ever-increasing workload without regard to their physical well-being... MLS will receive an unprecedented financial windfall. Despite this windfall, the league has refused to allocate a fair percentage of those funds to the players themselves."
The Chicago Fire announced ambitious plans for a new stadium
Over the last decade, many MLS clubs have been moving or planning to relocate to a soccer-specific stadium rather than sharing their ground with an NFL or MLB franchise. The latest team to plan for a new home is the Chicago Fire, who currently share Soldier Field with the Chicago Bears.
In an open letter on The Fire's official website, their owner Joe Mansueto revealed, "We’re proud to announce our plans for a new, privately funded, soccer-specific stadium and entertainment district at Roosevelt and the river. We expect to open in Spring 2028."
Chicago has had a mixed start under Gregg Berhalter in MLS this year, they are currently 11th in the Eastern Conference. However, they have shown ambition in the transfer market, being linked with Neymar and Kevin De Bruyne. Ultimately, Neymar chose to return to Santos and De Bruyne is set to join Napoli. However, with a new stadium, the Fire might be able to attract these top players.