LA Galaxy buy out Giovani dos Santos
Speculation about what the LA Galaxy was going to do with their Designated Player situation ended at 2:50 P.M. on Friday. Kevin Baxter of the LA Times reported that the Galaxy had exercised their once per season buyout which means that Gio dos Santos contract with they LA Galaxy has been fulfilled and his salary, a reported $6 million will no longer count against the Galaxy’s salary cap. Since dos Santos was a DP, his salary cap hit to the overall roster was the MLS max of $530,000 the rest was fulfilled by the club’s owner AEG.
What does this mean for the Galaxy going forward?
For one thing, the LA Galaxy no longer has 4 Designated Players, which was 1 above what the league allowed. In buying out Gio, they are now roster compliant ahead of the 5 P.M. deadline and have freed up an international slot, in which they were also at the maximum allowed. They also recoup some salary cap space which they can use to strengthen the team for the upcoming season. Galaxy General Manager Dennis Te Kloese and head coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto have said they are looking to strengthen the defense, the midfield and the forward rankings. This move along with the sale of Ola Kamara that was announced recently will allow Te Kloese to bring in a player or players, that suit Schelotto’s playing style.
#GalaxyTwitter was buzzing about the move once it happened.
It's very clear that Dennis Te Kloese is dead set on cleaning up the previous FO’s mess. He has taken some very important steps in his first few months on the job.
The Galaxy now have room to strengthen their roster. Be warned MLS, the LA Galaxy are coming.
