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Less than two months after David Beckham's departure, the LA Galaxy have found their star replacement.
Frank Lampard has agreed to join the LA Galaxy, a source close to the Chelsea midfielder told Goal.com.
"It's all but done," the source said.
A team spokesman would not confirm or deny the rumor, only telling Goal.com that head coach Bruce Arena publicly acknowledged interest in Lampard on Thursday.
Lampard will likely join Los Angeles on a free transfer after Chelsea's season finishes in June.
Though Kaka was originally Los Angeles' top target, as reported by SI.com in December, the club switched directions once that became unfeasible. With Lampard considering offers from multiple suitors, including teams from the Premier League, Los Angeles decided to aggressively recruit its next star. Lampard might not be the celebrity that Beckham or Kaka is, but he marries significant popularity with plenty of industry.
Despite aging 34-year-old legs, Lampard has been one of Chelsea's leading scorers this season with seven goals in 14 appearances. In fact, Lampard is arguably the greatest scoring central midfielder in Premier League history, notching 194 goals in 584 appearances in England.
During Chelsea's tour in North America last summer, Lampard expressed an interest in playing in MLS but admitted that he would wait to see if Chelsea would extend his contract first.
"I am not sure [about a future in MLS]," Lampard said. "I have another year on my contract at Chelsea and we have a big season ahead of us with the Super Cup and the Club World Cup in December. It's up to Chelsea to speak with me about my future and, at that time, I'll speak with them.
"I wouldn't rule anything out at the moment."
Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena acknowledged after the MLS SuperDraft on Thursday that there would be an update on the team's third Designated Player next week.
"I wouldn't be surprised if over the next week or so we're going to have some kind of decision we're going to make with a Designated Player," Arena told reporters in Indianapolis. "We wouldn't rule that out. It's always a possibility."
Less than two months after David Beckham's departure, the LA Galaxy have found their star replacement.
Frank Lampard has agreed to join the LA Galaxy, a source close to the Chelsea midfielder told Goal.com.
"It's all but done," the source said.
A team spokesman would not confirm or deny the rumor, only telling Goal.com that head coach Bruce Arena publicly acknowledged interest in Lampard on Thursday.
Lampard will likely join Los Angeles on a free transfer after Chelsea's season finishes in June.
Though Kaka was originally Los Angeles' top target, as reported by SI.com in December, the club switched directions once that became unfeasible. With Lampard considering offers from multiple suitors, including teams from the Premier League, Los Angeles decided to aggressively recruit its next star. Lampard might not be the celebrity that Beckham or Kaka is, but he marries significant popularity with plenty of industry.
Despite aging 34-year-old legs, Lampard has been one of Chelsea's leading scorers this season with seven goals in 14 appearances. In fact, Lampard is arguably the greatest scoring central midfielder in Premier League history, notching 194 goals in 584 appearances in England.
During Chelsea's tour in North America last summer, Lampard expressed an interest in playing in MLS but admitted that he would wait to see if Chelsea would extend his contract first.
"I am not sure [about a future in MLS]," Lampard said. "I have another year on my contract at Chelsea and we have a big season ahead of us with the Super Cup and the Club World Cup in December. It's up to Chelsea to speak with me about my future and, at that time, I'll speak with them.
"I wouldn't rule anything out at the moment."
Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena acknowledged after the MLS SuperDraft on Thursday that there would be an update on the team's third Designated Player next week.
"I wouldn't be surprised if over the next week or so we're going to have some kind of decision we're going to make with a Designated Player," Arena told reporters in Indianapolis. "We wouldn't rule that out. It's always a possibility."
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