The LA Galaxy are extremely close to signing Marco Reus as a free agent on a multi-year deal according to trusted sources. Los Angeles will be the final stop of what’s been an iconic career for the German midfield maestro.
How did this move come to be and what will Reus add to the Galaxy?
Reports from César Luis Merlo, Tom Bogert, and Fabrizio Romano, some of the top voices in American transfers, point to Marco Reus joining the LA Galaxy on a deal until December 2025 with an option for a further year.
Reus is a legend of the game who spent 12 years as Borussia Dortmund’s main man and guided them to a second Champions League final earlier this year. The LA Galaxy are entering the second year of a rebuild that has seen them jump from 13th place in the Western Conference all the way to being the conference’s current top team and in second place in the Supporter’s Shield standings.
With both parties looking to fulfill their ambitions and add more trophies to the cabinet, this feels like a match made in heaven. In actuality, this was a deal forged in the real world which wasn’t as simple as EA FC 2024 can make it seem.
Why the Galaxy Chose Marco Reus
Marco Reus played for nine different managers during his 12 years in Dortmund. Under each manager, starting with Jürgen Klopp in 2012, Reus managed to make himself an indispensable part of each iteration of the only German team to threaten Bayern Munich’s decade of dominance by learning how to thrive in each coach’s system. Whether he was deployed as a false-nine, winger, or in the midfield, Reus can excel in a variety of roles and always has a knack for making the players around him look better.
In short, Marco Reus has made a career out of being a Swiss army knife and that’s exactly what Will Kuntz and Greg Vanney are looking for to help the Galaxy in their search for the sixth MLS Cup.
Transfer Saga
At first there was no way for the Galaxy to reach out to Marco Reus despite their interest. As the first club to inform MLS of their interest in Reus, Charlotte FC were the holders of his Discovery Rights and had the first chance to make their case to the German legend. MLS insider Tom Bogert reported on May 19th that Charlotte had been pushing hard at courting Reus for months at that point. A later video posted by César Luis Merlo revealed that Charlotte had even gone as far as to present Reus with a significant financial offer.
Also on May 19th, Bogert confirmed that the Galaxy were also interested in Marco Reus, but they would have to get past Charlotte in order to have a chance at signing Reus.
The first steps to overcoming this hurdle took place at Wembley during the 2024 Champions League Final on June 1st. Merlo reported that representatives from the LA Galaxy met with Reus’s camp and managed to seduce him into choosing Southern California over North Carolina.
In his video breaking down the deal, Merlo reported that although the Galaxy’s proposed salary for Reus was far under what Charlotte had offered, the Galaxy also added sponsorships that made the total value of their deal match Charlotte’s. Two equal offers were presented to him and Reus chose Los Angeles as his next destination.
With Reus’s heart set on Los Angeles, the Galaxy set out to negotiate a fee for Charlotte’s discovery rights. A report from Tom Bogert on June 2nd revealed that the Galaxy and Charlotte both had representatives at the final and they came to an agreement for the transfer of Reus’s discovery rights to the Galaxy, which allowed the Los Angeles club to begin negotiations with the player himself. On June 3rd Merlo came out with the exclusive news that The Galaxy and Charlotte agreed on a $350k fee and that the deal was just pending a medical test before being completed.
Marco Reus Made the Deal Happen
The completion of this deal becomes even more impressive considering that the Galaxy also had to beat out millionaire offers from the Middle East. Will Kuntz continues proving his ability to get good deals done, but to be frank, the Galaxy’s success in this negotiation relied heavily on Reus’s own personality.
Despite being one of the game’s biggest stars throughout his career, Reus has always chosen his footballing ambitions over riches. That meant rejecting many eye-watering offers from top clubs all over the world in favor of trying to drag his boyhood club to glory. Since leaving Dortmund after his contract with them expired at the end of the most recent season, Reus has continued to reject impressive offers, this time in favor of joining a team with an exciting sporting project where he might end his career on a high note.
In a world where footballers rightly feel they have to milk their short careers for as much financial gain as possible, Reus has once again proven himself as the antithesis of the commercialization of football, always insisting that passion must take precedence over money in every decision throughout his career.
By joining the Los Angeles Galaxy over other clubs in Europe or the Middle East, Marco Reus will be looking to win titles and push his legacy beyond being remembered simply as the “almost” man.
What Marco Reus Brings to LA
Once the ink dries and the announcement makes the move official, fans can look forward to Marco Reus adding another dynamic layer to the Galaxy’s squad. Diego Fagundez has recently shown the importance of flexibility as he guided the Galaxy to four straight wins in the absence of star-player Riqui Puig. Thanks to his understanding of Vanney’s system and his own ability, Fagundez brought as much quality to the team from midfield as he normally does on the wing.
Marco Reus will likely be used in a similar way to Fagundez, filling into multiple positions based on the team’s current needs. With his ability to play all over the park without missing a beat, Greg Vanney could call on Reus to come in for Fagundez, Riqui Puig, Gabriel Pec, Joseph Paintsil, and Dejan Joveljic. If ever the Galaxy need to replace a player among the front six for whatever reason, be it injury or simply fatigue, Marco Reus is more than capable of coming in and ensuring the standard never drops.
With Vanney showing more tactical flexibility as recently evidenced by the striker-less wins over the Colorado Rapids and Portland Timbers, Reus’s introduction will add another option to call upon should Dejan Joveljic continue to be unavailable. With Reus in his team Vanney can more easily overcome not having a top-class striker by compensating with the German or any of the other quality attacking players at his disposal.
Marco Reus will deepen the roster, helping with load management while also contributing to the development of younger players. With his signing Will Kuntz and Greg Vanney have pulled off a masterclass in recruitment and deal-making. As they continue to strengthen the Galaxy, one can only wonder how many more pieces are needed until they claim the MLS Cup for a record sixth time.
PHOTO: TALKGALAXY
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