CARSON, Calif. – Michael Ciani has major aspirations with the LA Galaxy.
The 33-year-old French defender signed with the Galaxy on Saturday after a brief period as a free agent. Ciani joins the club with experience playing in Spain, Italy, Belgium and over 200 appearances in France.
After a distinguished career in Europe, Ciani is ready for a new challenge.
“They called me, and they told me that LA was interested and directly, I said yes. It’s a great team, a great city, and my wife and kids wanted to come here. I played throughout Europe, and I decided to come here,” Ciani, who turned down offers in Scotland, Turkey, and France to join the Galaxy, said. "I know the team is in a difficult place right now, but I know with my experience, I can bring something new.
“I can drive the defense, and I can speak a lot with my teammates. We’ll try to bring something else for Galaxy.”
Ciani began training with the team on Tuesday after receiving his international transfer documents, but with his last competitive match taking place back in May, the French central defender is unlikely to play a feature role in Sunday's match against Seattle Sounders FC.
Although the veteran central defender still needs some time to get to full fitness, head coach Sigi Schmid expects him to be a major asset for the Galaxy.
“When we lost Jelle van Damme, we had an opening there, and we needed a defender. We didn’t feel by waiting until by waiting until next year that it was the best situation for our team," Schmid said. "We were lucky enough to come up with Michael, and he was interested in coming, and the deal fell in place. What is important now is that we don’t put him on the field too early and we give him a chance to acclimate and get fit. I want the fans to see what he’s capable of.
"We felt with our team, and in fairness to our fans, we felt like we still wanted to give ourselves a chance to make the playoffs this year, so it was important that we bring in a defender [like Ciani]."
