Alan Nixon is suggested that Aston Villa centre-back James Chester is a target for MLS clubs.
What’s the story?
The Villa cult hero, who has played for the club 126 times across his career, is reportedly a target for teams in America and Canada.
This comes despite the 31-year-old having played just twice this season, with none of those appearances being in the Premier League – though he has been on the bench six times.
Nixon has suggested that MLS sides could use their elongated transfer window to bring in the Wales international.
Problematic move
While the opportunity to get more game time could be appealing, Chester would be foolish to make the move to MLS.
During Villa’s promotion campaign last term, he played while injured, which has had a lasting impact on his body, as he was quoted in The Birmingham Mail as saying: “I’ve damaged my body indefinitely. It’s something I’m going to have to manage for the rest of my career.
“Hopefully I can look after it and play for as long as possible. It is what it is, I’m a professional.”
Red Herring or Real Hero: Only hardcore Villa fans will get all of them right….
It’s the level of damage his body has already taken that is why he should, perhaps, have reservations about making the move to MLS.
That is because there are six clubs who play on astroturf, as reported by The Seattle Times in June, which could prove to be a problem.
This is shown by Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s comments when he initially refused to play on the artificial surface after joining LA Galaxy in 2018, as reported by ESPN:
“I got this opportunity with the Galaxy, and I play – and why I don’t play on turf? Because I’m able to play now, I push it every time I put the shoes on, when I walk on that grass, when I can feel the smell of that grass, when I can touch the ball, when I feel like I can shoot the ball like I want to do it, I’m just happy. And I want to still be happy.
“But by playing on turf, I risk getting damaged. I don’t say I will get injured – I don’t know; I could get injured also in normal games – but the consequence is everywhere, the risk is everywhere. The risk is higher on the turf. And I tried to play on the turf in Portland, and I felt very bad.”
Chester has already admitted that he needs to be careful and do all he can to stay fit, so a move to MLS could prove to be detrimental.
Meanwhile, one Villa man out on loan has suffered another devastating blow.