CARSON, Calif. – Romain Alessandrini is setting lofty goals for his first season with the LA Galaxy.
The 27-year-old signed a Designated Player deal with the Galaxy in late January after spending nearly 10 years playing professionally in France, mostly recently with French giant Marseille. Alessandrini joined with up with the team earlier this week as the team concludes their preseason preparations for the regular season home opener against FC Dallas on March 1.
Ahead of his first season with the Galaxy, Alessandrini is ready to make a big splash in Major League Soccer.
“It was a great opportunity for me to come here. I follow this club for two to three years, and I think that it was a good idea to come here. I’m 27 years old, and in my club in France, it was a little bit difficult, so I needed to change my [location],” Alessandrini told reporters on Friday. “For me, it’s a great opportunity, and I hope to be one of the best in this championship.”
“Now that I’m here and I’m very excited to start, and after that, I’d like to be one of the best and score lots of goals and assists for this team,” he added. “I’m here to be one of the best. It’s a great feeling. I need that. There was [Robbie] Keane and [Steven] Gerrard before [on this club] … I can give everything for this team. It’s a good opportunity for me.”
A dynamic left-footed outside midfielder, Alessandrini notched 31 goals and 21 assists during his time in the French first division. Before making the move to Southern California, the former Marseille midfielder admitted that he spoke to Toronto FC midfielder Sebastian Giovinco and Giovani dos Santos about his new home.
As Alessandrini settles in, Galaxy head coach Curt Onalfo is already envisioning ways to position his newest Designated Player.
“He’s a very good attacking wide player. He can play on the left, and he can play on the right. He actually can even play Gio's position when he’s gone on national team duty,” Onalfo said. “He’s a multifaceted, very good attacking player. He can be a playmaker, he can create goals for his teammates and he can score goals himself.”
Given his status as the team’s newest Designated Player, Alessandrini understands that he’ll face constant pressure to contribute and help lift the Galaxy to another MLS Cup title—and that is a challenge that he’s ready to meet.
“For me, it’s important because it’s a good pressure. I’m very excited to start. It’s a new challenge in my life. A new team and a new club. I’m very excited,” Alessandrini said. “I needed to have a new start in my career. I need to enjoy my soccer because in Marseille it was a little bit difficult. I need to enjoy my career and my job. It was the best thing to come here.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog atLAGalaxy.com/Insiderand contact him atLAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com
