LA Galaxy sign Chicharito in $10m transfer from Sevilla

The LA Galaxy have announced the signing of Mexico international striker Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez from Sevilla. 

Hernandez joins for a fee of $10 million (£8m/€9m), plus up to $3.3m in bonuses. 

The signing of Mexico's all-time leading goalscorer is expected to be a major boost for the Galaxy both on and off the pitch.

"The LA Galaxy continue to pursue top talent across the world that will improve our team,” said LA Galaxy president Chris Klein in a club release. “Javier is one of the most successful players in our region and an iconic figure in this community.

"We are excited to add Javier to our club and look forward to him representing the LA Galaxy in our stadium and in the Los Angeles community.”

The 31-year-old only joined Sevilla from West Ham in September, but will return to North America after spending just a half-season with the La Liga club. 

Hernandez will join up with a Galaxy side that is looking to replace Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who departed at the end of the 2019 season after scoring 52 goals in two campaigns with the club. 

The forward has long been linked with a move to MLS and has finally made the leap after spending 10 years in Europe. 

Hernandez left his hometown club Chivas de Guadalajara in 2010 to join up with Manchester United and had plenty of success in five seasons with the Red Devils, scoring 59 goals and winning two Premier League titles. 

After spending a season on loan with Real Madrid in 2014-15, Hernandez moved to Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen, where he scored 39 goals in 76 appearances over two seasons.

From there, Hernandez returned to England with West Ham and scored 17 times in just over two seasons with the Hammers before joining Sevilla ahead of the 2019-20 season.

After making his international debut in 2009, Hernandez has gone on to become Mexico's all-time leading scorer with 52 goals in 109 appearances, including three World Cups.

“Javier is a landmark signing for our club and this league, highlighting our ambition to continue to be the best in Major League Soccer," said Dan Beckerman, president and CEO of Galaxy owner​ AEG.