Ranking the worst signings in MLS history: Lothar Matthaus, Federico Bernardeschi and Mexico star make list

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Toronto FC announced Tuesday that the contracts of Federico Bernardeschi and Lorenzo Insigne have been terminated, with the former Italy internationals calling time on MLS spells that will be remembered for their failures rather than their successes.

The club bought out the remainder of both players’ contracts and described the decision as “mutual” for the stars, which comes as little surprise since both Bernardeschi and Insigne wanted out of Toronto towards the end of their time in the Canadian city.

The pair arrived to Toronto midway through the 2022 season, an ambitious move for a club who were targeting a return to the top after failing to make a deep run in the playoffs for two years running. The results were mixed – though Bernardeschi scored 26 goals in 99 games and Insigne managed 19 goals in 76 matches, Toronto never made the playoffs during the Italians’ time at the club and are not poised to do so this season as they sit in 13th place in the Eastern Conference with just four wins so far.

Their spell in MLS was mostly defined by their inability to lift up the team or leave a positive mark in Toronto, all while being two of the league’s highest-earning players. Insigne was the second-highest paid player in the league this season until his departure, making upwards of $15 million, while Bernardeschi collected more than $6 million annually.

Instead, the two made their cases as some of the worst marquee signings in the league’s history, joining an eclectic group of former MLS players who arguably caused more drama than fanfare.

Worst marquee signings in MLS history

5. Blaise Matuidi, Inter Miami
Years before Lionel Messi landed in South Florida, Inter Miami were dead set on attaching high-profile names to their club and already had Gonzalo Higuain on the books. Midway through their inaugural season in 2020, they also landed World Cup winner Blaise Matuidi on a free transfer. It was a deal that raised eyebrows from the start but the following year, MLS found that Matuidi’s contract was in breach of the league’s financial rules and slapped the club with a $2 million fine and suspended then-COO Paul McDonaugh. It forced Miami to leave Matuidi off their 2022 roster because they had too many designated players, all of it resulting in a scandal that was much, much more memorable than anything he did on the pitch for the club.

4. Federico Bernardeschi, Toronto FC
Bernardeschi’s inclusion on this list is not only an exercise in recency bias but rather an incredible ability to crack the top five despite Toronto’s impressive history with high-profile signings that did not pay off. (The story of how Drake sent flowers to Jermain Defoe’s mother as part of Toronto’s efforts to land the England international should not be lost to history.) Though Bernardeschi had his moments on the pitch, including a hat trick against CF Montreal this season and a distinction as an MLS All-Star last year, the Italy international’s stay in Toronto was arguably more about vibes, and rarely of the good kind. While his hairstyles will always be memorable, so will his record of 26 yellow cards and four reds that rivals his goalscoring tally. He is one of many MLS DPs who had to face accusations that he was merely in the league to collect a paycheck and while he denied those claims, his former teammate C.J. Sapong alleged that Bernardeschi would vape in the locker room in the early days of his time in Toronto.

3. Rais M’Bolhi, Philadelphia Union
While Bernardeschi’s time in MLS was a drawn-out saga, goalkeeper Rais M’Bolhi earns his distinction as one of the worst designated player signings in the league’s history for how quickly it all transpired. Fresh off the 2014 World Cup, where he impressed with an 11-save display in the round of 16 for Algeria against eventual champions Germany, M’Bolhi joined the Philadelphia Union but less than a year later, then-head coach Jim Curtin said he would never play for the team again because of his poor performances and a rumored rift with his teammates. The goalkeeper played just nine games for the Union in total, failing in record time. 

2. Rafael Marquez, New York Red Bulls
Just about every designated player nightmare starts in the same way – as a splashy signing from a team that hopes to turn that money into major silverware. The New York Red Bulls did just that after the 2010 World Cup, lining up two former Barcelona players in Thierry Henry and Rafael Marquez, who ended up taking very different trajectories as MLS DPs. While Henry ranks amongst the best even without winning MLS Cup, Marquez was far from it. Though he was more memorable on the pitch than Matuidi, they were not all good – he lacked pace on the field, finished two of his three seasons with red cards in the playoffs and threw a ball at Landon Donovan as the LA Galaxy beat the Red Bulls in the postseason. Couple that with quotes about how his teammates were not at his “level” and that the MLS move was the worst decision of his career, Marquez is a hall of fame member in the club of terrible designated players.

1. Lothar Matthaus, New York/New Jersey MetroStars
Before they were the Red Bulls and years before there even was a designated player rule, there was Lothar Matthaus’ doomed spell with the New York/New Jersey MetroStars. It had a little bit of everything – he was there for less time than M’Bolhi was at the Union, only on the books from March to October of 2000. He did not offer much during his 16-game spell, and the most memorable moment of the short stint was his vacation to St. Tropez, which came when he was supposed to be recovering from a back injury. He retired soon after, managing whatever the opposite of a DP’s greatest hits in a surprisingly short amount of time.

This news was originally published on this post .

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