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FC Nantes, refusing to wait for the Philadelphia Union or MLS, announced that United States national team midfielder Alejandro Bedoya is leaving the club.
From the official press release on the Ligue 1 club's website:
He leaves ... Alejandro Bedoya will not wear the colors of FC Nantes this season. After three years on the banks of the Erdre, the US international has chosen to give a new direction to his career. Alejandro Bedoya continue its route across the Atlantic, home to the United States, participating in the Major League Soccer championship with the franchise Philadelphia Union.
ESPN's Jeff Carlisle provided further confirmation:
Deal is done. League source tells me final transfer fee on Bedoya is $1M, & final salary # is $1M/year. #DOOP
— Jeff Carlisle (@JeffreyCarlisle) August 3, 2016
(MLS is a weird league sometimes and while Nantes has announced the move, who knows what could happen at the last minute to disrupt things. For now, let's pretend that it is happening.)
Bedoya made 87 appearances with Nantes, scoring ten goals. He previously spent time with Orebro SK, Rangers, and Helsingborgs IF.
Grant Wahl previously reported that clubs in the English Premier League and Bundesliga were interested in securing the attacking midfielder/winger's services. However, Bedoya was open about his desire to play in MLS and came close to joining the league twice in the past year.
Naturally, one questions how USMNT head coach and technical director Jurgen Klinsmann will react to this move, but his reactions are rarely predictable. Sometimes he is a fan of players moving to MLS, other times he would prefer they stay in Europe. We can speculate on the impact this move will have on Bedoya's standing with the national team, but nobody really knows what will happen.