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Around The Forest: Savarese looks to build on a very good base moving forward

Also: Kamara and Zardes switch places, Torres near new deal with the Sounders, Earthquakes confident in roster ahead of the season and more!

Portland

Timbers, Savarese look to build on "very good base" before start of season | MLSsoccer.com
The Timbers were quiet on the first day of the 2018 MLS SuperDraft, but there were few people at the Pennsylvania Convention Center busier than Portland manager Giovanni Savarese. The Timbers had no picks in the first two rounds and made no trades. But there was Savarese, working his way through the ballroom, shaking hands and accepting congratulations.

Major League Soccer

Reports: LAFC to sign Honduran international goalkeeper Luis Lopez | MLSsoccer.com
LAFC appear to be on the brink of singing another goalkeeper, with reports indicating the incoming expansion club will soon ink 24-year-old Honduran international Luis “Buba” Lopez.

Gregg Berhalter: Kamara-Zardes trade makes Columbus Crew SC better | MLSsoccer.com
For the second time in three seasons, Gregg Berhalter and Columbus Crew SC have traded their leading scorer. Less than two years after moving striker Kei Kamara to the New England Revolution after a 22-goal season in 2015, the club announced Saturday that they had traded striker Ola Kamara to the LA Galaxy after the striker scored 18 goals last season.

Roman Torres says he's "close to finishing" a new contract with Seattle | MLSsoccer.com
It sounds like Roman Torres will be sticking around Seattle for a few more years. The veteran center back told reporters at MLS Media Day in Los Angeles on Saturday that he is “close to finishing a new contract with Seattle” and that he hopes “to stay here in MLS for many more years.”

Armchair Analyst: Five late-round picks who could make a dent in MLS | MLSsoccer.com
The odds are stacked high against the 35 young men who heard their names called today in rounds three and four of the 2018 MLS SuperDraft. Hell, even second-round picks rarely break through these days as MLS teams have become more adept and aggressive at building from within via the Homegrown player mechanism, or scouting and signing players from overseas via GAM, TAM, DP slots et al.

San Jose Earthquakes "very confident" in roster following offseason tweaks | MLSsoccer.com
To hear general manager Jesse Fioranelli tell it, it didn’t take much convincing for the San Jose Earthquakes to fly in the face of most pre-draft punditry on Friday morning.

Report: Toronto FC interested in Dutch veteran Gregory van der Wiel | MLSsoccer.com
Van der Wiel, 29, signed with Italian club Cagliari last year from Turkish side Fenerbahce. The fullback has had a bit of a rough go in Serie A, appearing in just five games this season. He previously played for Ajax and Paris Saint-Germain and has 46 career caps for the Netherlands.

Report: Minnesota among "many" MLS teams interested in Yamil Asad | MLSsoccer.com
Yamil Asad doesn’t look like he’s coming back to Atlanta, but his time in MLS might not be done yet. The St. Paul Pioneer Press’ Andy Greder reported on Friday that Minnesota United are among “many MLS clubs” interested in acquiring Asad.

Premier League transfer news: Stoke City make transfer bid for New York City FC's Jack Harrison | Goal.com
Jack Harrison's career has seen him go from Manchester United's academy to the American college system and Major League Soccer, and now an English Premier League club is working to try and bring him back home.

LA Galaxy get Kamara from Columbus Crew SC for Zardes, up to $500K TAM | MLSsoccer.com
The questions over Ola Kamara's future have ended in the form of one of the biggest trades of the MLS offseason. Columbus Crew SC and the LA Galaxy made official on Saturday a deal that will send Kamara to the Galaxy in exchange for Gyasi Zardes and at least $400,000 of Targeted Allocation Money.

Armchair Analyst: ATLUTD's Ezequiel Barco signing sets new standard for MLS | MLSsoccer.com
Way back in 1996, D.C. United put together what might still be the dynasty to measure all MLS dynasties by. The group was a collection of young, high-upside US players (Eddie Pope and Tony Sanneh), USMNT regulars (John Harkes and Jeff Agoos), a few scrappy gamers (Richie Williams and Steve Rammel), and a Central American star (Raul Diaz Arce). That group, together, would've been good enough to – at the very least – compete.

United States

USA cruises to 5-1 victory over tired Denmark - Stars and Stripes FC
19-year-old Tierna Davidson made her USWNT debut tonight, pairing up with Abby Dahlkemper at center back while usual team captain and back line general Becky Sauerbrunn is out, resting a stress reaction in her left foot. If you thought that might shake the team’s composure at all, you’re mostly mistaken.

TRANSFER UPDATE: United States international close to Sunderland loan, according to reports - Roker Report
Bournemouth central midfielder Emerson Hyndman is set to join Sunderland on loan in the next 48 hours, according to reports this afternoon. The United States international - who started out in professional football at Fulham - spent time on loan at Scottish side Glasgow Rangers in the second half of last season, impressing before going on to win their young player of the year award.

World

Transfer news: Jurgen Klopp wants Liverpool to be a club no one ever leaves | Goal.com
Jurgen Klopp may have seen Philippe Coutinho slip the net, but he intends to make Liverpool a club nobody wants to leave. The Reds reluctantly sanctioned the €160 million sale of a key playmaker to Barcelona after seeing him express a desire to complete a “dream” transfer .

Manchester City eye £40m January move for Shakhtar's Fred sources
Manchester City are considering a January move for Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Fred in a bid to get a head start on their summer transfer business, sources have told ESPN FC.

Bradley Wright Phillips on Arsenal and Wenger Something has to change
Wright-Phillips, a fan of the Gunners, has great respect for what Wenger has achieved at the club but for him the recent decline of a team that should be challenging for the Premier League title each season means something has to change.