After nine years in MLS, Josh Wolff will report for 1860 Munich duty on January 3rd to get ready for the second half of the 2. Bundesliga season.
1860 sit in sixth place as the German leagues enjoy their yearly winter hibernation, and the prospect of being part of a promotion push played a role in his decision.
"(1860 Munich) has a lot of history and tradition," Wolff told YA. "It's a big club and it's a team that is usually in the top flight, so that is obviously the ambition of the club over the next year or so. That was something that was important to me."
"You want to try to be the kind of person that is trying to get back up to the first division. That and it would provide me with a good challenge, something that I have been looking for over the last couple of years, personally,"
"I am 29," he continued. "I was looking for something different. (Munich) is were it just kind of all fit in together and we just went for it."
Wolff hasn't played a game in over three months - beyond his 1860 trial in November - and he recognizes that he will need some time to get his legs back.
"I took a little time off after I went on the trial over there, I needed the break," he explained. "It has been a busy 18 months."
"I started running the whole month of December, but again, it is always tough when you haven't played a game in a number of months."
Last year team at this time, Wolff was gearing up for Bruce Arena's US Men's National Team camp in Carson, California, and that experience should help the erstwhile Kansas City Wizard make the transition to his new team.
"It wouldn't be any different than going to the National Team camp in January, and it being a grind as well. It is fairly common for us MLS guys anyway."
Wolff had the opportunity to return to Kansas City to add to his 59 goals in 164 MLS regular season games, but saw the opportunity as something he couldn't turn down.
"It was certainly something that I wanted to do. Kansas City made a good offer, there certainly was interest in me staying there, but at the end of the day it felt best (to go). My wife knows I wanted to go, so we just took a shot at it and we'll see what we can make of it."
Wolff appeared set to make his move to Europe in August, with English Championship side Derby County having made a concrete offer for his services, but the former South Carolina Gamecock was ultimately foiled by the UK Home Office's less than transparent work permit process.
"Yes, the work permit (process) is bizarre," he conceded. "Going into it we knew it was going to be bizarre."
"So once you don't get on the 75% (mark for US games played) over two years, it is kind of, the way I see it, pot luck. It is up to six guys that decide it."
"But that's just the way it is. When it happened I was certainly disappointed, but the first thing I said to my wife is 'soccer has done too much for us to really get hung up on this and we'll keep looking and if something else good comes along, we'll go after it.'"
After arriving in Germany on January 2nd, Wolff will "go after it" the following day when training camp starts, with the team heading to Spain for 10 days shortly thereafter.
The second half of the season starts January 21st when Bavarian rivals Greuther Fürth come to Munich's Allianz Arena. |
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