Will Ferrell makes bilingual sales pitch to Chicharito: Join LAFC, 'I beg you'
Will Ferrell was offered a chance to publicly woo Mexican national team star Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez to join LAFC, a 2018 Major League Soccer expansion club. He did not disappoint.
Ferrell, one of dozens of co-owners within the LAFC ownership group, made his sales pitch on ESPN in a mix of Spanish and English to the 29-year-old.
"Chicharito, listen up por me," he said. "Me llamo Memo, te quiero mucho. Te quiero tus ojos, tus zapatos, tus phalanges—I don't know what fingers are, dedos? Dedos."
Translation: Ferrell likes Chicharito a lot—his eyes, his shoes and his fingers.
"Please, come play for LAFC whenever you want to," he continued. "You don't even have to play every game. I beg you. Oh, I'm not going to pay you. But I beg you. And we're going to make it worth your while."
Earlier this year, reports emerged that the MLS expansion side was working on a deal to sign Chicharito for its inaugural season. ESPN FC later reported that the deal was unlikely, with the main holdup being salary demands and a large transfer fee, since his current deal with Bayer Leverkusen runs through summer 2018.
The former Manchester United striker has tallied 39 goals since joining his current club two years ago. He has been competing with the Mexican national team in the 2017 Confederations Cup.
Ferrell has been a Chicharito fan for years now. In 2012, he appeared on a halftime show for a Spanish-language broadcast, promptly answering each question with a single word: "Chicharito."