David Villa's club Vissel Kobe to tour United States next month | OneFootball

When David Villa left New York City FC after their playoff exit, many Major League Soccer fans wondered when they might see the Spaniard in action again.

The answer to that musing appears to be sooner than anyone expected!

Villa officially announced his departure from the Blues on 28 November and by 1 December had joined Vissel Kobe in Japan.

At the J1 League club, Villa linked up with former team-mate at Barcelona and with the Spanish national team Andrés Iniesta.

Iniesta, Villa, and German forward Lukas Podolski will travel with Vissel Kobe during a pre-season tour of the United States in a few weeks.

Villa spent four years with NYCFC, where he served as captain for most of his tenure. The former Spanish national team forward finished with 77 goals and 26 assists through 117 matches in the MLS regular season in addition to three goals in seven play-off games.

In preparation for upcoming J1 League season, Kobe will play Columbus Crew SC, Los Angeles FC, and Toronto FC. All matches will be held in Southern California.

They will play Columbus on 28 January at the Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine, travel to Banc of California Stadium to face LAFC on 31 January, and then return to Irvine to play Toronto on 2 February.

Kobe will then round out their American visit by playing second-division side Orange County SC on 5 February.

The American teams will also use these pre-season exhibitions to get their squads in order before the MLS season kicks off on 2 March.