Los Angeles Diary: Luis Hernandez

- In his own words the defender discusses how easy it has been to settle in the squad 

- Hernandez joined on a free transfer in the summer after a spell at Spanish side Sporting Gijon 

- He talks about the team spirit and initiation songs 

As pre-season continues, LCFC.com caught up with new boy Luis Hernandez to ask how he’s settled in and how training in Los Angeles is going… 

The squad are hard at work in the States ahead of a tough clash with Paris Saint-Germain at the weekend, with training in the Los Angeles sun helping to get them in shape for the new campaign. 

Hernandez is one of four new faces in the group having joined on a free transfer after his contract with Spanish side Sporting Gijon expired in the summer. 

So we asked the Madrid-born defender to tell us a little about Los Angeles, his team-mates and what he had to sing for his dreaded initiation song… 

Luis Hernandez 

This is my first time in Los Angeles and I have to say I really like the city. Obviously it’s a big, famous city and I like the weather too because it’s the same as Spain! Obviously it’s important in pre-season to train hard, which we are, but if you can come to a new city like LA then it’s definitely a good thing. I have been to America before though. I stayed in Dallas when I played in a football tournament and then I’ve been to New York for holidays.

So far since we got here we’ve been training very hard. We trained on the first two days but it’s good to be here in a big city because we can visit things when we aren’t training, I think that has been very good for us. 

I’ve been at the Club for a few weeks now and it’s important when you arrive at a new team to have a good welcome and here it has been unbelievable. I feel so at home with my team-mates. Obviously I am close to Leo Ulloa because I know he speaks Spanish and we talk quite a lot, although I try to speak English all the time so I can get to know my team-mates better each day. The manager speaks a lot of languages too and that’s important. Claudio is a great person, a great manager and so smart. 

Of course like all the new players I’ve had to sing a song in pre-season! In Spain this is not a tradition, but I knew here that I would have to sing. I did it in Austria. I put a chair in the middle of the restaurant and sang a Spanish song – La Macarena! I did a little bit of a dance too, so I hope my team-mates liked it! It’s a good thing. It’s funny and it helps you to see the spirit of a group. It’s like a family here and it definitely helps to welcome new people. 

I’ve spent time with the staff and my team-mates so now the one thing I can’t wait for is to play in front of the Leicester City fans at King Power Stadium once the season starts. It’s a really good stadium and I can’t wait to meet the fans who support us. I’m working hard to play my first game in front of them all and I just can’t wait.