Toronto FC is parting ways with designated player Federico Bernardeschi with the expectation that fellow Italian Lorenzo Insigne will follow him out the door.

The Major League Soccer club and Bernardeschi have agreed to terminate the winger’s contract, with TFC using one of its two permitted buyouts of his guaranteed deal.

“After internal discussions with Federico, we were aligned that this was the correct moment to part ways,” Toronto GM Jason Hernandez said in a statement. “We would like to thank Fede for his contributions to Toronto FC over the past three years and wish him the best in the next chapter of his career.”

The two Italian designated players arrived to much fanfare — and with paychecks to match — midway through the 2022 season. But they could not return the club to its former glory.

Toronto (4-10-5) currently sits 13th in the 15-team Eastern Conference, four places and 11 points below the playoff line, and 26th overall in the 30-team league. It has not made the playoffs since 2020, when it stumbled at the first hurdle.

Bernardeschi is making US$6.295 million this season, which ranks sixth in MLS. Insigne is making U$15.4 million, second only to Lionel Messi’s US$20.5 million.

Bernardeschi’s contract runs through 2026 with option years through 2028 while Insigne’s deal runs through June 2026 with an option for the remainder of the year.

Their departure opens up two designated player spots.

“The designated player strategy is a critical component to Toronto FC’s success in Major League Soccer and the club will continue to prioritize TFC’s short-, medium- and long-term strategy in the weeks ahead,” added MLSE president and CEO Keith Pelley.

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The 31-year-old Bernardeschi scored 26 goals and added 22 assists in 99 appearances across all competitions. An all-star in 2024, he has four goals and four assists through 15 matches this season.

Bernardeschi has not played since May 24 when he picked up a fifth yellow card that earned him a one-game suspension. He missed the last three games with what Toronto coach Robin Fraser described as a “lingering” injury.

At his best, the flamboyant Bernardeschi was a sight to behold, marauding down the wing and heading towards goal, looking to unleash his dangerous left boot. But with 26 yellow and four red cards in 88 league appearances, he was also volatile and somewhat unreliable.

The two Italians reportedly bumped heads with former coach Bob Bradley. John Herdman, who succeeded Bradley, converted Bernardeschi to wingback with Fraser returning him to his more accustomed winger position.

The 34-year-old Insigne has sat out the last two TFC games. He did not make it off the bench in a 1-1 draw with the New York Red Bulls and did not dress for Saturday’s 3-0 win over Portland.

At the time, Fraser said the club wanted to give other players a chance.

Bernardeschi arrived with a Grade-A resume.

“We are delighted to add Federico to our team,” said Bill Manning, TFC’s president at the time. “As a player and a person, we believe he’s exactly what we need right now, both on the field and in the locker room. Federico has proven himself to be a champion and a leader at Juventus and for the Italian national team and brings a pedigree to Toronto that’s second to none.”

Manning, fired by Pelley in July as president of TFC and the Toronto Argonauts, famously said he settled on Insigne after seeing the local interest in Italy’s run to the European championship.

“I actually went to the Transfermarkt website and I looked up the Italian national team on what players were coming out of contract,” Manning told reporters. “And Lorenzo was one of the few players who was coming out of contract. I started writing down players that I thought were world-class, that I thought would have commercial value in this market.”

Bernardeschi arrived from Juventus, where he had spent five seasons after joining from Fiorentina. He scored six goals in 38 appearances for the Italian national team, including the winning penalty in the shootout to seal Italy’s win over England in the 2020 UEFA European Championship final (played in 2021).

Insigne arrived from Napoli, where he captained the side. He made a combined 416 appearances for the Serie A club, scoring 114 goals with 95 assists across all competitions.

He scored 10 goals in 53 appearances for Italy. But he did not seem to find a fit with Toronto, with 15 goals and 10 assists in 66 games.

Toronto sat Insigne for the first four games of this season after failed attempts to move him to clubs in Italy, Spain, Turkey and Brazil. The club eventually returned him to action, but with one goal and three assists in 12 league outings, he did not make much of an impact.

Under MLS roster rules, a designated player aged at least 24 only carries a salary budget charge of US$743,750, no matter how much they are paid.

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