Schmid was given greater powers related to player personnel decisions by the Galaxy, similar to that of Arena's tenure and replacing roles served by general manager Pete Vagenas, and looked to enter the 2018 season with a "winning" roster. During the offseason, the Galaxy overhauled its roster and declined to re-sign several starting players, including captain Jermaine Jones and homegrown player Gyasi Zardes. Schmid replaced the core team with free agents and trades from other MLS teams, including Perry Kitchen, Chris Pontius, Ola Kamara, and David Bingham. The Galaxy also signed star striker Zlatan Ibrahimović, who Schmid hoped would be a "positive impact" on the team.