Central America has been the Unions talent supermarket this off-season.
Acquiring Costa Rican players Josue Martinez and Porfirio Lopez, along with Panamanian midfielder Gabriel Gomez in the past two weeks, the Union created a Latin-based shopping list and are scratching names off at a rapid pace.
And coach Peter Nowak couldnt be happier about it.
We had the scouting reports, we knew what these players can do and we know what we need, Nowak said Thursday. Im excited about the signings, excited about mixing the youngsters like Martinez and Jimmy McLaughlin with more experienced guys like Gomez and Lopez. We are very selective how we add our pieces. We dont need much, but we needed to be active.
Snagging talent from this particular geographic area isnt new for the Union, who acquired Colombian players Faryd Mondragon, Roger Torres and Carlos Valdes and also chased down Guatemalan striker Carlos Ruiz last season.
However, the reason for the Unions Central American flavor, according to Nowak, is that these particular players are armed with a competitive hunger and valuable experience.
They have a lot of good guys there with national team experience and they are hungry for success, said Nowak. US Soccer or the MLS, in terms of development, could be a step forward for them. It could be a good way to open the door for some players. We have a good relationship with all those clubs. The talent is there. They give us (the US Mens National Team) hard times whenever we played them. The quality is definitely there.
On Wednesday, the Union announced the signing of Lopez, a decent-sized 26-year-old left back out of Liga Deportiva Alajuelense. Thin on the back line and forced to play natural midfielder Gabriel Farfan out of position on the left side last season, Lopez makes sense for the Union while also giving them more options.
The quality is what binds together all these signingsexperience as well, Nowak said. Lopez is a very versatile guy, he can play left back or move to center left back. He takes pride in defending and thats something we looked very close into. We determined that this is the guy that we needed.
Lopez was the second of two quick acquisitions by the Union, who also nabbed attacking midfielder Gomez on Wednesday. Living up to the what Nowak was eying in new playersexperience and versatilityGomez, 27, provides both out of Mexican Second Division Club Indios de Ciudad Jurez
He not only provides depth in the midfield but hes capable of scoring goals and be the first line of defense behind the strikers, Nowak said of Gomez, who helped Panama reach the Gold Cup Finals. He has many good qualities and has the experience with the national team. Hes going to be a big help on our midfield line as a guy who wont just defend but move forward.
Nowak was giddy in talking about his new player.
Im very excited about him, he said. The quality is there, its going to be about how he embraces it and how he embraces the league. Hes a big guy who has great range and ability. We needed this guy and we made it happen.
The shopping spree, however, wasnt without consequence. The Union now have 11 international players under contract which is three above the MLS-set limit of eight. The clubs taste for Latin-trained professionals will force Nowak and the teams technical staff to make a decision before the 2012 season begins in early March.
They could drop or transfer international contracts or trade for an international roster spot, neither of which has been decided on yet by the Union
There is always something to worry about, isnt it? Nowak joked. In this business, its always something. Were going to worry about it closer to the date. Right now, it is what it is. Were going to try and make it work, one way or another.
Its a possibility (to trade for a spot) thats for sure. You dont want to be in a desperate position going into negotiations but its something we talk about close to the draft. When the time is right, its something well worry about.
And though it is a worry, with the new group of internationals now in their armory, how to fit them on the roster is a good problem to have for the Union and one they will gladly take on.
E-mail Ryan Bright at ryanbright13@gmail.com