FC Dallas hopes they’ve found an immediate-impact player in a familiar spot.
On Friday, the club traded up to the top spot in Stage One in the MLS Re-Entry Draft and selected forward Maximiliano Urruti, whose contract option for 2016 was declined by the Portland Timbers last week.
“We’ve been following this player for a while. This is a player who has been around the league for a long time and is quality,” Technical Director Fernando Clavijo said. “I think what we have behind him if we put him up top [at forward] with Tesho [Akindele] right now at the moment, I think you’re going to see Mauro [Diaz], [Fabian] Castillo and [Michael] Barrios excelling and allowing Maximiliano to become a big part of this team in the future. For me, I don’t believe that if I hold the draft pick at 17, where we were, I would have a chance to even come close to [being able to select] him.”
The Argentine appeared in 60 games for the Timbers over the last two seasons – largely being used off the bench – and scored 14 goals with five assists over that time. Past Re-Entry Drafts have yielded Dallas players like Atiba Harris and Stephen Keel, and with Urruti heading into his third full season in MLS, Clavijo hopes his experience in the league and with Portland during their championship run pays dividends.
“International players take time to adjust. It could be an incredible bargain, it could be an incredible player, but it takes time,” Clavijo said. “He’s here [in the league already] and we can impact our roster right away with one player. And doing that, I think we cut down the amount of time these players need to adjust to each club.
“This kid is a finisher. He likes to play in the box, his movement behind the back four is outstanding, he’s quick, really good in the air, he’s not a small guy at 6-foot [tall] – that’s what we need to break behind the back four.”
And in talking to Urruti today, Clavijo says he’s excited to join the youth movement in Dallas.
“He loves the game, he loves the way we play, he loves the city, so I think it’s going to be a good addition right away,” he said. “He’s still very much in pursuit of a championship, even if he won one just now. He wants to participate in one and be able to be the one who helps this team go to the Final.”
