MLS Transfer Rumor Confirmed: Alan Velasco from Independiente to FC Dallas

An MLS transfer rumor that had been gaining momentum in recent days was confirmed: Alan Velazco leaving Independiente of Argentina and arriving at FC Dallas of MLS.

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The Argentine winger arrives at Major League Soccer and was presented by the Cowboys as the biggest signing in the history of FC Dallas. 

The player arrives at the team to become the club's third Designated Player, and the institution made a comparison with two other players who arrived at the club and whose signings are the only ones that rival Velasco's. 

Those players were Mexico's Hugo Sánchez, who was announced as the club's first player in 1996, and Brazil's World Cup-winning Denílson, who joined in 2007, but the comparison with both is quite stark. 

And it is so because while both arrived at the club in the twilight of their careers, Alan Velasco does so at the age of 19 and with immense potential. 

Alan Velasco left Independiente and chose FC Dallas over European teams

According to club president Dan Hunt, Velasco chose Major League Soccer over European teams that had shown interest in him.

"He had opportunities to go to European clubs. Clubs in England and Spain had shown a lot of interest in him, but he thought this was the next step in his logical progression to come here and play," Hunt said in a press release. 

In addition, the FC Dallas president also stated: "Alan Velasco is excited. He's thrilled to come to Dallas. This has been the destination of his choosing". 

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Alan Velasco's numbers at Independiente, with which he seduced FC Dallas

Velasco broke into Independiente's first team at age 16 and made 71 appearances in all competitions, scoring 10 goals and providing 10 assists. But what sets Velasco apart is his playmaking ability, his change-of-speed skills, and his dribbling.

With these skills, the player has shown a knack for disarming opposing defenses and leaving them in the way when they try to mark him. 

These abilities dazzled everyone on the Cowboys staff, especially Andre Zanotta, who according to Hunt, already knew the player.

"Andre (Zanotta, FCD Technical Director) was very, very familiar with Velasco and he was a player he had seen and known," explained the team president.

"Last year, the asking price for Alan Velasco was $20 million. And some teams were sniffing around and COVID changed the market a little bit for a lot of teams. But his talent is undeniable, and his passion for the game. So it's a great time for this club to bring in a player like Alan."

The team's coach, Nico Estévez, is also excited about the arrival of this young talent and stated that the player is a hard worker and wants to help improve the team. 

Velasco's arrival to the team is the only thing they needed, according to the press release, to rejuvenate the club's supporters, through a generational change in their attacking trident. 

This trident will be formed by Velasco, newcomer Paul Arriola and the Designated Player of the youth academy, Jesús Ferreira, after a complicated 2021.