Argentine defender expected to sign with Inter Miami before MLS is Back Tournament
Inter Miami is expected to add a new player to its roster in the coming days, and it is someone familiar to Major League Soccer. Former Atlanta United center back Leandro Gonzalez Pirez, a native of Argentina, is headed to Miami after six months with Mexican club Tijuana, according to The Athletic.
The sides have reportedly agreed to terms for the transfer, which will become official once the league opens a new transfer window. That is expected to happen within the next week.
Inter Miami COO and sporting director Paul McDonough said last week that he hoped to add a few players to his roster before the MLS is Back Tournament, which kicks off July 8 in Orlando with Inter Miami vs. Orlando City. The monthlong made-for-TV tournament will feature all 26 teams at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports and will be played without spectators in the stands.
Inter Miami will play Orlando, Philadelphia and Chicago in the group round, with game times and TV schedule expected to be announced in the next few days. The 16 survivors from the group round advance to the knockout round, and the championship game is on Aug. 11.
“I did leave room to add players and we were going to add players, and the pandemic came,” McDonough said. “Now, the biggest problem for me is trying to figure out when the league is really going to let us add players. I’ve got roster space and cap flexibility. I want to add players before we play in Orlando. I don’t know if they’re going to let that happen.
“Everyone else has been able to do it. If I’ve got the money and the space, I want the freedom to be able to do that. If they don’t let that happen, then we’ll compete in the tournament and look to add players after.”
He said he plans to add “three significant pieces” and that they will “definitely use” their No. 1 ranking in the Allocation List to get one of the players. The MLS Allocation List is a mechanism that allows teams to acquire U.S. national team players and former MLS players returning to the league with transfer fees greater than $500,000. He said they would also add an attacking designated player and another player.
Gonzalez Pirez, 28, was one of Atlanta’s best players for three seasons, a 2019 MLS All-Star and he is well-known to McDonough, who came to Miami from Atlanta United. He started 104 games for Atlanta from 2017 to 2019, including the 2018 MLS Cup final.
He would join fellow Argentine Nico Figal in Inter Miami’s central defense, along with Panamanian national team captain Roman Torres and upcoming Colombian talent Andres Reyes, Venezuelan Christian Makoun and Grant Lillard.
He left Atlanta for Tijuana in January 2020 and played 14 games before Liga MX was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. His made $810,000 with Atlanta last season.
Inter Miami began full-squad training on June 9, and players are being tested every other day. One player has tested positive, the team announced last Thursday. He was asymptomatic and feels fine but is isolated from the team until he has back-to-back negative results. No other players or staff had tested positive as of Monday afternoon.
Some MLS teams will head to Orlando later this week and check into the Swan and Dolphin resort, where the entire league will be sequestered for the duration of the tournament. Inter Miami will continue to train at its home facility, test for COVID-19 regularly, and leave for Orlando around July 1.