Inter Miami in talks to make roster move before 8 p.m. MLS trade deadline
The MLS summer transfer window closes at 8 p.m. today (Thursday) and Inter Miami is in talks with several teams to make a roster move before the deadline, according to multiple league sources.
Miami, on a three-game unbeaten run after Wednesday’s 1-1 tie with Orlando City, could stand to sell at least one higher-priced player and make money to compensate for stiff sanctions imposed by MLS for violating roster budget rules in the signing of Blaise Matuidi and four other players last season.
The club was fined $2 million and will also have its roster allocation money reduced by $2.27 million during the next two seasons, which puts the team at a disadvantage in negotiating future player contracts.
Making a trade within the league midseason makes sense because the player(s) they get would already be familiar with MLS and there would be no delay for travel and visa issues, which are more complicated during the pandemic.
Miami will make a move only if it will improve the roster and reap allocation funds for upcoming seasons.
One player who has drawn interest is Argentine center back Leandro Gonzalez Pirez, who Inter Miami acquired in July 2020 from Mexican club Tijuana. His base salary this season is $849,996 and his guaranteed compensation is $1.01 million.
Gonzalez Pirez, 29, began his career with River Plate in Argentina, moved to Atlanta United in 2017 to play for Argentine coach Tata Martino and instantly became one of the top MLS defenders.
He was a pillar on the Atlanta team that won the MLS Cup in 2018, just one year after the expansion club joined the league. Known for his toughness and technical skills, Gonzalez Pirez played for Argentina’s U17, U20 and U22 national teams. He also has European experience after going on loan to Gent in Belgium.
A 2019 MLS All-Star, Gonzalez Pirez was sold by Atlanta United to Tijuana in January 2020. Some reports speculated that his public criticism of former Atlanta coach Frank de Boer, who replaced Martino, was a reason for his departure. He wound up playing just 14 games for Tijuana before Liga MX was suspended in mid-March 2020 due to the coronavirus.
This story was originally published August 5, 2021 at 12:10 PM.