On Tuesday, the Earthquakes held a press conference to welcome new President Tom Fox and give the local media their first crack at the man at the helm for the Bay’s team. At the conclusion of the event, general manager Jesse Fioranelli spoke to a handful of writers anxious to learn of any updates on the team’s Designated Player search.
Shortly after his hiring, Fioranelli explained that the team would refrain from signing a DP in the primary transfer window, instead opting to build up the club through the use of Targeted Allocation Money. The move allowed the Quakes the freedom to spend an additional six months scouting and identifying the best player for their needs, as opposed to rushing into a decision with the window soon slamming shut.
Fast-forward to this week and Fioranelli has provided the media and fans alike with another update.
“We have spent the last four months looking at hundreds of players across various positions on the field,” explained Fioranelli. “We identified the profile of the player we wanted to find a couple of months ago, and now we are at the point where we are excited because we are not too far away from announcing the acquisition by the end of June. We are getting down to that point.
“For us, it is not about the name,” he said to the Mercury News. “It is about the quality of player who will come. We have a very good gut feeling about that position. It is feeling very good on different levels. It is very aligned where we want to go with the team. It is going to be a breath of fresh air. The profile of player we’re looking at is versatile and exciting. It takes quality players and not big names.”
Fioranelli also identified the player as an attacking midfielder under the age of 28, but held back from disclosing more information.
The MLS Secondary Transfer Window opens on July 10, meaning MLS may not request the ITC of a player under contract in another country until then. An announcement, or more details, may come before then if the pieces fall into place.
