Fabián Espíndola

How Acquired:  Traded, along with his teammate Jamison Olave, from Real Salt Lake to New York Red Bulls in exchange for allocation money on Dec. 3, 2012.

A pacy striker with a strong left foot, Fabian Espindola is in his first season with the New York Red Bulls after previously playing his entire MLS career (2007-2012) with Real Salt Lake. The Argentinean national scored 35 goals and registered 17 assists in that span. Espindola will be one of New York’s top attacking threats in the 2013 season.

Professional:

2013: Shot out of the gate in his Red Bulls debut when he scored the fifth brace of his career in the season opener against the Portland Timbers on Mar. 3. His first goal as a Red Bull gave New York an early 1-0 lead over the Timbers, and his second stood as the go-ahead tally in the 24th minute in what concluded as a 3-3 draw.

2012: Finished just one goal shy of his career-high from the previous season with nine total tallies, and set a new career-best in assists with seven. His 30 appearances, 27 starts, 69 shots and 2,293 minutes of action were also new career highs. Registered two braces during the course of the season, his first coming against Chivas USA on June 16, and the other against the LA Galaxy on Oct. 6.

2011: Espindola recorded a career-high 10 goals, coupled with three assists (tying his best), in 27 appearances (25 starts) for Real Salt Lake. Ironically, Espindola registered the second brace of his career in a 3-1 win over the Red Bulls on Sept. 21. By season’s end, Espindola finished second overall in RSL’s goal-scoring race, behind only Alvaro Saborio.

2010: In 22 matches and 19 starts, both career highs, Espindola accumulated six goals and two assists in 1,945 minutes of action. His goal total placed him third overall on the team and marked his best performance since his five-goal outing during his sophomore campaign in 2008. During a CCL match on Aug. 25, Espindola scored a goal in the 64^th minute that gave RSL a 3-1 lead, one they later forfeited in a 5-4 loss.

2009:  Spent his 2008-09 offseason with Venezuelan side Deportivo Anzoategui and didn’t return to the Real Salt Lake lineup until May 4. Upon his return, the Argentinean scored three goals and three assists in 23 games (17 starts), and helped power RSL into the postseason. During the MLS Cup Playoffs, Espindola started in both wins against the Columbus Crew in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, came off the bench in the Eastern Conference Championship match, and also appeared off the bench in RSL’s 1-1 draw, and 5-4 PK win, over the LA Galaxy in the MLS Cup Final.

2008: Despite a number of injuries that limited his playing time, Espindola still registered five goals in 12 appearances, eight of which were starts, in just 642 minutes of action. Espindola suffered a left knee sprain on May 31 against San Jose that left him out of the lineup for two months, and shortly after his return suffered a severe ankle sprain on Sept. 6 that left him out for the remainder of the regular season. He did return in time for the playoffs, but saw limited time off the bench.

2007: Signed with Real Salt Lake on Aug. 17 and made his MLS debut the very next day against the Chicago Fire. Two weeks later on Aug. 29, Espindola scored his first MLS goal, a game-winner against Kansas City. Earned his first assist on Sept. 29 against the Red Bulls on a goal that was finished by Kyle Beckerman.