Fresh off a five-day trip to Puerto Rico, where they played a pair of USL First Division clubs in preseason matches, FC Dallas returned to the practice field Tuesday with an extra player -- Argentine defender/midfielder Pablo Richetti.
Earlier this month, Richetti trained with FCD in Brazil and impressed head coach Steve Morrow and his staff.
"We had a good look at him in Brazil," Morrow said. "We like the qualities that he's got. We wanted him to come up, look at our complex and get comfortable with everything here as well and give us a chance to see how he fits in with things here. We're in contract negotiations with him right now and things have moved on pretty well. We're going to take it day-by-day and see how quickly we can advance it."
On Saturday, FCD will play their final preseason match when they host Brazilian partner Clube Atletico Paranaense at Pizza Hut Park. Richetti could be part of the festivities whether or not he has signed a contract.
"He doesn't need to be signed to play on Saturday," Morrow said. "We need to get his visa and notice of approval through before we can finalize the contract and add him to the roster. It's unpredictable how long that could take. Juan Carlos (Toja) took 10 days. But we can't add him to the roster until his visa gets approved. I think it made a lot of sense to get him in here ... and go through the whole visa process while he was in the country training with the team, getting used to the guys and what we're trying to do. It's worked out well."
When FCD reaches an agreement with Richetti, it will mark the second South American player the club has added this month. On Feb. 28, they signed Colombian midfielder Juan Carlos Toja and officially added him to the roster when 2006 MLS Comeback Player of the Year Richard Mulrooney was traded to Toronto FC last week. Richetti and Toja could both be starting central midfielders for the Hoops not long after joining the team.
Once Richetti is signed, FCD will have to clear a roster spot to make space for him. Morrow admitted after Tuesday's training that he had several moves in mind but declined to elaborate.
Morrow said he feels adding Richetti would make his roster rock solid heading into the regular season. One concern with the FCD midfield last year was that at times, ball possession was spotty and the attack didn't really seem to flow through the midfield. Richetti and Toja are players who could help remedy that situation.
"He (Richetti) has got great experience and can play at a top level," Morrow said. "He's very good technically and brings a lot of composure in possession. He's very relaxed on the ball. He's a great passer and can find little gaps. He has good qualities in the midfield, is able to hold things together. He brings good athleticism as well. He has good fitness levels and covers the field well. All those qualities are what we're looking for."
Steve Hunt is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
