With the World Cup just months away, the LA Galaxy picked up a little more Brazilian flare for 2014.
The club announced on Tuesday that it has acquired Brazilian forward Samuel Rosa Gonçalves – known simply as Samuel – on loan from Fluminense of Brazil’s Serie A. The 22-year-old joins the Galaxy after spending the past two seasons with the Rio de Janeiro-based outfit, tallying 15 goals in 72 appearances across all competitions, including one in his last game for the club early last month.
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Samuel will be added to the Galaxy roster pending the receipt of his International Transfer Certificate (ITC) and P1 Visa. Per club and league policy terms of the loan agreement were not disclosed.
“We are pleased to add Samuel to our roster,” Galaxy head coach and GM Bruce Arena said in a statement. “Samuel is a young, talented forward with both size and skill. We are confident his addition will help boost our attack in 2014.”
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Samuel debuted for Fluminense during the 2012 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A season, scoring five goals in 23 league appearances for the club, which won its fourth championship in club history that year. He also made five appearances in the 2012 Campeonato Carioca, which is the regional championship for the state of Rio de Janeiro, helping lead the club to that title as well.
Last season, Samuel had nine goals in 45 appearances in all competitions, scoring four times in Serie A play, four times in the Campeonato Carioca and once in the Copa do Brazil. He started in 12 of his 24 league appearances for Fluminense while also appearing in eight games during that year’s Copa Libertadores, helping his team reach the quarterfinals of South America’s premier continental club competition.
