Sporting Kansas City have boosted their goalkeeping corps after bidding goodbye to their two top shot stoppers from 2014, announcing on Thursday the signing of Chilean goalkeeper Luis Marin.
Marin, 31, joins Sporting after playing his entire career in his native country, most recently with Universidad de Chile. He will occupy an international roster spot on the team's roster for the 2015 season, pending receipt of his International Transfer Certificate and P-1 Visa.
"Luis [Marin] is a goalkeeper with a wealth of experience and leadership," Sporting KC manager Peter Vermes said in a statement. "He knows our team and the tasks that lie ahead for him and he is raring to go to take the challenges head-on."
"I am excited to join Sporting Kansas City and take the next step in my career," Marin said in a statement. "I'm going to do everything I can to help this team win another championship."
Marin joins 21-year-old Jon Kempin as the only other goalkeeper on Sporting's roster, after the club parted ways with Eric Kronberg and Andy Gruenebaum.
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Marin was selected to Chile's 23-player roster for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa by head coach Marcelo Bielsa and has eight international appearances in his career for Chile, currently the No. 14 ranked national team in the world. He made his international debut in March 2010 and last captained Chile in February 2012.
On the domestic scene, the 6'2", 196-lb. 'keeper served mostly as a backup for La U since joining the Santiago powerhouses on loan in summer of 2013, but did start three games for them in the 2014 Copa Libertadores and was part of the squad that recently captured the 2014 Apertura title. He started his professional career in 2003 with Audax Italiano and has also played for Chilean clubs Union Española, Lota Schwager and O'Higgins.
Marin is the fifth addition to Sporting Kansas City's roster for the 2015 season, along with defender Jalil Anibaba, midfielder Bernardo Añor, midfielder James Marcelin and forward Krisztian Nemeth. Additionally, the club re-signed forward Dom Dwyer on Wednesday.
