TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS:Report
ORLANDO – Real Salt Lake are pursuing Mexican national team and Tigres midfielder Jesus Dueñas, league sources told MLSsoccer.com on Saturday.
The sources said that RSL recently spoke to the 28-year-old midfielder about joining the club this offseason. Dueñas has spent his entire professional career with Tigres. Primarily a box-to-box midfielder, he recorded one goal and five assists in 21 games to help the club to the 2017 Apertura title in December. A regular starter since 2013, he has 16 goals in 220 career league matches and has won three Liga MX titles with Monterrey-based side. He started their Clausura-opening loss at Puebla last week.
A member of the Mexican national team since 2015, Dueñas has one goal in 23 career caps for El Tri. He played in four matches in Mexico’s successful World Cup qualifying campaign, and was a regular call-up during the CONCACAF Hexagonal.
He’d fit in nicely at RSL, who currently only have Luke Mulholland as a pure box-to-box midfielder. If acquired, Dueñas would likely play in a midfield three with attacking midfielder Albert Rusnak and holding midfielder and Kyle Beckerman. Beckerman is currently out of contract, but RSL GM Craig Waibel told MLSsoccer.com on Friday that the club captain is close to re-signing.
RSL have done a decent amount of business with Tigres in recent years. Forward Luis Silva left Salt Lake to join Tigres following the 2015 season, then returned to Utah last winter. RSL then sold reserve goalkeeper Lalo Fernandez to Tigres in September.
