and success on the international stage -- intensifies.
"It's a first-class organization with great ambitions to win championships on the field," said Gallardo, who joins United from French Ligue 1 outfit Paris Saint-Germain, where he struggled to break into the starting lineup during his one-year stint. "I'm excited to be here and I can't wait to get started, because soccer is my passion. I'm happy to be on board with an ambitious team who has shown me, from the short days that I've been here, that their number one priority is winning."
Club investor-operators Victor MacFarlane and Will Chang were present alongside president and CEO Kevin Payne, general manager Dave Kasper and head coach Tom Soehn to welcome Gallardo to the capital club, where expectations are sky-high as preparations began this week for a 2008 campaign featuring two domestic and three regional competitions.
"Marcelo joining our team is indicative of Will's and my commitment to D.C. United and to the city of Washington, D.C. to create a world-class city and make this a soccer capital of the United States," said MacFarlane. "We have a world-class team, a world-class organization, and now we expect some world-class trophies."
Over the years, United have built one of the league's most advanced overseas talent-scouting networks and elected not to utilize the designated player option when it debuted last season, showing a preference for the value offered by lesser-known players like Brazilian striker Luciano Emilio. But that outlook evolved as the club whittled down its salary cap limitations and steadily stockpiled allocation money.
"We didn't dive right into it because we had a team that at the time we were happy with - and we didn't have the cap room, frankly," explained Payne. "Victor and Will were emphatic from the beginning that they would be supportive of that kind of spending if it made sense. ... But we made a commitment within ourselves that we were going to make the room this year, to begin the 2008 season with a designated player."
Gallardo is United's fifth South American acquisition this year, with fellow Argentineans Franco Niell and Gonzalo Peralta having been introduced along with Colombian Gonzalo Martinez and Peruvian Jose Carvallo on Monday. But the man known as "El Muneco" ("the doll," a reference to his diminutive build) arrives bearing the most impressive pedigree of the lot.
As a young star at renowned club River Plate, he helped Los Millionarios win a raft of Argentinean league titles as well as the 1996 Copa Libertadores before joining French side AS Monaco in 1999, where he earned league footballer of the of the year honors in 2000 as the club won the Ligue 1 handily. Gallardo was also a member of Argentina's World Cup squads in 1998 and 2002, starting one match for the albiceleste.
But the United brain trust were apparently just as impressed with his competitiveness and fiery personality as they were his resume. Having come up short in a number of high-pressure situations in recent seasons, the Black-and-Red are eager to fortify their roster with impact players capable of deciding big matches.
"He's a player who's performed everywhere he's been," said Payne. "His teams have won championships, and he's been the main driver and conductor of those teams everywhere he's been. You look at River Plate: the last time they won the [Copa] Libertadores was when he was there. Monaco has only been to the Champions League final once -- it's when he was there. He's a guy whose resume includes a lot of big goals and a lot of big moments, but a lot of championships as well."
Gallardo will take over the playmaking role -- and the revered No. 10 jersey -- previously occupied by Christian Gomez, who looks to be headed away from the club after he and United were unable to come to terms on a new contract last month. Though the four-year veteran and three-time All-Star has entertained offers from overseas clubs, he seems likely to be traded to another MLS side in the coming weeks.
