Juan Agudelo's time is MLS is officially numbered after Stoke City announced on Friday that they have signed the 20-year-old New England Revolution forward to a pre-contract agreement.
Out of contract at the end of the 2013 MLS season and long rumored to be exploring European options, Agudelo will join the English Premier League side on January 1, 2014, joining Geoff Cameron, Brek Shea and Maurice Edu at the Britannia Stadium.
The announcement confirms the rumors that had swirled in recent weeks linking Agudelo to the club, with manager Mark Hughes confirming his interest in the striker on Tuesday before the deal finally came down 24 hours later.
"We've put a lot of work into this deal, and I am delighted that we have managed to get the deal over the line," Hughes told Stoke City's official website."It’s a good deal for us, because he is a very good young player who boasts a lot of talent as well as a lot of potential too. I've known of him for a couple of years now.
"He burst on to the scene for the United States at the age of 17 and everybody has paid attention to him since. I have kept my eye on him for the last 18 months, and thankfully we were in a position where we were able to pull this deal off."
New England traded allocation money to Chivas USA for Agudelo in early May, and the forward has made five appearances and scored three goals while struggling with injury since joining the Revs. The team also announced the signing of Charlie Davies on loan on Friday.
“Juan is a talented player and he has put himself into a position to have options abroad at the end of his MLS contract this December," New England said in a statement. "We always knew there was a possibility he would choose to explore these opportunities when we traded for him earlier this year, and we’re happy for Juan that he has earned this opportunity at Stoke. We’re looking forward to his return to the field with us for the remainder of the season as soon as he is back and fit from his recent injury.”
The Revolution are in action on Saturday when they travel to Sporting Kansas City (8:30 pm ET, MLS Live).
