TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS: Reports
Two highly-rated South American strikers have been made available to MLS clubs as teams around the league dive into their offseason roster makeovers, according to media reports in Latin America.
Ecuador international Fidel Martinez is one of several players “transfer-listed” by Mexican side Atlas, signaling the club’s readiness to part ways, while Uruguayan frontrunner Gabriel Leyes also appears to be on the outs at Peruvian outfit Alianza Lima. Both could well find themselves a subject of interest for MLS teams hunting for international upgrades to their attacks.
Martinez, 27, has seven goals in 30 caps for his country, including action in last summer’s Copa America Centenario in the United States. He may also be familiar to Stateside eyes from his time with border side Club Tijuana, where he vaulted to Liga MX stardom before moving on to less successful stints with Pumas UNAM and Atlas, where he lost his starting spot this year.
Atlas finished in eighth place in Liga MX in the just-concluded Apertura season, falling to eventual finalists Monterrey in the first round of the Liguilla (playoffs).
Leyes, also 27, is coming off a solid season with Alianza in which he helped the club win the Torneo Descentralizado, and also has goalscoring pedigree with Peñarol, River Plate Montevideo and other clubs in his homeland.
