On loan to Brazil
Marcelino Moreno joins Coritiba - Atlanta United continue rebuild under Lagerwey
Atlanta United have started their roster reshuffle under new CEO Garth Lagerwey. After terminating the contract with Emerson Hyndman earlier on Wednesday, the club has now also loaned out Argentine midfielder Marcelino Moreno to Coritiba. First reported by The Athletic journalist Felipe Cárdenas, Coritiba have since confirmed the loan transfer on social media. The deal will go through on January 10, when the transfer window opens in Brazil.
Signed for €6.4 million in September 2020, the 28-year-old has scored 14 goals and 13 assists in 75 games for the Five Stripes. But most of the output came in the 2021 season when the attacking midfielder scored 9 goals and five assists in 32 Major League Soccer regular season games. Those numbers saw a significant drop this year, with Moreno scoring just two goals and five assists in 30 MLS games as Atlanta United failed to reach the playoffs.
Although Moreno was not considered a Designated Player (DP) in Atlanta, his base salary of $460,000 still carried significant cap space. Hyndman, in the meantime, was on $657,143 base salary a season (numbers via MLSPA). By moving on from Moreno and Hyndman, Lagerwey has now freed up more than €1m in cap space. And more moves are likely to follow.
Insigne, Shaqiri, Chicharito & Co. - The highest paid players in MLS in 2022
Sebastian Driussi | Austin FC | Salary: $2.32m
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Market value: $11m (All salaries guaranteed compensation)
Thiago Almada | Atlanta United | Salary: $2.33m
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Market value: $16.5m
Walker Zimmerman | Columbus Crew | Salary: $2.35m
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Market value: $3.85m
Gastón Gimenez | Chicago Fire | Salary: $2.36m
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Market value: $2.75m
Gareth Bale | LAFC | Salary: $2.39m
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Market value: $3.3m
Gustavo Bou | New England Revolution | Salary: $2.68m
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Market value: $6.6m
Carlos Vela | LAFC | Salary: $4.05m
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Market value: $3.85m
Cucho Hernández | Columbus Crew | Salary: $2.89m
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Market value: $9.9m
Victor Wanyama | CF Montréal | Salary: $3.09m
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Market value: $4.4m
Raúl Ruidíaz | Seattle Sounders | Salary: $3.2m
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Market value: $6.6m
Franco Jara | FC Dallas | Salary: $3.23m
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Market value: $1.65m
Nicolás Lodeiro | Seattle Sounders | Salary: $3.26m
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Market value: $2.75m
Rodolfo Pizarro | Inter Miami CF (on loan at Monterrey) | Salary: $3.35m
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Market value: $4.4m
Carles Gil | New England Revolution | Salary: $3.54m
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Market value: $7.7m
Lucas Zelarayán | Columbus Crew | Salary: $3.7m
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Market value: $8.8m
Josef Martínez | Atlanta United | Salary: $4.14m
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Market value: $8.8m
Christian Benteke | D.C. United | Salary: $4.18m
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Market value: $5.5m
Jozy Altidore | NERevs (on loan at Puebla) | Salary: $4.26m
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Market value: $550,000
Luiz Araújo | Atlanta United | Salary: $4.5m
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Market value: $8.8m
Alejandro Pozuelo | Inter Miami CF | Salary: $4.69m
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Market value: $6.6m
Hector Herrera | Houston Dynamo | Salary: $5.25m
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Market value: $3.3m
Gonzalo Higuaín | Inter Miami CF | Salary: $5.79m
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Market value: $2.2m
Douglas Costa | LA Galaxy | Salary: $5.8m
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Market value: $2.75m
Chicharito | LA Galaxy | Salary: $6m
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Market value: $2.2m
Federico Bernardeschi | Toronto FC | Salary: $6.25m
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Market value: $8.8m
Xherdan Shaqiri | Chicago Fire FC | Salary: $8.15m
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Market value: $5.5m
Lorenzo Insigne | Toronto FC | Salary: $14m
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Market value: $22m
Moreno and Hyndman leave Atlanta United - More pieces to follow?
Freeing up cap space and moving on from assets to restructure a roster that failed to make the playoffs is one of Lagerwey's main objectives ahead of the 2023 season. The new CEO arrived from league competitor Seattle Sounders in November and found a roster that was disjointed and has struggled to meet the lofty expectations set by the early expansion seasons. Since winning the MLS Cup in 2019, the Five Stripes have been knocked out in the semifinals in 2020, failed to qualify for the playoffs in 2021, and were eliminated in the first round of the MLS Cup in 2022.
Thiago Almada, Pity Martínez, Barco & Co.: Atlanta United's record transfer
Eric Remedi | Signed from CA Banfield in 2018 | Fee: $1.93m
© Atlanta United FC
Leandro González Pírez | Signed from Estudiantes in 2017 | Fee: $2m
© Inter Miami CF
Matheus Rossetto | Signed from Athletico Paranaense in 2020 | Fee: $2m
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Héctor Villalba | Signed from San Lorenzo in 2016 | Fee: $2.75m
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Alan Franco | Signed from Independiente in 2021 | Fee: $2.8m
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Franco Ibarra | Signed from Argentinos Juniors in 2021 | Fee: $3m
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Erik López | Signed from Olimpia in 2020 | Fee: $3.7m
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Georgios Giakoumakis | Signed from Celtic in 2023 | Fee: $4.3m
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Josef Martínez | Signed from Torino in 2017 | Fee: $4.95m
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Santiago Sosa | Signed from River Plate in 2021 | Fee: $5.45m
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Marcelino Moreno | Signed from Lanús in 2020 | Fee: $7m
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Miguel Almirón | Signed from Lanús in 2017 | Fee: $8.25m
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Luiz Araújo | Signed from Lille in 2021 | Fee: $12m
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Ezequiel Barco | Signed from Independiente in 2018 | Fee: $13.5m
© Katie Gillen/Atlanta United
Pity Martínez | Signed from River Plate in 2019 | Fee: $15.95m
© Atlanta United FC
Thiago Almada | Signed from Velez Sarsfield in 2022 | Fee: $16m
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With Moreno and Hyndman gone, Lagerwey will now likely focus on finding a new home for Venezuelan DP striker Josef Martínez. Another player potentially on the move could be World Cup winner and club-record signing Thiago Almada. Although he only played six minutes for Argentina in Qatar, Almada is considered a hot commodity in Europe, and the Five Stripes could soon cash in on the Argentine star.
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