Updated: Santiago Sosa confirms River Plate exit; set to travel to Atlanta

Update 2/5: Santiago Sosa has given an interview while departing River Plate confirming that he’s leaving the club and heading to Atlanta United. He says that the deal materialized quickly and he’s on his way to Atlanta now to complete the deal.

After transfer probes for central midfielders Agustin Almendra and Moises Caicedo didn’t bear fruit for Atlanta United, the club now appears to be aiming to acquire another one of the region’s promising midfield talents — River Plate’s Santiago Sosa.

Sosa was reportedly very close to joining Everton in 2019 after the midfielder had a personally successful U-20 World Cup that summer, but the roughly $15 million-move broke down due to work permit issues. Sosa was a teammate of current Atlanta United midfielder Ezequiel Barco on that U-20 Argentine squad.

Sosa is a deep-lying midfielder who would fit the mold of the type of player that manager Gabriel Heinze is said to prefer in the holding midfield position. That said, he’s certainly capable and willing to join the attack in possession and even makes runs into the box.

At 21 years of age, he could theoretically fit in as a U-22 designee if he agrees to a salary below the Maximum Salary Budget Charge ($612,500 last season). If not, he’d be a Designated Player, assuming his transfer value is anywhere close to the amount Everton nearly paid two summers ago.