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Just days after rumors began heating up about Atlanta United making an offer for Velez Sarsfield prized prospect Thiago Almada, we have reports that the two clubs have agreed in principle to a transfer.
Vélez acordó de palabra la venta de la totalidad del pase de Thiago Almada al Atlanta United .
— César Luis Merlo (@CLMerlo) July 28, 2021
*️⃣Están cruzando los contratos y, cuando regrese de Tokio, viajará para la revisión médica y firma. #TratoHecho pic.twitter.com/yfGWbcuoRW
Several prominent journalists out of Argentina are reporting on Wednesday that the Five Stripes have agreed a transfer fee of around $15 million for the 20-year-old attacking dynamo.
#Velez y #AtlantaUnited llegaron a un principio de acuerdo por Thiago Almada.
— Germán García Grova (@GerGarciaGrova) July 28, 2021
La transferencia ronda los U$S15M y #Velez se queda con un % de una futura venta del excedente.
Resta limar algunos detalles impositivos. https://t.co/Cz9u0AVYRw pic.twitter.com/4gqNGxtJvT
Almada and Argentina were eliminated from the Olympics today after crashing out of the group stage. According to the reports, he’ll soon travel to the U.S. to complete his medical and wrap up the particulars of the deal before it’s completed.
The deal seems to be so far advanced that Mr. Here We Go himself Fabrizio Romano is even in on the reporting.
Atlanta United are progressing at final stages of the negotiation to sign Thiago Almada from Vélez. Deal advanced and set to be completed soon. #Atlanta #MLS
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 28, 2021
Paperworks and contract signature could take place after the Olympics, as @CLMerlo reported.
The transfer fee being thrown out is obviously quite high and would normally require a Designated Player slot for the player to join. However, due to his age, Almada could possibly be added to the Atlanta roster under the new U-22 initiative introduced this season that allows teams to pay a huge fee for younger players.
While the deal is still a few steps away from being done, it appears increasingly likely that Atlanta United are very close to adding some much-needed firepower to their attack.