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FC Dallas sign U.S. Under-20 midfielder Garcia as latest Homegrown Player

DanielGarciaFCD (ISIphotos.com)

By IVES GALARCEP

FC Dallas boast Major League Soccer’s best track record of signing Homegrown Players, and this year has been no different, with the team tapping into its academy pipeline on multiple occasions since the end of the 2012 season.

You can now add U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team midfielder Danny Garcia to that list. Sources have confirmed to SBI that Garcia has signed a Homegrown Player contract with FC Dallas, making him the 11th Homegrown Player signed by FC Dallas since the league established the Homegrown Player rule (by far the most in the league). An announcement on the signing is expected this week.

A standout playmaker at the University of North Carolina, Garcia leaves the Tar Heels after just one season in a move precipitated by his successful run with the U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team. A member of the U.S. team preparing to compete in the Under-20 World Cup, Garcia had begun to draw interest from foreign clubs, which sources tell SBI led to FC Dallas moving to seal a deal for Garcia before the Under-20 World Cup began.

A skilled but undersized midfielder, Garcia boasts the technical quality to develop into a standout, but he still needs some seasoning from a physical standpoint and appears to be a good candidate for a loan move once he returns from the Under-20 World Cup.

Garcia joins London Woodberry, Bradlee Baladez and Jesse Gonzalez as FC Dallas academy players who have signed since the end of the 2012 season. Garcia is also joined on the Under-20 World Cup team by new FC Dallas teammate Kellyn Acosta, who signed a Homegrown Player deal with FCD last summer.

 

What do you think of the signing? Think FC Dallas was smart to snatch up Garcia before the Under-20 World Cup? Think Garcia should have stayed at North Carolina for another season?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Best decision! The kid has a lot of potential, good player and a great teammate.

    I Been knowing him since the 6th grade and his has improve in all areas on the field over the years

    and know he will grow more. Good pick FC DALLAS!

    Reply
  2. For an area with so many good players, fc Dallas sure does have a bad track record of homegrown signings. I still believe leyva and luna didn’t get a fair shake. Leyva was a Mexico u-17. Dallas could’ve sold him to a Mexican for something if he wasn’t in their plans. Poor management.

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  3. That’s one of the major problems with soccer in the u.s. Coaches are too worried about the physical attributes more than the technical and intelligence unlike douth americans who produce amazing players like neymar and messi. This is why we see more senseless running in the Mls and Ncaa rather than intelligent, skillful plays

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  4. They already sold a goalkeeper for a millions dollars to a mexican team. That one sale pays for the entire academy for at least two years. Give it some time, if one or two players turn out then it will be worth it.

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  5. No mention of the fact that they have one of the worst track records regarding incorporating their talented youth into the 1st team

    Reply
  6. These signings are the best thing that can happen to the league in terms of its impact on American soccer. I think our relationship with CONCACAF players is good if the players are real quality, so is brininging in some high impact talent from wherever, but there is no replacing youth development for fan connection to teams or league identity.

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  7. I played against this guy in high school and club we would always go at it. Sometimes he would score on me or I’ll keep a clean sheet. Will always have respect for him. Great player. I knew he was going to go far. Great sign by Dallas.

    Reply
  8. so I guess Toronto FC have 10 former academy players having been signed to MLS contracts is by far a long way away from Dallas’ 11

    Reply

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