PORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland Timbers have signed Argentine forward Lucas Melano as a designated player.
The signing, announced Friday, which will be complete pending final documentation. Terms were not released.
Melano, 22, comes to the Timbers from Argentina’s first-division Club Atletico Lanus, where he had five goals in 14 games this season.
He has appeared in 42 matches for the club since 2013, with eight goals. He helped Lanus win the 2013 Copa Sudamerica title, scoring three goals in nine matches during the tournament.
Portland general manager Gavin Wilkinson said the team had been interested in Melano for several years. The Timbers are using Major League Soccer’s new targeted allocation money to pay down the salary budget value of Fanendo Adi, freeing a designated player spot.
