THE CANADIAN PRESS
VANCOUVER — The Vancouver Whitecaps acquired attacking midfielder Lee Nguyen on Thursday through Major League Soccer’s weighted lottery.
The 25-year-old from McKinney, Texas, signed a multi-year contract with MLS on Dec. 6, making him eligible to be picked up by Vancouver.
"The position that he primarily plays on the right flank is one that we have a shortage of players in," Whitecaps president Bob Lenarduzzi told the Canadian Press during an interview Thursday. "When the lottery for him became available, we were very keen to try to access him. So we feel like it’s a bonus for us. He’s not a player that we had counted on."
Nguyen was entered into the weighted lottery after he had turned down a MLS contract when he was in college. The midfielder played a season of NCAA Division I soccer with Indiana University as a freshman before joining Holland’s PSV Eindhoven for the 2005-06 season. By going to Europe he bypassed the MLS draft, but he was not a free agent upon his return to North America and still required to go through a selection process.
"When players like him go abroad and then decide to come back, they can’t just go to a club and avoid the draft," said Lenarduzzi. "It’s called the lottery and it’s designed for players that bypass the draft."
Several Vancouver midfielders have departed as a result of being picked up in the expansion and waiver drafts or released outright. Therefore, Nguyen has a chance to play a prominent role in an area of the pitch where the club is seeking to improve.
"We’re very excited to add a talented player like Lee," said Whitecaps head coach Martin Rennie in a statement. "He’s a young player with a bright future.
"We look forward to seeing him in pre-season."
The Whitecaps were one of six MLS clubs to participate in Thursday’s draw for Nguyen. The Whitecaps were selected ahead of FC Dallas, the Houston Dynamo, the Los Angeles Galaxy, Real Salt Lake and Toronto FC.
Each team’s record dictates its probability of winning the draw. The worse the record, the greater the chance of winning the lottery. MLS teams are not required to participate in the selection process.
A team can only acquire one player per year through a weighted lottery.
"I’m really excited to be joining Whitecaps FC and to help this club push forward," said Nguyen. "I can’t wait to get the season started."
A dual citizen of the United States and Vietnam, Nguyen joins Vancouver after becoming the first American to play in the Vietnamese V-League.
Nguyen scored 14 goals in 29 V-League appearances from 2009 to 2011.
Nguyen made just two appearances with PSV before moving to Denmark’s Randers FC in Jan. 2008. He made 23 appearances in two seasons with Randers FC.
.Notes: Lenarduzzi said 18-year-old American striker Omar Salgado, who had a two-week trial with Fulham of the English Premier League in November, is expected back next season.
"It was just arranged so that he could get a feel for what that level was like," said Lenarduzzi. "If a club comes along and wants to pay us millions of dollars for him, we’ll entertain (the possibility), but we’re excited about having him back."