The Vancouver Whitecaps announced on Friday that they’ve signed centre-back Érik Godoy and Uruguayan forward Joaquin Ardaiz on respective loans with options to buy.
Ardaiz, 20, joins from Swiss club FC Chiasso as a Young Designated Player while Godoy is joining from Argentine side Colón.
Godoy, 25, has spent his entire professional career in his native Argentina. He debuted with Tigre as a 19-year-old back in 2012 and made 113 league appearances for the club before joining Belgrano on loan for the 2017-18 Argentine Superliga campaign.
“Érik is a dynamic centre back with really good experience for his age,” said Whitecaps coach Marc Dos Santos. “The Argentine league is an aggressive and intense league, a very competitive type of soccer. In watching Érik and talking to him, we felt that he suits well what we want to do here.”
The defender only joined Colón last July and made 11 Superliga appearances before the league went on its annual month-long break from December to January.
Ardaiz represented Uruguay at the 2017 South American U-20 Championship, helping his country win the tournament. He later participated at the 2017 U-20 World Cup but struggled to earn consistent minutes in Europe after leaving Danubio.
“Joaquín is a young striker with a very high ceiling and has the physical and technical tools to succeed in MLS,” said Dos Santos. “He’s at the early stages of his career and we’re going to work with him to reach his full potential. We believe in his ability and we’re looking forward to adding him to the team.”
Godoy and Ardaiz are the 12th and 13th signings made by the Whitecaps this off-season.
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