Photo Courtesy of Portland Timbers FC
Estudiantes de la Plata midfielder David Ayala has officially been announced as the newest member of the Portland Timbers for the upcoming 2022 campaign. For the former member of the Rat Stabbers, Ayala comes with a lot of expectations to raise his game to the next level with the Green and Gold.
From Argentina’s top flight, Estudiantes de la Plata is a well know to export a good number of players abroad, especially for teams in Mexico’s Liga MX. His contract runs through 2025 with a club option year and Ayala will occupy an international and a U-22 Initiative slot. He will officially be added to the Timbers roster pending a physical and receipt of his International Transfer Certificate (ITC) and P-1 visa.
Per the words of Gavin Wilkinson the Timbers General Manager, Ayala has been targeted to come to Rose City close to a year. As negotiations with Estudiantes finally came to an agreement, his time in Portland promises to be a stellar one. The man comes with an impressive list of achievements despite his young age of 19, and with the promise to develop his skills and contribute enormities to be impactful to the club.
David Ayala, 19, played three seasons for Estudiantes de la Plata. He is a native of Berazategui, Argentina and his professional debut in the first division came on December 10, 2019, at the tender age of 17, being the second-youngest player to achieve such a feat in the senior level. Overall, the man has made 32 appearances across all competitions with the club.
Ayala has been capped 13 times for Argentina’s U-17 national team. Playing mostly as a defensive midfielder was part too of Argentina’s U-17 squad that won the Valentin Granatkin Memorial tournament in Russia defeating the host Russia by the score of 1-0 in the final. On June 14 was named to the 2019 U-17 FIFA World Cup team that played through the Round of 16 in Brazil. In the world Cup, Ayala started in two of Argentina’s four games and was recently a part of the U-20 National Team in December 2020.
Portland Timbers 2022 Roster
as of Feb. 1
Goalkeepers: David Bingham, Aljaz Ivacic, Hunter Sulte, Justin Vom Steeg
Defenders: Pablo Bonilla, Claudio Bravo, Larrys Mabiala, Zac McGraw, Bill Tuiloma, Dario Zuparic
Midfielders: David Ayala, Blake Bodily, Diego Chara, Yimmi Chara, George Fochive, Marvin Loría, Santiago Moreno, Cristhian Paredes, Andy Polo, Eryk Williamson
Forwards: Dairon Asprilla, Tega Ikoba, Felipe Mora, Jaroslaw Niezgoda
Source: Portland Timbers Communications
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