It didn't take long for Eric Hassli to find a new home not far from his old one. But it's not in MLS.
The San Antonio Scorpions of the NASL announced on Tuesday that they have signed the former MLS Designated Player and All-Star. FC Dallas terminated Hassli's contract by mutual consent on March 7 after a recurrence of the back injury the big Frenchman suffered in 2013.
Assuming he returns to full fitness, however, the 32-year-old Hassli could prove to be a major weapon for the Scorpions. The 6-foot-4 target man has scored 78 goals over a 14-year professional career that has seen him make stops in his native France, Switzerland, England, Canada and the United States.
He scored 11 goals in all competitions in his stellar debut 2011 season with the Vancouver Whitecaps, but struggled with injuries over the next three seasons. Over a four-year stay in the league, he scored 20 goals across all competitions for Vancouver, Toronto and Dallas.
Hassli joins a Scorpions team trying to rebound from an eighth-place finish in the NASL's Fall Season in which they did not make the playoffs. San Antonio – who have ambitions of reaching MLS as an expansion team – also feature a handful of ex-MLSers, including two of Hassli's former teammates in Adrian Cann and Greg Janicki.
"Hassli is a landmark signing for our club,” Scorpions head coach Alen Marcina said in a statement. “Hassli has been a Designated Player in MLS, has playing experience in French and Swiss top leagues in addition to Champions League. This is one more step to position ourselves to achieve our objective of competing for an NASL championship."
The Scorpions open the 2014 NASL season on April 12 at Toyota Field against Minnesota United FC.
