According to a report on Thursday from Fox Deportes, Chivas Guadalajara is set to open a late Christmas present in the form of Real Salt Lake defender Carlos Salcedo.
After being linked with the club where he spent time as a youth earlier in the week, by both Milenio and Medio Tiempo, Salcedo's agent reportedly told Fox Deportes that the 21-year-old Mexican defender will sign a three or four-year contract with Chivas. The report did not mention terms of a deal with Real Salt Lake, where Salcedo remains under contract.
After Real Salt Lake's season ended, Salcedo posted a message on Twitter, saying he had "decided not [to] stay with RSL for [the] 2015 season." However, Real Salt Lake picked up Salcedo's contract option for 2015.
In the meantime, reports have linked the defender with Chivas as well as Cruz Azul and clubs in Germany and Holland. In response, newly-appointed technical director Craig Waibel told the Salt Lake Tribune that RSL are aware of the speculation and are in communication with Salcedo about his future, whether that ends up being with the club or elsewhere.
"We continue to talk to Carlos about his situation," Waibel told the Tribune. "We see the rumors, the same way everyone else does, which is interesting. At the same time, the relationship is, by no stretch of the imagination, broken. There’s a lot of discussion, but we’re trying to make sure we make the best decision for the club, first and foremost."
In the last two years, Salcedo totaled 20 regular-season starts for Real Salt Lake, although he did not feature in the team's postseason runs. The center back joined the Real Salt Lake academy in January 2012, trained with the first team during the second half of that year and signed a Homegrown Player contract in January 2013.
Salcedo plays internationally for Mexico and helped Mexico's Under-21 national team win the Central American and Caribbean Games competition in Veracruz, Mexico, in November. He is expected to be part of Mexico's attempt to qualify for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Before joining Real Salt Lake as a youth player, Salcedo had spent time in the youth programs of both Chivas Guadalajara and Tigres.
