TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS: Loan
Minnesota United have acquired Italian goalkeeper Vito Mannone on loan from Reading FC for the 2019 season, the club announced Sunday.
Mannone, 30, has been with Reading in the English second tier after joining from Sunderland in 2017. The Italian has extensive experience in the English Premier League with Arsenal, Sunderland and Hull City, making 82 top-flight appearances in his career.
“The most important thing is we have added another player who has vast experience and has played at a really high level,” MNUFC head coach Adrian Heath said in a club statement.
“He’s played in the Premier League, the Championship, some very difficult leagues to play in. He’s been at big clubs and he knows what it feels like to play under tremendous pressure. As a player, he’s really competent at all aspects of his game -- he’s good playing in traffic, coming out for crosses, he’s good with his feet. He has all the things we’ve been looking for in a goalkeeper.”
The other goalkeepers on the Loons' roster include incumbent starter Bobby Shuttleworth and rookie Dayne St. Clair, who was selected with the 7th overall pick of last month’s SuperDraft.
Mannone serves as yet another defense-minded addition this offseason as the club seeks to improve their defensive record in their third season in MLS. The Loons have added defensive midfielders Jan Gregus and Ozzie Alonso as well as defenders Ike Opara and Romain Metanire earlier this offseason.
