Osmar Mares (pictured) was one of three players added to Club America's roster on June 4, 2014. (Photo: Mexsport)
MEXICO CITY – In preparation for the upcoming 2014 Liga MX Apertura season and its participation in a second straight CONCACAF Champions League (CCL), Club America announced Wednesday the addition of three new players.
The Mexico City-based side reached agreements on loans for Osmar Mares and Moises Velasco with Santos and Toluca, respectively. Plus, it secured the outright transfer of Jose Daniel Guerrero from Atlante.
The acquisitions follow two others made earlier in the offseason, when forward Oribe Peralta – the 2013 CONCACAF Player of the Year – was brought in from Santos and central defender Paolo Goltz arrived from Argentina’s Lanus.
A 2008/09 CCL winner with Atlante, Guerrero will bring ball-winning ability to the Club America midfield. He has already appeared in 219 Mexican league games and was a club stalwart since making his debut in 2006. The 26-year-old played in all three of Atlante’s encounters at the 2009 FIFA Club World Cup, including a 3-1 loss to eventual champions Barcelona.
Mares, 27, brings veteran presence and experience to a backline that conceded 17 goals in 17 regular-season games during the 2014 Clausura. In the quarterfinals -- ironically against Santos -- the Aguilas defense was strained, allowing three goals in each of the two legs. Mares did not appear in either game, even though Santos’ protection was breached half-a-dozen times as well.
With a reputation for skillful play, Velasco is expected to vie for a place in the starting line-up. The defensive midfielder, 24, has spent a good portion of his 79-game career loaned out to various clubs, most recently with Queretaro.
It is also worth noting that Mares and Guerrero were teammates on the Mexico squad that reached the quarterfinals of the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada.
In the next edition of the CCL, Club America will face Group 8 opponents Comunicaciones of Guatemala and Puerto Rico Bayamon FC.
