Pedro de la Vega was officially unveiled as the club’s first-ever Young Designated Player on Wednesday, with the city and the club welcoming the exciting attacking talent with open arms.
“I'm very, very happy to be here,” said de la Vega.
The 22-year-old winger began his professional career in his home country of Argentina at Club Atlético Lanús, and now embarks on a new chapter of his soccer journey as a Seattle Sounder.
“There is an opportunity for me to grow here with championships always in sight,” said de la Vega. “I want to help the team and I want to contribute to that objective.”
It’s been in the works for the Pacific Northwest team to sign the electric offensive player for years; And now, it has finally come to fruition.
“Pedro's a wonderful addition,” said General Manager & Chief Soccer Officer Craig Waibel. “This is an addition to a really talented group, which is a really fun way to look at this and gives the coaches a lot of different ways to put the team on the field now.”
For de la Vega, the potential of competing in MLS with a team of the Sounders’ caliber was an easy decision.
“I was always very passionate about coming into MLS,” he said. “I had a lot of desire to come over here and I'm happy that I have come to a club like this, a club that is always competing for big things in the league.”
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The way his fellow Argentine counterparts spoke highly of the league added further motivation for the move to MLS for the Olavarría native.
“I have people that I know from the Argentina National team that I talked to about MLS, friends from Lanús that have talked to me about some of the things that are interesting about MLS and some Argentine players that are already playing in the league that confirmed to me that it is physical but competitive.”
The Sounders staff are hopeful the Young DP can help elevate a Rave Green side that finished second in the West and boasted the league’s best defensive record in 2023.
“We’re very pleased to have a talented player on the roster,” said Head Coach Brian Schmetzer. “He's a dribbler, he's explosive and he'll run at people. So, he's got some really good starting points.”
Expectations are high for the newcomer, but he is ready to embrace that challenge.
“I knew from coming that there was going to be pressure,” said de la Vega. “There are a lot of expectations in different types of areas, but I'm used to that, so the important thing is focusing on what I can do.”
“I need to focus on preparing myself and giving the best that I can and trusting my own abilities. And with all of that, things are going to turn out well.”
