After an offseason of roster turnover, Sporting KC is adding to its defensive firepower.
The club announced Thursday the addition of 22-year-old defender Emiliano Amor on a one-year loan from Velez Sarsfield in Argentina.
"Emiliano is a young defender we have watched closely, and his arrival gives us another valuable piece along the backline," Sporting KC Manager Peter Vermes said. "We are excited for him to join the club for preseason in Arizona."
Amor, a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina, has spent his first five professional seasons with hometown club Velez Sarsfield, a 10-time champion of the top-flight Argentine Primera Division. The center back has logged more than 50 first-team appearances since emerging from Velez Sarsfield's youth system.
Amor has played eight games during the 2017-18 Primera Division campaign under the guidance of first-year manager Gabriel Heinze, a World Cup veteran and longtime defender for the Argentina Men's National Team.
Sporting KC will have the option to purchase Amor's contract on a permanent transfer at the end of 2018.
He will occupy an international spot on Sporting KC's roster pending receipt of his International Transfer Certificate and P-1 Visa.
Sporting KC travels to Scottsdale, Arizona, on Monday for the first phase of the club's 2018 preseason. Vermes' men will return to Kansas City on Feb. 3, then travel back to Arizona for the second leg of preseason in Tucson from Feb. 9-25.
