New York City FC announced that the Club has completed the transfer of Costa Rica international, Ronald Matarrita, from club L.D. Alajuelense.
Matarrita is a mainstay defender in the Costa Rican National Team set up, having progressed from the U-17 level in 2010 to the first-team in 2015 where he has earned six caps since September. He started the two most recent World Cup Qualifying games for Costa Rica against Panama & Haiti in November.
Matarrita is excited about the opportunity.
"It’s a very big step for me as a footballer, to have this opportunity. From the moment I heard that New York City FC was interested in me I became very motivated. Now that it’s a reality I will take full advantage of it to help the team be successful,” Matarrita said. "For me to get the chance to share the training field with the level of talent in the club, three world cup titles, is incredible. I will try to take great advantage of the experience and the opportunity to learn from them and try to improve as a player."
New York City FC Sporting Director Claudio Reyna can see the potential in Matarrita.
“In Matarrita, we are getting a young, motivated and versatile player at the perfect stage of his career,” said Reyna. " He has already broken through as an international and can help strengthen our squad immediately and at only 21, we know he will develop into an even more important player in the future”
Head coach Patrick Vieira echoed what Reyna had to say and also praised Matarrita’s versatility.
"We are very happy to bring in a young player of Ronald’s quality into the squad, said Vieira. "He’s a versatile player that can play in a number of different positions, for a coach it’s great to have players like that in the group. I’m especially looking forward to having Ronald with the team during preseason, it’s an important moment for new signings to integrate to the squad and get to know their teammates better."
The 21 year old has made 54 appearances and scored 4 goals while playing for Alajuelense since 2012.
Targeted allocation money was used to acquire the player. Per MLS policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
New York City FC opens Training Camp on January 22nd in Florida.
