Jonathan Menéndez Signs With Real Salt Lake
May 29, 2021, 8:28 PM | Updated: 8:30 pm
Rodriguinho of Bahia competes for the ball with Jonathan Menéndez of Independiente during a match between Independiente and Bahia as part of Group B of Copa CONMEBOL Sudamericana 2021 at Estadio Libertadores de América on May 18, 2021 in Avellaneda, Argentina. (Photo by Marcelo Endelli/Getty Images)
(Photo by Marcelo Endelli/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Jonathan Menéndez has signed with Real Salt Lake just as the primary transfer window for Major League Soccer closes.
Menéndez, 27, joins RSL from Club Atlético Independiente in Argentina’s premiere division. He has spent the majority of his professional career in Argentina but did spend three years in Spain while under contract with Sevilla.
Details on the deal have not been disclosed, however, earlier this month reporter César Luis Merlo stated that the deal will be worth $1.35 million and will expire in December of 2024. Menéndez will also have $200,000 worth of potential bonuses integrated into his deal, according to Merlo.
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The arrival of Menéndez comes during a time in which RSL needs more depth on the wing. Anderson Julio has been a constant spark for RSL when healthy thus far in 2021. Albert Rusnak has played the majority of his minutes on the other wing but is yet to find the form the fanbase expects from their captain.
Menéndez will put pressure on other attacking players, including Rusnak, to perform and compete on a daily basis for their spots within the team.
Signed, sealed, delivered.
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) May 30, 2021
Menéndez Club History
Menéndez began his professional career in 2010 when he signed his first contract with Chacarita Juniors, the same club he developed as a youth player. He then traveled to Spain and mustered 54 games and 4 goals for Sevilla B before returning to Argentina in 2015 and rejoining Chacarita Juniors.
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A year later he was signed by Talleres. While with Talleres he played 30 games scoring 10 goals, the best game-to-goal ratio of his career.
In 2018, he inked a deal with Club Atlético Independiente where he played 13 games and scored on 4 occasions. But, much like his career, he was placed on two separate loan spells to Qatari-based club Al Rayyan and Talleres.
The move to Major League Soccer and RSL marks the sixth club of his professional career to date.
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