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Diego Valeri could be set to leave Portland Timbers FC to return to his boyhood club, Lanus, in Argentina. The Timbers legend is under contract with Portland for the 2022 MLS season but reports surfaced during the Timbers’ run to the MLS Cup Final that Valeri might be on his way out of the club.
Cesar Luis Merlo reported yesterday, January 8 that Valeri is “one step away” from joining Lanus. Luis Merlo shared that Valeri has made up his mind and will join the Argentine club once he passes his medical examination. Valeri will reportedly sign a one-year deal with Lanus.
Diego Valeri, a un paso de Lanús.
— César Luis Merlo (@CLMerlo) January 8, 2022
*️⃣El futbolista ya tomó la decisión de regresar y, si supera la revisión médica, firmará por un año.
*️⃣¿Qué falta? Que se desvincule de la MLS. pic.twitter.com/gdov6Oppkq
Valeri signed with the Timbers from Lanus in 2013 and quickly earned legendary status both on and off the field in Portland. Valeri helped the Timbers win the club’s only MLS Cup in 2015, won the Landon Donovan MLS MVP in 2017 and was named one of MLS’s 25 greatest players in 2020.
Valeri has scored 86 goals and provided 91 assists across 262 regular-season games for the Timbers. He’s also amassed six goals and eight assists across 22 games playoff matches.
The Argentine playmaker was a longtime Designated Player for the Timbers until December 2019 when Valeri resigned a deal that used Targeted Allocation Money.