The San Jose Earthquakes announced Friday that they have acquired midfielder Marvin Chavez from FC Dallas in exchange for allocation money. Per league and team policy, the terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Chavez, 28, is expected to fill a void on the right wing, where the Earthquakes struggled to find a consistent starter during the 2011 season. He joined Dallas from Marathon in his native Honduras in 2009 and has totaled 54 MLS games, eight goals and six assists.
In 2011 Chavez had a breakout year, starting a career-high 30 games, scoring six goals and tallying four assists along the way. He was also a contributor in Dallas run to the MLS Cup final in 2010, with the Texas outfit falling 2-1 in overtime to Colorado. Most recently he scored the winning goal in Dallas 1-0 win over Mexican outfit Pumas UNAM in the CONCACAF Champions League, the first victory by an MLS club team in Mexico in a competitive match.
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Marvin is one of the most exciting players in MLS," San Jose GM John Doyle said in a statement. "I cant wait to see him in an Earthquakes uniform."
In addition to filling the teams need on the right side of midfield, Chavez, nicknamed El Hijo del Viento (Son of the Wind), will bring a good deal of speed to the Earthquakes and can use that pace to get behind opposition defenses.
Chavez has appeared 23 times for Honduras in international competition, with two goals to his name. He made his debut for his country in 2006 and was part of the Honduras team that made the semifinals of the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup, North Americas top international competition. He declined a call to the 2011 Gold Cup, citing his club duties, but recently appeared for Honduras in a 1-0 exhibition loss to the United States in October.
The acquisition is the Earthquakes third of the offseason. Earlier in December, the Earthquakes added midfielders Shea Salinas and Jean Alexandre as they look to return to the playoffs following their run to the Eastern Conference final in 2010.
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