Cristian Arango In Talks to Join LAFC

Cristian Arango may soon be heading to Southern California…

The 26-year-old Colombian professional footballer is thisclose to nearing a deal with LAFC, according to ESPN.

Cristian Arango

Official terms haven’t been agreed upon yet, but there’s an expectation that the deal will get done, possibly by the end of the week.

Arango has scored 20 goals in 46 games for the Colombian club Millonarios F.C. over the past two years, where he’s on loan from Benfica.

Assuming the transfer is finalized, Arango is expected to be on the LAFC books using Targeted Allocation Money and would be deployed at striker, mostly playing in between wingers Diego Rossi and Carlos Vela.

The link was first reported by Colombian journalist Diego Rueda.

LAFC has a strong track record of signing Colombian players and quickly inserting them into important roles with the team. Arango would be the fourth Colombian player on the roster, joining three starters, midfielder Eduard Atuesta and center backs Eddie Segura and Jesus Murrillo.

Arango started his career at Envigado in Colombia in 2012 and never appeared for Benfica after the Portuguese club acquired him in 2017.

If the deal is finalized this week, it’s unclear when Arango would be available to join the MLS squad.