Vazquez ready to switch Cincinnati for Mexican side Monterrey
United States men’s national team star Brandon Vazquez seems set for a move from Cincinnati to Monterrey. The forward originally joined the Major League Soccer side in 2019 via trade with Nashville. The Boys in Gold grabbed the striker in their expansion draft, however, they quickly swapped him for Targeted Allocation Money. Vazquez also previously played for Atlanta and Mexican side Tijuana.
The Athletic is reporting that Monterrey has agreed to a $7.5 million deal to sign the center forward. The final fee includes an additional $1 million in potential add-ons as well. Cincinnati will also receive a future sell-on fee, assuming Monterrey sells the star in the future. The MLS side previously rejected a $7 million offer by Chivas for Vazquez last winter.
The move follows Cincinnati’s previous deal to sell fellow forward Brenner to Udinese last summer. Cincinnati collected a team-record $10 million (plus add-ons) to part ways with the Brazilian attacker. The club then used a portion of these funds to sign Aaron Boupendza.
Breakout 2022 campaign propels striker to USMNT call
Vazquez started his MLS career a bit slowly. Although he was featuring for Atlanta at a young age, the striker only managed to score three goals in 32 top-flight matches with the club. He also spent occasional time with the team’s reserves as well between 2018 and 2019.
Following his move to Cincinnati, Vazquez continued to score sporadically in his first two seasons in Ohio. Nevertheless, his breakout campaign came with the team in 2022. Although Cincinnati finished near the bottom of the table, Vazquez netted 19 goals in 36 total matches for the club.
The successful campaign earned the striker a call-up to the USMNT in early 2023. Despite being eligible to play for either the U.S. or Mexico, Vazquez opted to feature for the Yanks. Vazquez even stated that no one from Mexico had contacted him about playing for El Tri. The striker then managed to score a goal in his first match with the USMNT in a friendly with Serbia last January. In total, he has scored four goals in just eight appearances with the national team.
Brandon Vazquez referenced Europe, but is now bound for Monterrey
Since making his USMNT debut, Vazquez has been linked with a plethora of foreign clubs. Cincinnati previously blocked Borussia Mönchengladbach from signing their star earlier this summer. German officials even flew to Ohio to speak with Vazquez and the player agreed to make the move. Nevertheless, the MLS side did not want to lose the center forward during the middle of the 2023 regular season.
Middlesbrough, Brentford, and Hoffenheim were also previously interested in signing Vazquez as well. The striker appeared destined to make a major move to England or Germany. Vazquez even admitted last summer that Cincinnati gave him the “best route to get to Europe.”
Nevertheless, the center forward is now set to return to Mexico. Monterrey recently finished second in the 2023 Apertura but fell in the quarterfinals of the playoffs. Rayados are set to begin their 2024 Clausura campaign against Puebla on Saturday, Jan. 13.
PHOTOS: IMAGO.