Houston Dynamo FC are just getting started.
After completing the club-record signing of forward Sebastián Ferreira, new general manager Pat Onstad assured fans more reinforcements are on the way. This comes on the heels of new majority owner Ted Segal promising “materially higher” spending on the roster last September.
“There’s no question mark, we’ll bring more,” Onstad said. “Now's the time to get back to work. It's nice to get one over the line. We had a nice meal last night with Seba and his agents, but at this stage now it's focus and move forward and try to make this team better.
“We have the support from ownership to do that and now it’s up to myself and the rest of our group to make sure that we make the right choices and bring the right players aboard.”
Ferreira arrives as a Designated Player from Club Libertad Asunción in Paraguay, a 23-year-old who’s breaking into his country’s national team. Naturally, everyone in Houston hopes he’s their next top goalscorer after the heydays of Brian Ching, Mauro Manotas and Alberth Elis, the latter now shining for Ligue 1 side Bordeaux and Honduras.
But where could reinforcements come for Houston, a club that hasn’t made the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs since 2017? New head coach Paulo Nagamura referenced a winger and a midfielder in his own remarks, speaking two weeks removed from vowing an identity restoration at the PNC Stadium side.
“Definitely we are going to be looking to add some quality players, hopefully in the near future,” said Nagamura, who joins from the Sporting Kansas City organization. “I don’t think this is a one-man show with the signing of Sebastian. I think we all know that pieces need to be added, but we are going to have to do it at the right time and in the right way.”
Should center back Teenage Hadebe be shifted off DP status, Houston would have two DP slots and several U22 Initiative tags to work with. The possibility of high-end, high-potential additions would complement some intra-MLS moves Onstad completed earlier this offseason, securing goalkeeper Steve Clark (ex-Portland Timbers) in free agency and landing center back Daniel Steres (trade from LA Galaxy) to round out defensive depth. They also brought back forward Darwin Quintero on a non-DP deal, offering more roster/salary cap flexibility.
All eyes are on Ferreira, though, the first big swing by Houston’s new braintrust as Segal’s investment manifests in the on-field product. And Ferreira, with a strong track record in Liga MX and in competitions like Copa Libertadores, surely won’t be the last assertion.
“What it says is that Ted is going to follow through as a man of his word,” Onstad said. “He's going to follow through on what he mentioned the first time he came here. So, the nice thing is that he's giving us the resources to make this team better and stronger and we’ll continue to do that.”
