Minnesota United announced the signing of Jan Gregus as the club's third ever designated player on Thursday.
The Slovakia international midfielder comes to MLS from Danish Superliga outfit FC Copenhagen.
The 27-year-old has played 22 times for his country since making his debut in March of 2015.
“We are getting a really talented player who adds quality to an area of the field where we need to improve,” said MNUFC sporting director Manny Lagos in a team release.
“Jan has been playing very well for his club and his country and he has great intentions to lift our club. We believe he can be our anchor in the midfield. He is a technical player in the middle of the field who will be a connector both offensively and defensively. He’s the type of player that we need in order to continue the development of our roster and our club.”
Gregus played 107 times for Copenhagen across all competitions, including seeing time for the club in the 2016 Champions League.
Despite splashing the cash on fellow designated players Angelo Rodríguez and Darwin Quintero, the club failed to reach the playoffs in 2018, finishing 10th in the Western Conference.
But with Rodriguez up front and Quintero playing the creative role for the side, Gregus looks set to fill the biggest need the club had as a midfielder who can help secure the supply lines to the attacking group.
“The one thing that sticks out is his composure on the ball,” said MNUFC head coach Adrian Heath. “He’s got a great range of passes, both short and long. He has a great stride to goal, and an imposing stature at 6 foot 3 inches.
"The fact that he’s in his pomp — what we consider his prime — we think we have acquired him at the right time in his career. We know we’ve got excellent attacking pieces on the roster, but we need to be able to supply the ball to those pieces and we feel that Jan can be the supplier and connector from the midfield to the attack.”
Minnesota United will open 2019 March 2 on the road against the Vancouver Whitecaps but will have to wait until April 13 to play their first home match of the new season.
