Avila sent to Toronto FC after Atlas deal doesn’t pan out By Steven Sandor Posted on August 2, 2011 2 0 581 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Last month, Eric Avila was envisioning himself playing soccer in Mexico. Now, he’s a member of Toronto FC. Avila, an attacking midfielder, was acquired by Toronto FC from FC Dallas Tuesday in a deal that sent forward Maicon Santos the other way. Maicon Santos had struggled when placed into the midfield of coach Aron Winter’s 4-3-3 setup. While his strike rate was decent, with 10 goals in 32 games, he also found himself in the manager’s bad books for indifferent play. The final straw likely came on July 23, when Winter yanked the Brazilian in the first half as a tactical move. “We are very happy to add Eric Avila to our club, he is an attacking midfielder that fits into our immediate and long term plans,” said Winter in a release. “All of the trades that we have made in the last few weeks have been to acquire players who fulfill a specific need for our team or fit into our style of play philosophy. I’d like to thank Maicon for his contributions to our club and for serving as captain. We wish him well with his new club.” Eric Avila In Avila, TFC gets a playmaking midfielder who has plenty of potential. But, can TFC keep him long-term? In July, Avila traveled to Mexico to finalize a six-month loan deal with Atlas. But, after a week of negotiations, the deal fell through, and Avila returned to Texas. But it was clear that Atlas had interest in Avila — FC Dallas coach Schellas Hyndman said there were some minor issues in the contract that sabotaged the deal. Avila was drafted in the second round of the 2008 SuperDraft by FC Dallas, and was a Generation Adidas player. Avila came in as an extra-time sub for FC Dallas in the 2010 MLS Cup held at BMO Field, which Dallas lost to the Colorado Rapids by a 2-1 count.
