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Chivas USA Sign Spanish Midfielder Daniel Fragoso

March 3, 2014 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Club Deportivo Chivas USA News Release


CARSON, Calif. (Monday, March 3, 2014) - Chivas USA announced today the signing of Spanish midfielder Daniel Fragoso from Centre D'Esports L'Hospital in Spain's Second Division-B. The 31-year-old player will be eligible to play in the upcoming 2014 Major League Soccer regular season pending the receipt of his International Transfer Certificate.

Developed in the R.C.D. Espanyol and Real Madrid C.F. youth systems, Fragoso made his professional debut with Espanyol B at age 17. After a brief stint with A.D.A. AlcorcÃ"n, the midfielder signed with Extremadura U.D. in 2002, becoming a key player in the Almendralejo-based team, with 68 league appearances and a goal in two seasons.

"Daniel is a very technical player, known for his excellent control of the ball and possession," said Chivas USA Head Coach Wilmer Cabrera. "Those strengths are going to be very important for our team as we try to have a group that knows and is able to win and move the ball.

"He's a very experienced player, as he joins us from one of the world's greatest academy systems, where the technical players are very important. Hopefully he can adapt quickly to the pace of this league, and start helping the team and his teammates on the field with his possession and the way he manages the game."

Fragoso's performance with Extremadura earned him a contract with FC Barcelona, where he became a starter for their B-squad from 2004-2007. While further developing his game alongside several members of Spain's current World Cup championship team and some of the elite coaches in the world, Fragoso was called up to play with Barça's First Team in the Copa del Rey tournament in 2005.

After three successful years with Barcelona, Fragoso had brief stints with Ciudad Murcia and Granada 74 in Spain's Second Division. In 2008, the right-footed player moved on to play with Cadiz C.F., becoming instrumental in the club's promotion to the Second Division while registering 80 appearances and three goals.

At the international level, Fragoso has represented Spain as a member of the Under-16 and Under-18 national squads while competing in the UEFA European Championships in 1998 and 2001, respectively. In both tournaments, Fragoso and La Rojita delivered third-place finishes, defeating Portugal 2-1 with the U16s, and Yugoslavia, 6-2, three years later with the U18s.

Fragoso joined the Red-and-White as a trialist during the club's third week of preseason camp and logged a total of 205 minutes in preseason action. Chivas USA now enter the final week of preparation to kick off the 2014 MLS season when they host the Chicago Fire on Sunday, March 9, in a nationally televised match on UniMás starting at noon (PT). The match can also be heard in Spanish on ESPN Deportes KWKW 1220 AM.

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