24-year-old Brazilian Sergio Santos comes to us from Audax Italiano in the Chilean League. He’s swapping Chile for Chester.

The rumor popped up a few weeks ago on Twitter, with Santos apparently breaking the news on a radio station down there. He also had interest from Mexican side Necaxa but preferred to play in MLS.

I don’t know much about the guy. He scored ten goals for Audax across all competitions last season and Transfermarkt has him listed as a left-footed center forward who can also play as a left winger and second striker.

Here’s a blurb from the Union website:

Santos boasts speed and strength, and it’s the directness of his game that should prove to be a good fit in the Union’s transition-oriented system next year. The 181 pound Brazilian is a mismatch for fullbacks with his size, and he presents huge problems for center backs with his speed. In short, he has shown the kind of raw ability that can make him a versatile option up front for the Union as they seek to flexibly adapt their tactics throughout the 2019 season.

6’0″, 181 is pretty solid. That’s the type of build for a tweener forward who can play up top but also do some damage on the wing or play in a pressing system. Houston’s Alberth Elis I think is a good comparison in the size and weight department.

Sporting Director Ernst Tanner spoke to the media today and said this, after the jump:

I watched this highlight video of him below, and he looks like he’s a speedy and direct type of guy who also has great dance moves:

There are a handful of players who have come to MLS directly from Chile and had varying degrees of success. Milovan Mirosevic only stayed in Columbus for a year, but fullback Sebastian Miranda had a nice run as an MLS fullback. Octavio Rivero was another guy who came to North America and scored a couple of goals before eventually hitting a wall.

We’ll see what this dude brings to the table. My biggest takeaway is that the Union paid that $500k fee to bring him in. They never do stuff like that.