Vinotinto: Latest MLS taste in South American imports

• by Paul Kennedy  @pkedit, Aug 23, 2017

MLS signings from South America come in waves. Bolivian and Colombian stars started things off in MLS's first season. There was the influx of Colombians that started a decade ago. That was about the same time Argentine stars began to arrive.

The newest group: Venezuelans.

-- Josef Martinez has nine goals in nine games for Atlanta United and would probably be leading the league in goals but for injuries that have kept him out of 13 games.
-- Venezuela U-20 captain Yangel Herrera is one of the reasons Andrea Pirlo can't get playing time in the NYCFC midfield;
-- And 20-year-old Jefferson Savarino has been a nice pickup for Real Salt Lake (three goals and three assists in 13 games).

The Portland Timbers have gotten into the act and announced on Tuesday the signing of Renzo Zambrano, adding the 22-year-old midfielder to their T2 roster in the USL. Zambrano doesn't have the pedigree of Martinez, Herrera or Savarino, having languished on Real Valladolid's "B" team in Spain but he does have three caps for La Vinotinto.

The next Venezuelan headed to MLS is expected to be Nahuel Ferraresi. American fans might remember the 18-year-old defender as the scorer of Venezuela's second goal in its 2-1 win over the USA in the quarterfinals of the 2017 Under-20 World Cup.

The City Football Group (Manchester City) signed Ferraresi has parked him at Club Atletico Torque in Uruguay with the idea that he join NYCFC in January.