Youth Movement: LA Galaxy signs another South American defender as part of U22 Initiative

• by Paul Kennedy  @pkedit, Mar 22, 2023

The LA Galaxy acquired 19-year-old Argentine Julian Aude from Primera Division club Lanus.

Aude, a left back, made 54 appearances (34 starts) for Lanus, his hometown club, in 2022-23 across all competitions (Copa Argentina, Copa Sudamericana, Copa de la Liga, Primera División).

“Julián is one of the best young left backs in South America and he’s a player that our scouting department has been following for quite some time,” said LA Galaxy technical director Jovan Kirovski. “We’re excited for Julián to join the Galaxy and for him to begin contributing to our group.”

Aude started six games when Argentina won the 2019 South American U-17 Championship. He made three starts for Argentina at the 2023 U-20 South American Championship in Colombia, where it finished fourth in its group and did not advance to the final round.

Aude joins 20-year-old Brazilian right back Lucas Calegari (on loan from Fluminense) and Serbian striker Dejan Joveljic as the Galaxy's three players who are designated as players signed under the U22 Initiative, Homegrown midfielder Efraín Álvarez was moved off U22 Initiative status to make room for Aude and is now considered a TAM player.