Atlanta United confirmed the acquistion of defender Leandro Gonzalez Pirez on Thursday .

Pirez, a central defender, comes to Atlanta United from Estudiantes in his native of Argentina.

He is the third Argentinian to join the squad as a player along with midfielder/forward Hector Villalba and midfielder Yamil Asad.

Pirez, like the acquisition of Brad Guzan , is a signing made with Targeted Allocation Money. He has already joined the team.

The team is in the opening days of training camp in Bradenton, Fla..

Pirez, 24, is a native of Buenos Aires who made 38 appearances for River Plate from 2011-15. He joined Tigre in 2015-16, making 30 appearances, before signing with Estudiantes, where he made 15 appearances in 2016.

Pirez joins a defensive group that includes centerbacks Michael Parkhurst, Zach Loyd and Miles Robinson, who the team picked second in the recent SuperDraft, and fullbacks Mikey Ambrose, Mark Bloom, Tyrone Mears and Greg Garza. Jeff Larentowicz and Chris McCann also have some experience playing in the backline.


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