Plata’s agent says he’s a target for two Mexican clubs

That rumor we wrote about Joao Plata being a target for Liga MX side Monarcas? Well, that specific link doesn’t seem to be going anywhere, but a new one just landed on Monday.

This time, it’s Joao Plata’s agent, Gonzalo Vargas, who apparently also represents Plata’s Ecuadorian compatriot, Enner Valencia. He’s told Ecuadorian outlet Estadio that Plata is a target for two Mexican clubs, but that any move is apparently complicated.

"Es jugador franquicia, al nivel de Pirlo, Villa en la MLS, siendo el jugador más representativo del Real Salt Lake", empezó hablando Vargas.

Here, he’s talking about Plata being a “franchise player” — designated player, roughly. Of course, Plata’s budgetary impact was bought down following the acquisition of Jefferson Savarino.

Sobre su futuro, Vargas reveló que hay posibilidad en la Liga MX: "Dos clubes mexicanos están interesados en sus servicios, aunque es complicada su salida debido a que la liga en la que milita no es tan competitiva como otras, pero tampoco es complicada".

Roughly translated: Two Mexican clubs are interested in his services, although his departure is complicated because the league he plays in is not as competitive as others, but in reality, it’s not that complicated.

Ya para finalizar, Vargas dijo: "Aunque no tiene un buen momento, está en la casilla 17, con el cambio de técnico no le ha podido dar la misma regularidad que años anteriores".

Here, he’s talking about how Plata hasn’t had a great campaign so far, and he calls to attention RSL’s 17th-place standing in the table. Maybe these quotes were given when that was the case, but we don’t need to quibble over that. He also talks about how the change in coach has played a role in that.

So that’s that. There’s nothing here to give us reason to suspect that Plata is imminently on the move, but his agent speaking out provides some very interesting context to this saga.

Thanks for some translation notes goes to The RSL Show’s Jake Simons, who you can find here with hot takes regularly.