By: Alex Jenkins (@acjenkins17, @1788sports)

Photos: Escobar picture (left) Barco picture (right)

There has been a lot of talk the past couple of days regarding two potential signings for Atlanta United.  The Five Stripes have been reported to have reached agreements in signing defender Franco Escobar and attacking midfielder Ezequiel Barco. 

Escobar, 22, plays for Newell’s Old Boys in the Argentine Primera Divsión.  Atlanta already has a connection with Old Boys as head coach Tata Martino started his playing career there and then later returned to take over as head coach.  Escobar can play either center back or right back and this would be a huge upgrade to the back line for Atlanta.  Escobar’s reported transfer fee is $1 million.  Here are some highlights of Escobar.  He is just the kind of defender Atlanta needs on the right side of the defense.  He has the versatility and high energy to contribute both offensively and more importantly, defensively.  Last year our right back, Tyrone Mears or Anton Walkes, didn’t give us consistent play on both ends of the field.  Mears provided us with an option going forward on the attack but was a liability defensively.  Walkes was solid defensively but was extremely inconsistent going forward.  Escobar is a perfect mix of offense and defense, much like Greg Garza. 

The bigger transfer of the two is that of Ezequiel Barco.  Barco, who is only 18 years old, has a reported transfer fee of $12 million.  Yes… $12 million for an 18 year old kid, but it is worth the price tag.  Barco is one of the brightest talents in South America right now and it would make the United attack even more deadly than this past season.  Barco plays for Club Atlético Independiente, also in the Argentine Primera Divsión.  Here are some highlights of him playing for his club last year.  As you can see, he is rapid and not afraid to take anyone on off the dribble.  I would imagine if United were to sign Barco, this would mean Miguel Almirón would most likely be pushed out to the left wing and Barco would slot in where Miggy played last year as the attacking midfielder.  This leaves a difficult situation ahead for the United front office. 

Last season Yamil Asad started virtually every game at left wing.  First off, Yamil was on loan and we haven’t decided whether or not we want to bring him back.  If we do bring him back it is looking more like he would likely be coming off the bench in a reserve role.  That leads to two big questions the front office has to think about: First, is Asad worth bringing back if we sign Barco?  Barco is younger, arguably more talented, and has a higher ceiling.  Asad played superb in his first season, brought great energy offensively and defensively, and already knows Tata’s system.  I’m not trying to down play his role from last season but if the decision were up to me I think I’d let Asad walk.  Secondly, if we do decide to bring him back, how much do we pay Asad and will it be enough to keep him?  In my opinion the price we pay for him would need to be relatively low.  Barco has a reported transfer fee of $12 million, which is $3 million more than what we payed for Miggy.  There were reports of United signing Asad for somewhere in the $1.8 million ballpark and to be honest I think that is too much money for Atlanta to spend and stay under the confusing MLS team budget.  Only time will tell what the Five Stripes decide to do. 

I am sure the front office has a better idea of what they are trying to implement and will get done exactly what they want to.  Even if we don’t bring Asad back, Escobar and Barco will vastly improve this team.  Hats off to the front office for what they have been doing so far this offseason!