January 1, 2022 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – New York City FC News Release
NEW YORK, N.Y.⯠-â¯Off the heels of winning its first-ever MLS Cup championship,â¯New York City FCâ¯(NYCFC)â¯today announced thatâ¯starâ¯midfielderâ¯Maximiliano ‘Maxi’â¯Moralezâ¯hasâ¯signed a new contract with the Club throughâ¯the 2022 season with an option for 2023.
Theâ¯Granadero Baigorria, Argentina nativeâ¯originallyâ¯joined NYCFCâ¯aheadâ¯of theâ¯2017â¯MLS seasonâ¯fromâ¯Mexican sideâ¯Clubâ¯Leon andâ¯has beenâ¯a vital partâ¯of the team since his arrival. Playingâ¯144 MLS games, with 136 starts, and tallying 26 goals and 66 assists,â¯Maxi helped deliver the Clubâ¯itsâ¯firstâ¯silverware this past season.â¯â¯
Moralezâ¯said:⯔Iâ¯amâ¯veryâ¯happy,â¯andâ¯my family is happy tooâ¯which isâ¯theâ¯most importantâ¯thingâ¯to me.â¯Thisâ¯was what we wereâ¯alwaysâ¯looking for,â¯toâ¯try to continueâ¯with NYCFC, especially afterâ¯finishing a beautiful year.â¯
“We’re in one of the best Cities in the world. I’ve been here five yearsâ¯now, the people have treated me marvelously, our fans have always shown me their affection. Iâ¯feel very fortunate to be here longer at a Club and City thatâ¯feels like home.â¯I’m already lookingâ¯forward toâ¯what this group can achieveâ¯togetherâ¯next season.â¯We all wantâ¯to have another incredible season.”
During the ‘Boys in Blue’â¯MLS Cup playoff run,â¯the ‘littleâ¯genius’â¯played all four games contributing with three assists andâ¯a crucialâ¯65thâ¯minuteâ¯goalâ¯inâ¯the Eastern Conference Final inâ¯Philadelphiaâ¯toâ¯tieâ¯the game.â¯In the regular season,â¯Moralezâ¯played a keyâ¯roleâ¯to get the team into the playoffs, withâ¯three goals and 11 assists in 30 games.â¯
“To have finished the objective that we set ourselves at the start of the yearâ¯is very satisfyingâ¯- to have won theâ¯Cup was aâ¯privilegeâ¯and something I will never forget.
“I want to thank our fans, to the board, to David Lee,â¯Brad Simsâ¯and Ronnyâ¯Deilaâ¯that made it possible for me to continue on another year at the Club. I want to thank the people that helped me and will continue to help me and that did everything possible for me to renew. Obviously to our fans, hopefully they enjoy their holidays, and next year we can continue to win trophies together.”â¯
NYCFC Sporting Director, David Lee, said:⯔We areâ¯absolutelyâ¯delightedâ¯that Maxi has signed a contract extension. Since arriving at the Clubâ¯in 2017 he has been integral part of this Clubâ¯both on and off the fieldâ¯and him staying at the Clubâ¯was one of the main priorities of this off-season. He will always have a very special place inâ¯theâ¯historyâ¯of this Clubâ¯after being soâ¯instrumentalâ¯in bringingâ¯us ourâ¯first piece ofâ¯silverware.â¯
“Throughout the pastâ¯fiveâ¯seasons, Maxi has shown his quality and impact, not onlyâ¯for NYCFC,â¯but provingâ¯that heâ¯has beenâ¯one of the best MLS playersâ¯during thatâ¯period.â¯Maxi isâ¯rightlyâ¯a favoriteâ¯amongstâ¯our fans andâ¯is very important to theâ¯attacking,â¯possessionâ¯footballâ¯we want to play.â¯Maxi is aâ¯senior player and aâ¯leader and his work ethic andâ¯professionalismâ¯setsâ¯an example to all here at the Club.â¯We look forward toâ¯next season and the continuedâ¯andâ¯uniqueâ¯impact he hasâ¯on the team.â¯
”I would like to thank Maxi and his familyâ¯andâ¯I’mâ¯so excited that he will continue to be part of thisâ¯special group.”â¯
The Midfielder’s best season in the Bronx came in 2019, when he earned his first MLS All-Star call-up, made the MLS Best XI, and was named NYCFC Team MVP after finishing the season with seven goals and 20 assists, becoming just the third player in league history to make 20+ assists in a singleâ¯season.â¯â¯â¯
Moralezâ¯said:⯔The messageâ¯to the fansâ¯will always be thank you! They have supported us through bad moments, they supported us in the best moment in the history of the Club, which was the MLS Cup final.â¯It was an amazingâ¯turnout in Portland despite a long flight, for us we were able to give them the best Christmas for theâ¯passion they showâ¯year-after-year, in the middle of a pandemic, coming out despite how difficult this has been. So, I just want to thank them, thank you for the support you give me, for the support towards my teammates, for supporting the Club. I hope next yearâ¯weâ¯willâ¯beâ¯ableâ¯to conquer new goals.”â¯
TRANSACTION: New York City FC⯠midfielder Maximiliano ‘Maxi’⯠Moralezâ¯signs contract extensionâ¯
Name: Maximiliano ‘Maxi’â¯Moralezâ¯
Position: Midfielderâ¯
Height:â¯5’3″
Weight:â¯115â¯lbsâ¯â¯
Date of Birth: 2/27/1987â¯
Age:â¯34â¯
Hometown: Granaderoâ¯Baigorria, Argentinaâ¯
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