LAFC announced Friday it has signed 21-year-old Uruguayan winger Cristian “Kike” Olivera from La Liga side UD Almería in Spain’s top division. The defending MLS champions will pay €5 million for Olivera's playing rights, according to ESPN, after paying $175,000 in GAM for his discovery priority to Minnesota United. He will be added to the roster via the U22 Initiative and occupy an international slot upon the receipt of his P1 visa and international transfer certificate (ITC).
Kike’s journey
Olivera began playing soccer at the age of three in his hometown of Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay. After bouncing around seven different youth academies in Uruguay, Olivera signed his first professional contract with Rentistas in the Uruguayan second division at the age of sixteen. Making his debut the following year, Olivera scored three goals in 25 games, helping Rentistas get promoted to the first division.
Following three goals and two assists in his first eleven top-flight games, leading Reinstas to six wins and five draws, Europe came calling. For the first time in his career, Olivera moved abroad to Spain, signing a five-year contract with Almería for a rumored fee of €2m.
Olivera failed to establish himself in Spain, nabbing an assist in his four matches with the Almería first team before being demoted to the reserves within six months of arriving at the club. Within nine months Olivera had returned to his home country on loan, where he stayed until now.
Olivera spent the first year of his loan with CA Peñarol, becoming a champion of Uruguay and of the Uruguayan Supercopa, before moving to fellow Uruguayan top division side CA Boston River for the 2022/23 season. Olivera’s ten goals and eight assists in 38 matches for Boston River were enough to convince LAFC they needed another Uruguayan winger.
LAFC connections
With his signing, Olivera became the third Uruguayan winger to play for LAFC, following in the footsteps of Diego Rossi (who the Columbus Crew just brought back to MLS) and Brian Rodríguez (now with Club América). Though not quite as high-profile as the two products of the Peñarol Academy, Olivera also spent time with the Uruguayan giants. Further, Rodríguez was sent on loan from LAFC to Almería, meaning he and Olivera now have three clubs in common throughout their careers.
These connections are not likely to be a coincidence, but rather a result of the LAFC scouting network. While a strong relationship between LAFC and Peñarol is nothing new, a similar relationship with Almería seems to be forming, as we have also seen with fellow La Liga club Villareal recently. A far-reaching, well-connected scouting network is key to bringing in the best players possible. LAFC co-president and general manager John Thorrington has been building that network since before the Black and Gold ever kicked a ball.
Beginning with a strong presence in South America, LAFC has grown its European network, adding scouts along the way. The signing of Cristian Olivera is a perfect example of the club’s growing scouting network working hand-in-hand across the world.