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ST. PAUL — As Emanuel Reynoso enters his prime, the creative Argentine playmaker has committed to Minnesota.
The MLS All-Star midfielder signed a new contract with Minnesota United, the club announced Wednesday. The deal will include three seasons, starting in 2023, with a club option for 2026.
Reynoso, 26, will remain a Designated Player on the Loons roster; he has earned a guaranteed compensation of $1.06 million during the 2022 season, according to the MLS Players’ Association.
“The truth is since the first day I arrived, they treated me very well. I feel like a family here,” Reynoso said in a statement via the club news release. “I’m thankful for the club, the technical staff, and all of my teammates. I’m very happy and content, as well as my family. To be able to extend my contract is good for me, good for my family. We’re very happy here in Minnesota. I’m going to give my best to this lovely club, who gave me everything.”
Loons manager Adrian Heath shared Aug. 19 that the club was working to sign Reynoso to a new contract and added at that time that there “has always been interest in Rey, whether it be down in South America or Mexico.”
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Reynoso arrived in Minnesota from Boca Juniors in Buenos Aires in September 2020 for a club-record $5 million transfer fee. He quickly became one of the best passers in MLS, set a record for assists in the 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs and was named to the league’s All-Star Game in 2021 and 2022, which was held at Allianz Field in St. Paul.
“When you get an opportunity to sign an MVP-caliber player, you want to keep them players around,” Heath said this week. “I know what the reputation of Rey is outside of our club, within the league. We are just pleased that he’s committed the main part of his career to us.”
Heath said the Loons didn’t have to “sell” the Argentine on remaining in Minnesota. Family has joined him at his home in the western suburbs, including his young daughter.
“That’s the one thing that has been pretty apparent all the way through,” Heath said. “I think he enjoys it here. I think me and him have a really good working relationship. I don’t sugar coat things with him, and I think he appreciates that at times.”
For years, Heath has been prodding Reynoso to shoot more and score goals. That has happened this year. Reynoso has a career-high 10 goals in 27 games this season, after scoring six in the previous 42 games since arriving in MLS.
“I still think there is a lot more to come,” Heath said.
Reynoso has 27 assists in 69 career games for MNUFC, with a rotating cast of players around him.
“Now we have to build around him to put the right pieces around him to flourish,” Heath said. “That’s what the aim will be over the next few years.”
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