Mamelodi Sundowns have been linked with the signing of Argentinian midfielder Matias Esquivel. Kickoff unpacks what the South American could bring to the Brazilians.
The Tshwane giants' fixture schedule has increased with the advent of the African Football League, as they have already played 24 matches in all competitions midway through the season.
The AFL champions are expected to beef up their squad and Esquivel is set to bolster their attacking midfield options.
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The Argentinian played 37 matches for Lanus across two tournaments, in the Liga Professional and Copa de la Superliga.
The 24-year old started in 15 of the 25 league games and came on as substitute in ten league matches, got two goals, with two assists.
Given Sundowns' style of play, one of their highest requirements for a midfielder is to be able to fit into their passing game and Esquivel had a pass success rate of 74.3% on average from 25 league games in the season that has just ended, according to statistical website Whoscored.com.
The 24-year-old averaged 22.1 passes per game and 1.6 average key passes per game.
Esquivel was also named Man of the Match three times for Lanus in 25 league matches and had an average rating of 6.78 out of 10, according to statistics.
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In terms of the Argentinian's temperament, he only received one yellow card in 25 league matches but received one red card out of his 12 games in the Copa de la SuperLiga.
Importantly, with regards to being a threat in front of goal, the 24-year-old averaged 1,5 shots per game across 25 league matches.
Esquivel reportedly had interest in South America and Europe for his services but Sundowns are expected to seal the deal.
Lanus qualified for Copa Libertadores after finishing fourth in the 2023 season, 16 points behind champions River Plate.