ATLANTA —On Tuesday, one day after one major free agent signing, Atlanta United announced it has signed Mexican defender Juan José Purata on loan from Tigres UANL for the remainder of the 2022 season, with an option to extend the loan for 2023 and a purchase option.
Purata will occupy an international roster pending the receipt of his International Transfer Certificate (ITC) and P-1 Visa and will be available for selection when the MLS secondary transfer window opens on July 7.
“Juan is a talented center back with an extremely high ceiling,” Vice President and Technical Director Carlos Bocanegra said. “Given our current situation, we felt the need to bring in another central defender. An opportunity arose to acquire him on loan, and we’re pleased to be able to bring him into the group. Once integrated and registered, we’re looking forward to having him compete immediately.”
The 24-year-old has spent his entire professional career with Tigres UANL, one of the top clubs in Liga MX. He joined the Tigres academy in 2015 and worked his way up the ranks before making the jump into the first team in 2017. He’s made 34 appearances in his career, including 26 in Liga MX play, and was part of the Tigres squad that won the 2018 Campeones Cup, 2019 Liga MX Clausura and the 2020 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League.
The San Luis Potosi, Mexico native made his professional debut on Aug. 31, 2017 when he played 90 minutes in a Copa MX match against Cruz Azul. His Liga MX debut came on Sept. 24, 2018 when he played against Monterrey. That season he made 10 appearances across all competitions. His first professional goal came in the 2020 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League when he scored against Alianza FC in the Round of 16 opening leg.
