Transfer Rumor: Orlando City to Acquire Defender Danilo Acosta from Real Salt Lake

According to reports from Soccer By Ives (first) and ProSoccerUSA.com, Orlando City is in the process of acquiring Real Salt Lake defender Danilo Acosta. The defender had been a starter for the Utah-based club until he lost his position to Aaron Herrera last season (read RSL Soapbox’s comparison of the two here). RSL also acquired former Orlando City defender Donny Toia in the MLS Re-Entry Draft, which crowded the depth chart at the left back position.

The 21-year-old Homegrown product has played center back, left back, and defensive midfield for RSL. In his first two seasons playing for the first team, Acosta appeared in 29 games, starting 26, and recording 2,307 minutes. He tallied four assists in two seasons. This past season he played in 12 games, starting 10, and recorded 896 minutes. Acosta spent the 2016 season with Real Monarchs of the USL, appearing in 18 matches and tallying 1,135 minutes.

The Honduran born Acosta is a native of San Pedro Sula, Honduras, although RSL lists his hometown as Sandy, UT, and he does have U.S. citizenship. The U.S. youth international played 16 matches with the U-20 USMNT in 2016 and 2017, scoring one goal for his country. He was also selected to the 2016 MLS Homegrown Game.

As the link above to the RSL Soapbox piece says, part of the reason why Acosta lost a close battle with Herrera for Real Salt Lake’s left back spot came down to an attitude perception. The Salt Lake Tribune wrote about it here.

RSL coach Mike Petke declined to comment on Acosta’s situation Monday, saying, “It’s not about individuals, for the most part. Maybe that’s a question for Danny.”

It seems there has been an accumulation of little things that have eroded Acosta’s standing with Petke. The Tribune has learned a report back from the USMNT camp raised concerns about Acosta’s attitude. During one preseason training session in Tucson, Acosta talked to reporters before the team had finished stretching and didn’t respond to Petke’s summons until he had finished the interview. 

While that may raise some eyebrows, it’s not unusual for a young player to require some maturation and hopefully if there was an attitude issue it was something that can be corrected or was specific to his situation in Salt Lake City.

What it Means for Orlando City

Acosta would fill a need for Orlando City after they lost left backs Toia, PC, and Mohamed El-Munir following the 2018 season. While Toia was selected in the Re-Entry draft, El-Munir was traded to Los Angeles FC on Dec. 11 for João Moutinho. PC was traded on Dec. 9 to the Vancouver Whitecaps for a third-round pick in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft.

There’s a trend developing. Both Moutinho and Acosta can play both left back and center back, which will give James O’Connor some flexibility in adjusting the shape of his team from a three-man back line to a four-man or even a five-man when needed.