Talles Magno has another rumored suitor in the transfer market, with Corinthians in Brazil negotiating for him according to a report from Brazilian outlet ge.globo.
Will this be the rumored Talles Magno transfer that finally works out? It's now been two years of reports linking the 22-year-old Designated Player with moves away from New York City FC, his appearances in the rumor mill coming close to outnumbering his appearances for the team in 2024.
Corinthians is one of at least three teams in Brazil's Serie A to reportedly hold interest in acquiring Talles Magno as of this summer, though the interest of Atlético-MG and Talles's former club, Vasco da Gama, seems to have fizzled out.
Andrew Leigh
If NYCFC Sporting Director David Lee finally gets an offer he likes and consummates a Talles Magno sale, he'll have some newfound roster and financial flexibility due to three MLS roster rule changes implemented at the start of this year's MLS Secondary Transfer Window.
Those changes are as follows:
• Teams now have six "Prime Roster Spots" consisting of three Designated Players and three U22 Initiative Players, no strings attached. The new rules eliminate previous limitations that required teams to utilize their DP slots a certain way in order to access all three available U22 Initiative spots.
• More of a transfer fee can now be converted into allocation money. That figure is now $3 million, up from $1.2 million.
• Teams now have two roster construction paths to follow: One that's status quo, with three Designated Players and three U22 Initiative players; and one model with just two DPs, but an additional fourth U22 slot along with $2 million in allocation money ($1 million of which could be used during this summer window).
What it means for selling Talles Magno
If Talles Magno leaves this window on a permanent transfer and not a loan, Lee will face some interesting roster decisions.
Up to $3 million of the transfer fee would be eligible to be turned into allocation money, and Lee would also have options when it comes to how he replaces Talles on the roster.
Teams have to declare which roster construction model they're pursuing by the time the MLS Secondary Transfer Window closes on August 14, and will have to do it again by the start of the 2025 MLS regular season. Which model will David Lee choose, both for the rest of this season and next season?
New York City could always have another Designated Player lined up and stick with the three Designated Players/three U22 players roster structure. That could happen as soon as this summer, or in the winter before their 2025 campaign begins. Maybe they finally go sign a bigger-named, proven attacking player, which has been mentioned by many, including our Mark Radigan, who thinks Antoine Griezmann would be the ideal next Designated Player (although he seems destined for LAFC).
It is also possible that Talles leaves late in the MLS Secondary Transfer Window (as of this writing, only 11 days remain before it closes) and Lee stands pat with Santiago Rodríguez and Thiago Martins as his DPs while unlocking an additional U22 roster slot, and an additional $1 million in allocation money to be used during this window.
Jovan Mijatović, Agustín Ojeda, and Julián Fernández currently occupy New York City's U22 player slots, confirmed by the release of the team's roster profile in early April. Because the three are all 20 years old or younger, they account for just $150,000 each against the MLS salary cap.
If there's another promising youngster of that ilk identified by City Football Group's expansive scouting network, perhaps they get signed to add depth while also allowing NYCFC to add to its allocation money coffers.
Hudson River Blue Staff
Stockpiling allocation money has had its upsides for New York City of late, helping the team sign Hannes Wolf from the German Bundesliga as a non-Designated Player, or to make trades for players like Matt Freese and Andrés Perea.
What will David Lee do?
Talles Magno commands a sizable salary—$1,198,000 in total compensation in 2024—and the team is reportedly looking for a sizable transfer fee, with reports putting the asking price over $10 million to sell him.
Based on Lee's recent transfer activity—which has skewed toward signing younger and younger prospects from abroad—the roster model that offers an additional U22 Initiative and additional allocation money feels like the one he's likely to choose, assuming Talles is sold this window.
That will not be great news to those who are waiting for New York City to make its own big-name signing, like the ones teams like Inter Miami CF or LAFC have been making recently. It might be a temporary thing, given that the team could always decide to bring a new Designated Player in this winter and declare a return to the three-DP structure.
Talles Magno looks set to have a significant impact on the future of the NYCFC roster, even if his days on that roster seem numbered.
