UTICA CITY SIGNS MOISES GONZALEZ, DIEGO ZUÑIGA, AND MATT PERRELLA

by Lindsay Mogle

UTICA, N.Y. (May 30, 2019) - Utica City FC announced today that the club has signed forward Moises Gonzalez, midfielder Diego Zuñiga, and goalkeeper Matt Perrella. Per team and league policies, the terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“I am very excited with these three additions. They are players we had on our radar before free agency and will make us a stronger team next season,” said general manager Tommy Tanner. “With Diego and Moises, we have two players who score goals and are both very attacking minded. They also will help tremendously on restarts and power play. Matt is very athletic and will be a great compliment to Andrew in goal. He will be able give Andrew the opportunity if needed to rest in tough back-to-back weekends. I think this gives us the best 1-2 GK punch in the league.”

Gonzalez, 27, appeared in 24 games with the Rio Grande Valley Barracudas last year, racking up 44 points (30-14-44). Gonzalez has been a consistent scorer in the league, tallying three 30-goal seasons and recording 20 or more points in five consecutive seasons. In 103 games split between the Brownsville Barracudas, Syracuse Silver Knights, and Rio Grande Valley, the Brownsville, Texas native totaled 184 points (127-57-184).

Perrella, 24, has split the last two seasons between the Syracuse Silver Knights and Harrisburg Heat. The keeper appeared in 12 games with Harrisburg last year, compiling a record of 4-7 with a 6.17 goals-against average and a .646 save percentage. He also chipped in offensively with a goal and two assists. Additionally, the New Brunswick, NJ native has a significant amount of outdoor experience, playing for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, Jacksonville Armada, Bethlehem Steel, and Carolina Railhawks of the USL.

Zuñiga, 29, also spent last season with the Barracudas, recording 24 points (22-2-24) in 24 games. It was his first season in the MASL. The midfielder began his career in Costa Rica representing various teams in futsal until reaching the Costa Rican national team, leading the team to the World Cup in 2002 and 2006. In 2017, Zuniga won the Golden Ball award for best player in CONCACAF futsal. Zuñiga was signed by the Baltimore Blast in 2013 where he earned Rookie of the Year and helped the Blast win the MISL Championship. In his two seasons with Baltimore, the midfielder compiled 22 goals and 11 assists in 31 games.

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