CARSON, Calif. (Thursday, July 24, 2014) – LA Galaxy II have signed forward Jaime Villarreal, the club announced today. Villarreal, a product of the LA Galaxy Academy, becomes the first LA Galaxy Academy player to sign a contract with the LA Galaxy II.
“Jaime is an exciting young player who has already shown his quality in our Academy,” LA Galaxy II head coach Curt Onalfo said. “He will give our squad another attacking option and we are excited to keep him in the LA Galaxy family as he moves to the professional level.”
Villarreal most recently featured for the LA Galaxy Under-18 squad, scoring 10 goals to help lead his team to a 19-3-5 record and the Southwest Division Championship in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy 2013/2014 season. He also notched two goals to secure a 4-1 win over Chicago Magic PSG U-18 in the U.S. Soccer Development Playoffs. In total, Villarreal has tallied over 30 goals for the Galaxy U-18 and U-16 squads during his youth career.
“Jaime’s signing highlights the commitment of AEG and the Galaxy to having the best developmental structure for our youth players to become professionals,” said Galaxy President Chris Klein. “From our Galaxy Under-12 Academy teams to our Galaxy Academy Under-18 squads, it is important for us to continue to develop Southern California’s top young talent. We’re proud to have Jaime join the professional ranks with LA Galaxy II as the first player to come through our Academy to our Galaxy II side.”
During the 2014 Dallas Cup, the Inglewood native notched a hat trick in the Galaxy U-18’s 4-1 victory over Mexico’s Chivas Guadalajara en route to finishing with a 1-1-1 record in the tournament.
In May 2014, the 19-year-old forward earned his first call up to a U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team training camp in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Jaime is the younger brother of LA Galaxy Homegrown forward Jose Villarreal, who is currently on loan to Cruz Azul in Mexico’s Liga MX.
After improving to 10-5-4 with a victory over Oklahoma City Energy FC on Saturday, Los Dos travel to Anteater Stadium at UC Irvine to face Orange County Blues FC Saturday, July 26 at 7:00 p.m. PT. The complete LA Galaxy II’s 2014 USL PRO schedule can be found here.
Follow Los Dos through the LA Galaxy II Twitter account.
LA Galaxy II Season Ticket Memberships begin at just $6 per game. For more information on LA Galaxy, LA Galaxy II memberships, or group and single tickets, visit www.lagalaxy.com or call 877-3GALAXY (342-5299).
