The Post has learned that the Red Bulls have agreed to terms with Venezuelan national team captain Jorge Rojas. The 31-year-old known as El Zurdo is expected to travel to New York early next week – perhaps even Monday – to finalize the details of his signing.
“We’ve come to personal terms with Jorge Rojas and now await a physical, a p-1 and approval from league,” sporting director Jeff Agoos told the Post.
Rojas is the second-most capped player in Venezuelan history. He has played left wing and left fullback, but Red Bull coach Juan Carlos Osorio views him as an attacking midfielder, either on the flank if he gets his central midfield transfer target or in the middle if he doesn’t.
After winning four Venezuelan championships with Caracas and another Colombian title with Atletico Nacional in Colombia, he moved on to Union Atletico Maracaibo, a government-run team in Venezuela.
Osorio came close to prying him away from Maracaibo this preseason, but the team held on to him as they were playing in Copa Libertadores, and the player decided to stay. Now the cash-strapped club can’t afford to pay his wages or his rent.
He offered to take a fraction of what Maracaibo owed him in return for them letting him go on a free transfer.
Rojas – who helped lead Venezuela to a 2-0 win over powerhouse Brazil in Foxboro – isn’t a prolific scorer with only two international goals. But he’s a set piece artist and playmaker, something the Red Bulls’ stagnant offense has needed all season. Claudio Reyna has been miscast in the role, and has also missed more than half of the teams’ games because of injury.
The 34-year-old Reyna has played just 461 of a possible 1,260 minutes, starting only six of the teams’ 14 games. Rojas would likely serve as an attacking midfielder for the club, whose 15 goals scored are the third-lowest in MLS, and the second-worst in the Eastern Conference.