Here are five facts you didn’t know about Orlando City’s newest signing, defensive midfielder Luis Gil.
He’s Played For Jason Kreis Before (Alongside Will Johnson and Donny Toia).
Luis Gil played for Real Salt Lake from 2010-2015. Jason Kreis was the head coach from Real Salt Lake from 2007-2013. Will Johnson played for Salt Lake from 2008-2012 and Donny Toia was also on the team in 2011. While Gil is the new kid on the Orlando City roster, he’s reuniting with a lot of familiar faces.
He’s Young (But He’s Still An MLS Veteran).
Despite his already extensive career, Luis Gil is only 23 years old and already has 134 appearances in MLS. He started playing professionally with Real Salt Lake at the age of 18, and stayed with them until leaving the team two years ago and signing with Queretaro of Liga MX. He’s got a lot of room to grow and develop, but will also bring a lot of MLS experience.
He’s Versatile.
He can play as both a defensive and an attacking midfielder. When he played for Kreis in Real Salt Lake, he spent a lot of time on the left wing. He provides further depth to Orlando City’s midfield and could step into many different positions depending on the opponent and where the team needs him.
He’s Played For The U.S Men’s National Team.
In 2009, he played for the U-17 Men’s National team in both the CONCACAF U-17 Championship and the U-17 World Cup. He moved up to the U-20 Men’s National Team for the 2013 U-20 World Cup and made his first appearance with the senior team in 2014. While Gil has only received two appearances for the senior team, he has amassed a total of 61 appearances for the youth teams and definitely has the potential as a young player to step into the national team spotlight.
He Can Score Goals.
As previously mentioned, Gil is a versatile player. He can step up where his team needs him, and that includes scoring goals. He scored five goals and earned three assists in 2013, when RSL traveled to the MLS Cup Final. He scored eleven goals and nine assists during his time at Salt Lake, and he has scored fifteen goals in his international career. He’s not always needed as that kind of player, but he can step up when necessary.
