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Who Is Erik Sorga?

20-year old Sorga was born in Tallinn. His career so far has seen him progress through the ranks at FC Flora. His record shows a total of 41 goals from 71 games for the first team since making his breakthrough in 2016.

In the same way, he has made appearances for the national team at a number of different age levels. With six appearances for the full Estonian national team, he has one international goal to date. This came against Belarus in 2019, in his second game for Estonia.

Sorga plays as a forward and his numbers are certainly interesting. He has shown throughout his short career to date that he knows how to score goals. Last season, he scored 31 times in 34 games, as his team ran away with the league.

The value of his transfer from FC Flora to D.C. United has been reported as being $500,000, although this hasn’t been confirmed yet. The forward is set to initially join the reserve team, Loudon United, with the idea of moving him into the first team as soon as possible.

In an interview, he called this a “big change in my life”. His club had turned offers from around Europe before finally agreeing to let him move to the US.

Where Does He Fit in at D.C. United?

Uncertainty over salary caps in the MLS has led to most teams being cautious in terms of bringing in new players. Bringing in Sorga to their reserve team means that he won’t affect the salary cap for this first team.

Yet, it is possible he is moved in to the main team quickly once the issues over the salary cap are resolved. His salary at the American club has been estimated to be in the region of $150,000 to $200,000.

With legendary English forward Wayne Rooney moving back to the EPL with Derby County, it has been suggested that Sorga could be taking his place in the team before long. However, D.C. United sources have confirmed that this is not the case. Ola Kamara is the player expected to be their first choice forward this season.

They see the Estonian as being able to play for them as a striker, which is easy to understand given his terrific scoring rate to date. It has also been suggested that he has the skills to play as a withdrawn forward for them.

Loudoun United technical director Stewart Mairs called him “a dynamic attacking talent with an extremely impressive goal scoring record” and spoke about him having a “high ceiling for development and improvement” in the future.

D.C. United are currently at +2000 to win the MLS, behind the favorites LAFC at +300. If you know how to how to read betting odds for horse races such as the Kentucky Derby, you should be able to understand soccer odds like this without too many problems

When Can We See Him in Action?

The MLS season runs for 34 games and begins at the end of February. Their first competitive game is against Colorado on 29 February. However, he is likely to remain with the reserve team until this stage.

Most soccer fans won’t see him until he is promoted to the top team. Those who follow lower league soccer in the US can look out for him in Loudoun United’s next game against North Carolina on 22 February.