Following an initial report from Kristian Dyer, Steven Goff is now saying that D.C. United will sign Jamaica international forward Dane Kelly to a contract. The 27-year-old Kelly has played in the USL exclusively since 2011, with the Charleston Battery, Swope Park Rangers and most recently Reno 1868, where he scored 18 goals in 27 games last year en route to winning the USL Golden Boot.
Kelly appears to be be the attacking player that United GM Dave Kasper alluded to over the weekend, and would be the 26th player on the roster (defender Joseph Mora has not been announced, but he was spotted in training this morning with the Black-and-Red). Kelly has a green card, meaning he will not require an international roster spot. We expect that he would take up a supplemental roster spot, meaning his salary would not count towards D.C.’s cap. It will be interesting to see how Kelly challenges Patrick Mullins and fellow countryman Darren Mattocks for position on the forward depth chart.
In his seven USL seasons, USL Kelly has scored 67 goals in 144 games, making him the league’s all-time leading scorer. Recently Kelly’s goalscoring prowess earned the attention of his national team, and he scored a goal for the Reggae Boyz in a January friendly with South Korea.
With these moves, D.C. would appear to be comfortable with the roster for the time being, but would have flexibility to add reinforcements in the secondary window if they need to. That said, the current transfer window is still open through May 1.