Miami (AFP) – Major League Soccer’s Charlotte FC traded Polish internationals Karol Swiderski and Kamil Jozwiak to European clubs on Thursday to clear space for new arrivals.
Striker Swiderski has joined Serie A club Verona initially on loan with a purchase clause for the Italian team, who rank 16th in the 20-team Serie A.
Midfielder Jozwiak, who has 22 caps for his country, has joined Spanish club Granada CF on a permanent deal.
The 27-year-old Swiderski joined Charlotte in 2022 from Greek club PAOK and in 61 MLS games scored 22 goals while adding 10 assists.
Jozwiak also signed for Charlotte in 2022, moving from English club Derby County, and scored twice and had 10 assists in his 44 league appearances.
Both players occupied a “Designated Players” slot with the North Carolina club, meaning they can be replaced with another player whose salary does not count against the overall salary cap.
Charlotte recently appointed former Aston Villa manager Dean Smith as head coach and he is aiming to rebuild and strengthen the squad.
Charlotte general manager Zoran Krneta said the moves enabled the team, which recently acquired an additional international roster spot in a deal with DC United, to undertake the rebuild under Smith.
“We now have key roster-building mechanisms available to us that we can use to bolster our squad throughout the remainder of this window and during the summer transfer window,” he said.
Charlotte finished ninth in the Eastern Conference in both of the club’s MLS regular-season campaigns.
