TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS: Report

Not long after one seasoned veteran departed D.C. United for a player-coach role, another appears to be heading to the nation's capital to serve a similar purpose for head coach Ben Olsen's side.

D.C. United close to signing Federico Higuain as a player/assistant coach https://t.co/tSlhpW3rPL #dcu #mls — Steven Goff (@SoccerInsider) February 26, 2020

Longtime Columbus Crew SC playmaker Federico Higuain has an agreement in principle to join D.C., reports Steven Goff of The Washington Post, where he would be a part of D.C.'s roster and also Olsen's coaching staff. Pablo Maurer of The Athletic first reported the club's interest in Higuain.

On the field, Higuain could at least partly make up for the playmaking ability lost with the offseason departures of Wayne Rooney and Luciano Acosta. Rooney left D.C. to assume a similar player-coach role at English League Championship side Derby County.

Columbus let the 35-year-old Higuain go following the 2019 season, which ended prematurely for the Argentine when he suffered an ACL tear in May.

Edison Flores is the projected starter at Higuain's No. 10 role, but Higuain could potentially provide cover should the Peruvian need time to adjust to MLS or deal with injury issues. Previously, D.C.'s second-best option in playmaking midfield was Paul Arriola, who himself suffered a season-ending ACL tear earlier this month.