The Portland Timbers made a massive investment last July when they paid a $5 million transfer fee to bring Argentine forward Lucas Melano to Portland as a designated player.

The club recognized at the time that it might take a while for Melano to adjust to MLS and develop in the Timbers' environment. Still, they also hoped that the young attacking player would be able to produce immediately as well.

But over 10 months after arriving in Portland, Melano has scored just two goals in a Timbers uniform and has yet to score a goal in 1,174 minutes this season.

"I think it's pretty obvious that he needs to produce more when you look at the games that he's played," Timbers coach Caleb Porter said. "He knows that and we expect that. That's a reality."

After starting the first 14 games of the season, Melano was not in the starting lineup Wednesday night when the Timbers faced the San Jose Earthquakes.

Porter said he made the decision to insert Ned Grabavoy into the lineup and use Melano off the bench in hopes of getting some fresh legs on the field and bringing a different look to the lineup to fit the matchup against the Earthquakes. Porter said that he felt playing two true wingers, like Melano and Dairon Asprilla, against an athletic San Jose team wouldn't be as effective as using a guy like Grabavoy that can float toward the center and provide creativity.

"At times when we have Asprilla and Melano, they are pretty predictable in staying wide as wingers," Porter said. "They're effective in that, but we just felt that we needed a little more movement and creativity and soccer IQ."

At 23, Melano is still young and has time to continue to develop in Portland. During the last year, he has showed plenty of talent on the field with his speed and ability to get behind opposing defenses. He scored a beautiful goal against Dallas in the playoffs last fall, sending a defender and the goalkeeper to the ground with some great footwork before tapping the ball into the net.

Though he hasn't scored this year, Melano does have three assists and has played a key role in the attack in certain matches this season.

Still, Melano has been ineffective in other games and hasn't shown that he can consistently put shots away. It's clear that the Timbers need more production from their young winger in the short-term.

Portland has struggled to find goals from its wingers this season. Timbers wingers have scored a total of two goals from the run of play, with Jack Barmby and Darren Mattocks contributing a goal apiece.

The Timbers made a large investment in Melano with the expectation that he would be a goal scorer in Portland. Along with the $5 million transfer fee, Melano is earning a hefty salary. According to the MLS Players Union, he is the second highest paid player on the Timbers and is set to make $760,000 this season.

Still, the Timbers have continued to show faith in their young winger, and as the club heads into the second half of the year, Melano will continue to get opportunities to put things together.

"He's a really intelligent kid and because of that he's going to continue to get better and better as time goes on," said Porter earlier this season.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com

503-853-3761 | @jamiebgoldberg