Minnesota United has signed experienced Italian goalkeeper Vito Mannone on a 12-month loan from the English Championship League’s Reading FC using Targeted Allocation Money the team announced today. Mannone will join the Loons pending a physical and receipt of his P1 Visa and ITC. Mannone will occupy an international spot on Minnesota’s roster.

“The most important thing is we have added another player who has vast experience and has played at a really high level,” said MNUFC Head Coach Adrian Heath. “He’s played in the Premier League, the Championship, some very difficult leagues to play in. He’s been at big clubs and he knows what it feels like to play under tremendous pressure. As a player he’s really competent at all aspects of his game, he’s good playing in traffic, coming out for crosses, he’s good with his feet. He has all the things we’ve been looking for in a goalkeeper.”

The 30-year-old goalkeeper joined the Royals in a transfer from Sunderland in 2017. During his two seasons with Reading FC, Mannone played 47 games across 4,230 minutes, earning 8 clean sheets. Mannone began his professional career at 17 years old when he was signed by the Premier League’s Arsenal in 2006 and made his Arsenal debut the following year during the 2007–08 season.

He spent seven seasons with Arsenal from 2006–13 but was loaned out to Hull City in the Championship League during the 2010–11 and 2011–12 seasons. Mannone played 1,350 minutes across 15 games while with Arsenal and 2,746 minutes across 31 games with Hull City, while recording four clean sheets in his first five games with Hull City. Prior to his transfer to Reading, Mannone spent four seasons with the Premier League’s Sunderland where he won Player of the Year at the Stadium of Light his first season – saving two penalties against Manchester United to take Sunderland to their first Wembley final since 1992. Over the course of his career, Mannone has tallied 55 clean sheets.

Born in Lombardy, Italy, Mannone made his debut with the Italy U21 team in a match against Hungary. He played seven matches in the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification.

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Transaction: Minnesota United signs Vito Mannone on 12-month loan using TAM

VITALS

Vito Mannone

Position: Goalkeeper

Date of birth: 02.03.1988 (30 years old)

Height: 6’2”

Weight: 170

Last club: Reading FC

Birthplace: Desio, Lombardy, Italy

Hometown: Desio, Italy

Citizenship: Italy