There were a few eyebrows raised when James Marcelin's name popped up on the teamsheet for the FC Dallas Reserves in their game at Kansas City on Tuesday night. The Haitian midfielder had been with the Portland Timbers for the last two years and change, one while they were in the USL and last season in MLS where he appeared in 20 games, making 12 starts. Marcelin was waived from Portland on April 25th and today at practice it was confirmed pending waivers and MLS paperwork that he will be signed by FC Dallas.

The first thing you notice about him is his enormous size, listed at 6-2 175 pounds, he looks more like a linebacker than a soccer player and looks like a d-mid with a lot of range and obvious athleticism. Judging from the reaction on Twitter, Portland fans scratched their heads a bit when Marcelin was released so this could potentially be a nice addition. I would expect him to slot in as the backup defensive midfielder behind Daniel Hernandez. Marcelin will take up an international roster spot & made $65,000 in 2011.

Reaction from Schellas on the Marcelin signing after the jump