Rio Grande Valley FC has acquired forward Carlos Small on loan from CD Árabe Unido in Panama pending receipt of his International Transfer Certificate and P-1 Visa, the club announced today. The loan agreement runs through the end of the year.

Small, 23, has scored 12 goals in 45 games for Árabe Unido over the last two seasons, including 10 scores in 31 appearances this season. Since making his professional debut for San Miguelito in 2016 as a 21-year-old, he has made 85 professional appearances and scored 24 goals.

“We are excited to add Carlos Small to RGV FC. We have been tracking him for some time and are glad we could finalize this loan,” said Houston Dynamo Assistant General Manager Nick Kowba. “He’s a young dangerous striker with good strength and speed who gives us a different look and can reinforce our attack.”

Small has represented Panama at the Under-20, Under-23 and full international levels. He made his senior international debut on February 17, 2016 in a friendly match against El Salvador, and scored his first two international goals in a 5-0 victory over Grenada in a friendly on October 24, 2017.

“He is a player that we have been looking at for a while. Fortunately, we were able to get him signed,” said RGV FC head coach Gerson Echeverry. “Offensively, our prowess hasn’t been where we would like it to be but we are excited to bring him in and hopefully he can contribute with some goals.”

With the addition of Small, RGV FC now has 25 players on the active roster.

The hybrid relationship between the Dynamo and RGV FC in which the Dynamo control all aspects of soccer operations, including employment of the technical staff and player selection, while RGV FC manages the business side of the club, was unique in MLS when RGV FC was launched in 2016 and has quickly been emulated by multiple MLS clubs over the past year.