The Portland Timbers have signed Argentine winger Sebastian Blanco as a designated player via a transfer from Argentine Primera Division side Club Atletico San Lorenzo de Almagro.

A source confirmed the signing to the Oregonian/OregonLive Wednesday and the Timbers officially announced the signing Thursday.

Blanco was in Portland Wednesday and flew to Tucson, Arizona Thursday to join the Timbers in preseason training camp. He will be added to the Timbers roster pending receipt of his International Transfer Certificate (ITC) and P-1 visa.

"Sebastian Blanco is a talented player we have been aware of and tracked for quite some time," said Timbers General Manager and President of Soccer Gavin Wilkinson in a prepared statement. "To say the process of acquiring him was complex is an understatement, and we are delighted to confirm the transfer and that he wanted Portland to be his new home."

The Timbers have been linked to Blanco since early January, but the club was in competition with Liga MX side Club America and Turkish side Fenerbahce to sign the Argentine winger and it was unclear until recently as to whether Portland would be able to complete the signing. Things seemed to turn in the Timbers favor last week as multiple reports out of Argentina indicated that Portland was on the verge of inking the San Lorenzo attacker to a contract.

Blanco will fill a much needed void on the right wing in Portland.

The 28-year-old is a versatile, true two-footed attacking player that is capable of playing on either wing and backing up Timbers playmaker Diego Valeri at the No. 10 position. The Timbers will look to Blanco to provide goals and assists from the winger position, something that the club was missing from its wingers last year.

Blanco began his professional career with Argentine side Lanus in 2006 where he was teammates with Valeri. He then joined Ukrainian side Metalist Kharkiv in 2010. Blanco had a brief stint with West Bromwich Albion in the 2014-15 season, but returned to Argentina to join San Lorenzo in 2015.

During his career, Blanco has made 285 appearances in both league and cup competitions and scored 42 goals over that time. He also has two caps and one goal with the Argentina National Team.

Most recently, Blanco recorded three goals and six assists in 11 appearances for San Lorenzo in the 2016-17 Argentine Primera Division.

"An attacking player that will increase our production from wide positions was a top priority this offseason, and we're very pleased to sign a difference-maker like Sebastian Blanco," said Timbers coach Caleb Porter in a prepared statement. "He is a technical, two-footed player that will bring quality service and final passing, and he has produced goals playing either wing. His work rate on both sides of the ball was also very important. We project Blanco to play on the right side, but he is also effective on the left or at the No. 10, which gives us tactical flexibility if need be."

The Timbers acquired the Right of First Refusal to Blanco from the Seattle Sounders in exchange for $75,000 of General Allocation Money.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com

503-853-3761 | @jamiebgoldberg