Well it's official! The worst kept secret in Portland Timbers history is now 100% confirmed as the Portland Timbers issued a press release this morning confirming that Diego Valeri is, in fact, joining the Timbers. While terms of the deal were not disclosed, earlier reports have stated it is a one year deal worth $400,000. How that gets divided up between the player and club is entirely unknown.

Here's what Gavin Wilkinson and head coach Caleb Porter had to say about Valeri:

"Valeri is a tremendous acquisition and his desire to join the Portland Timbers was an integral part in getting him on loan," said Timbers general manager Gavin Wilkinson. "At his age and with his ability, we expect to be in a position to purchase this player and make him a permanent fixture in Portland."

"Diego Valeri is certainly a tremendous addition to the Timbers and will bring quality and creativity to our attack," said Caleb Porter, head coach of the Timbers. "We expect he will be one of the better playmakers in the league, but more importantly Diego fits our identity and his play should boost production to help the club win games."

While still a somewhat unknown quantity to fans, according to multiple Argentine reports Valeri is the creative element that the Timbers have been lacking for quite some time.

And with this, we now face a serious question: just who occupies the midfield with Diego Valeri? It's a safe bet that Will Johnson will take a prominent spot on the team and it's difficult to imagine Diego Chara being left out as well. I suspect the pre-season training games and camp will be very telling.

How do you think Diego Valeri will fit into the 2013 squad? What midfield are you expecting come March?

UPDATE: Merritt Paulson took to Twitter to shed more light on the deal stating:

we don't do pure "rentals". terms are pre negotiated to acquire.

Meaning if Valeri performs well this year the Timbers can opt to purchase him outright.

Full press release: