Aberdeen to tap into South American transfer market as Alan Burrows details forgotten Atlanta United link-up

The Reds linked up with the MLS club back in 2019 - but the partnership has yet to prove successful in the transfer market

Alan Burrows is confident Aberdeen can use their forgotten link with Atlanta United to recruit top talents from across The Pond in the next couple of transfer windows.

The Dons entered a strategic partnership with Atlanta way back in 2019, with the MLS side's parent company AMB Sports & Entertainment investing £2million into the club shortly before Dave Cormack took up the reins from Stewart Milne as Aberdeen chairman. Former president of the MLS Darren Eales previously held a position on Aberdeen's board, and that presence continues with non-executive board member Dimitrios Efstathiou being re-elected as a director at Pittodrie at Monday night's annual general meeting.

But the link-up between the two clubs has yet to prove fruitful when it comes to the transfer market. Aberdeen signed midfielder Jon Gallagher and full back Jack Gurr from Atalanta in 2019 and 2021 respectively, but both players failed to make the grade in the Granite City. Going the other way, Atlanta picked up Venezuela international Ronald Hernandez after his ill-fated stint at Pittodrie but the wing-back has been little more than a bit-part player in the States since his arrival three and a half-years ago.

But chief executive Burrows insists the Dons are determined to make the most of their partnership going forward to help Jimmy Thelin's recruitment drive. Speaking at Monday night's AGM, he said: "What we get from that is opportunities around scouting and coaching development. There is also potential for off-field commercial opportunities.

"I think where we see a positive benefit for both parties is through information sharing and player sharing. We have a very established scouting network in Europe which they have access to through the relevant lines of communication in the football department.

"On the flip side, over in the States, they have access to markets that we ordinarily wouldn't have a great deal of exposure too. There is a lot of collaborative work that goes on between both sides and I think that it's area we can develop even further and beyond.

"We are a couple of years into a really positive relationship between both and Dimitris sits on our board and is a really god contribute to the club. But it's an area that we can further attack in the future to see what opportunities exist for both of us."

Asked if Aberdeen could use their close ties with Atlanta to scout potential signings from the South American market, Burrows replied: "Absolutely. Atlanta United have a really robust football and recruitment department with a lot of expertise and really talented people who work at the club. There is a lot of information sharing that goes on and you will know that Aberdeen went on a mid-season camp to Atlanta to play a game and built and solidified a lot of those contacts and links.

"From our point of view, the relationship between the both of us is very positive and is mutually beneficial. And the encouraging thing for us is that there is a lot more to come from it and a lot more we can do together. That will be a key part of the next 12-24 months, exploring more ways to get more out of the relationship."

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