Dejan Joveljic, Manu Garcia were Sporting KC’s big offseason acquisitions. Here’s why

Sporting KC unveiled its two designated player signings during its annual media day Friday.

Dejan Joveljic and Manu Garcia both carry that tag, which signifies not only the club’s financial commitment to them, but also the duo’s expected level of importance.

Sporting director Mike Burns said he was happy to acquire a couple of players in their prime or entering it, especially because they wanted to be part of the club.

“I can say this: All eight players that we’ve brought in so far all want to be here,” Burns said. “And that really matters when we’re doing a rebuild. We want players and we want staff that want to be here. And I mean, want to be here with two feet all in, not one foot in, one foot out.”

Both players are expected to be a large part of the offense, linking up in the middle of the park as the attacking midfielder (Garcia) and striker (Joveljic).

Here’s what you should know about them.

Dejan Joveljic’s familiarity made KC an easy choice

Dejan Joveljic broke out in 2024 with the Los Angeles Galaxy, a team that had its own rebuild before winning the MLS Cup last season — thanks to Joveljic’s game-winning goal, no less.

However, the salary cap situation in Los Angeles required the club to offload a few players. With the number of designated player spots the Galaxy had already filled, there wasn’t room to keep Joveljic long-term.

Sporting was the beneficiary.

Choosing between Sporting KC and Tigres, Joveljic picked the team he was already familiar with.

“I knew the coach before I came here,” Joveljic said. “I met all the players. I knew them even before I played many times against them. I like the idea, I like the project. I think this team can be successful in the next few months here.”

Speaking with The Star later on, Joveljic said Sporting was always a thorn in his side — in the most complimentary way possible: “I hated to come here and play against Sporting,” Joveljic said. “I think the fans are great at pushing the team.”

He likes Peter Vermes’ direct style of communication. Nemanja Radoja, one of his new Sporting KC teammates also from Serbia, trains with him in the offseason overseas. So the familiarity and comfort is there.

After scoring more than 20 goals in all competitions last year, what will it take for Joveljic to get close to replicating that success? He says it’ll be on how well he and his teammates jell.

“I’m not the guy who’s gonna dribble (past) three or four guys and score,” Joveljic said. “I need guys who are gonna feed me.

“... If they bring me the ball, if I have crosses, if they bring me the ball in the box, I’m sure that I’m gonna score.”

Manu Garcia is a wizard (and knows about them, too)

Manu Garcia came to Sporting KC this offseason after Burns traveled to Greece to meet with him. That conversation convinced Garcia to come to Sporting.

“That was (when) it really clicked and I said, ‘This is the place for me, the perfect place for me,’” Garcia said. “I’m really glad that he came over and showed me that interest because it made it so easy for me.”

One highlight of his introductory news conference came when Garcia immediately revealed his knowledge of the club’s history.

Garcia knew Sporting used to be called the Wizards and that KC was a founding MLS club.

On the surface, that could sound like a quick scan of a Wikipedia page. But when Garcia talked with The Star later on, it was apparent that knowledge was plenty deep.

Garcia’s explanation: The American style of living has always interested him. And because he loves his soccer (as he says he will always call it), he decided to watch and learn about how it works here.

He stumbled upon some old MLS penalty shootout highlight videos; one of the most popular videos on YouTube is the highlights of the 1996 Western Conference Finals shootout between the Kansas City Wiz and Los Angeles Galaxy.

After laughing about the absurdity of it compared to traditional shootouts, Garcia simply said it caught his eye.

“This American way of living,” Garcia said, “I always felt like I hope that one day I can live it.”

As more Spanish players have come to MLS, he’s watched more of the league in recent years. He and Austin FC’s Ilie Sanchez have shared the same coach at different times in their careers. He also knew former Sporting player Andreu Fontas — and Radoja — well from their time in Spain.

Sporting KC isn’t the first Sporting he’s played for. His home club in Asturias, Spain, is Sporting Gijon. He also idolizes a lot of the best Spanish midfielders, including David Silva from his time at Manchester City.

“Of course, big difference,” Garcia joked. “But I hope I can (capture) from each of them a little bit.”

Daniel Sperry covers soccer for The Star. He can be reached at sperry.danielkc@gmail.com.