Football
Jeff Carlisle, U.S. soccer correspondent 7y

San Jose Earthquakes end pursuit of America's Darwin Quintero - sources

The San Jose Earthquakes have ceased their pursuit of Club America forward Darwin Quintero, multiple league sources told ESPN FC.

However, the Quakes are making progress on acquiring midfielder Jahmir Hyka, forward Danny Hoesen, and forward Marco Urena, sources said.

San Jose had made Quintero's signing a priority this offseason but ultimately decided to walk away from a proposed deal that would have required a $5 million transfer fee and an annual salary of $2.5 million.

Quintero, 29, has no goals and one assist after the first two games of the Liga MX Clausura, but he has scored 114 goals since moving to the Mexican league in 2008. The sources didn't elaborate as to whether other MLS clubs would now pursue Quintero.

Now San Jose will focus on its other targets. Hyka, 28, is moving closer to an agreement with the Quakes, but a source indicated that Hyka's current club, FC Luzern in Switzerland, is trying to extract a transfer fee amid interest from two clubs in Turkey. Reports from Hyka's home country of Albania had previously linked him with Alanyaspor.

A possible workaround is that with Hyka's contract set to expire this summer, he could sign a pre-contract with San Jose, which would leave Luzern unable to collect a fee but would delay Hyka's arrival.

A deal to acquire Urena, 26, who is currently on the books of Danish side Brondby, is also nearing completion, sources said.

The Quakes have also been linked with FC Groningen's Hoesen, 26, with a Fox Sports Netherlands report indicating the deal is nearing completion.

But a league source told ESPN FC that the potential move is complicated by the fact that another MLS team has Hoesen's discovery rights, giving the unnamed team right of first refusal.

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