Today, New York Red Bulls II made their second new international singing of the winter with the announcement of Panamanian U20 right back Aimar Modelo joining the club on a one-year loan from CA Independiente through the 2025 season.
“Aimar [Modelo] is a talented young defender that has strong attacking abilities,” said Head Coach Ibrahim Sekagya. “We are looking forward to adding Aimar to our roster, and are excited to get him started with the club this season.”
A day after signing Brazilian center-back Caio Ramalho Leite on loan from Sfera Sociedade Anonima de Futebol, the team has continued to fortify their backline. New York Red Bulls II has been active this winter and for good reason.
In 2024, the second team had the third-worst "goals against per game" with 2.2 GA/GP. Sure, you can chalk that up to having almost an entirely new backline and a 16-year-old rookie Aidan Stokes in net, but overall, Red Bull was bad in its own half.
Red Bull hoped Juan Jose Mina would develop at right-back last season, but that simply did not happen. Instead, 17-year-old academy product Copeland Berkley started the majority of games for Sekagya, while Mina was sent out on loan to Portugal this past summer. Signing a kid like Modelo is a step in the right direction for the club in 2025 and will even push Berkley to improve his own game this season.
Just turning 20, Modelo already has three years of professional experience in the Liga Panamena, playing since he was 17. side CA Independiente. He made 48 appearances (2,922') with the club, scoring two goals and tallying three assists. In his time with CA Independiente, Modelo has two Liga Panamena Clausura trophies and a Liga Panamena Apertura trophy.
Internationally, Modelo has eight caps for "Los Canaleros" at the U20 level. Last year at the U-20 CONCACAF Championship, Modelo showed up in one of the biggest moments of his life. Modelo's most memorable goal came in the quarterfinals against Canada. In extra time, Modelo scored the game-winning goal from outside the 18-yard box with his weaker left foot to help qualify Panama for the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Modelo is the tenth player to sign a Red Bull II contract for the 2025 season, joining midfielders Ibrahim Kasule, Steven Sserwadda, Malick Dembele, Aiden Jarvis, and Dylan Sullivan, defenders Jair Collahuazo, Juan Gutierrez, and Caio Ramalho Leite, and goalkeeper Tobias Szewczyk.
