Jose Escalante Looks Set For Cavalry Exit

UPDATE: Four days later, FC Motagua made it official… but then, Cavalry disputed the legitimacy of the signing.

Canadian Premier League original Jose Escalante looks set to depart Cavalry FC in the upcoming transfer window.

FC Motagua head coach Ninrod Medina named the longtime Cavalry midfielder as one of his club’s incoming reinforcements, stating that he will arrive ‘either at the end of this week or early next week’.

The 28-year-old Honduran has been a staple member of Cavalry since the club’s inception, with tomorrow’s match set to be his one hundredth across all appearances. According to several Honduran outlets, it also looks like it may be his last.

His current side Cavalry FC has remained quiet on any looming exit, however.

FC Motagua would be the fifth Honduran club of Escalante’s career, with the midfielder having previously played for Olimpia, Honduras Progreso, Juticalpa, and CDS Vita, where he went on loan from Cavalry. The 28-year-old has long-flirted with a permanent return to his native country, having come close to signing there following the inaugural CPL season.

The Honduran midfielder’s contract with Cavalry runs through the 2023 CPL season with a club option for a further year, so his move to FC Motagua – which seems to be very open in Honduran media – should net the Albertan side a transfer fee.

Escalante’s five seasons in the Canadian Premier League earned him a reputation as a fast-footed attacker who goads his opponents into fouls, with head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. also utilizing him as an attack-minded left-back. He’s contributed sixteen assists and nine goals during his time in red-and-white, featuring in every possible match of the club’s 2023 season.

If FC Motagua sounds familiar to Canadian Premier League fans, that’s because the Honduran side ended Forge’s run in the 2021 Concacaf League. After Forge saw two late goals rescue a draw at home, a scoreless away match saw them dispatched through away goals.

With Cavalry currently fifth in league standings, the removal of Escalante won’t make things easier for the side as it aims to fight back up the rankings. That being said, the middle of the table is tightly packed, so there’s plenty of opportunity for Tommy Wheeldon Jr. to get all pistons firing within the squad.

While Cavalry has yet to confirm a move regarding its under-contract midfielder, the FC Motagua gaffer has openly stated that he’s expected to join the Honduran side in relatively short order. If true, one expects that Cavalry will give the club original a proper sendoff with pomp and circumstance – and bring in a replacement for him in the transfer window, too.

Header Image Photo Credit: Canadian Premier League