Union trade Cristian Maidana, begin roster overhaul

Cristian "Chaco" Maidana, who was tied for second in Major League Soccer with 15 assists, has been traded by the Union to the Houston Dynamo. Also sent to Houston was midfielder Andrew Wenger. In exchange, the Union received the No. 6 selection in the MLS SuperDraft along with general and targeted allocation money.

The Union will now have the No. 3 and No. 6 picks in the first round of the SuperDraft.

That was the second deal made by the Union on Monday. Earlier, they acquired former all-star midfielder Chris Pontius from D.C. United in exchange for general and targeted allocation money.

Maidana, among the most accurate passers in MLS, scored just one goal this past season, but set the Union single-season assist mark. In his two Union seasons he had two three goals and 26 assists.

Wenger, 24, had a disappointing season, finishing with a goal and two assists in 26 games, including 22 starts.

Pontius, 28, was an MLS all-star in 2012 when he had 12 goals and four assists. Over the past three years he has dealt with injuries and totaled six goals and four assists in 51 games.

The Union finished 10-17-7 and failed to make the playoffs for the fifth time in the franchise's first six seasons.