expired in the summer of 2009. Toronto FC In September 2009 an agreement was reached with Toronto FC for de Guzman to sign as a designated player, becoming the first ever Canadian Designated Player in league history. His contract was worth $1,910,746 annually. The Canadian midfielder signed a three-year deal to play in MLS. De Guzman made his debut for the club in an away game against the Los Angeles Galaxy on September 19, 2009. He finished the 2009 season with five appearances. De Guzman was able to convince former Deportivo teammate and friend Mista to join Toronto in July 2010. De Guzman was heavily criticized for his inconsistent performances as a designated player in the 2010 season making 36 appearances in all competitions. Much doubt was left over the future of de Guzman and Toronto on November 23 when the club failed to protect him for the 2010 MLS Expansion Draft, meaning Vancouver Whitecaps FC or Portland Timbers could select him if they were willing to take on a Designated Players Salary. However, he was untouched going through the sixth round when Vancouver selected O'Brian White which allowed Toronto to protect one player for the remaining four rounds in which they protected de Guzman . On January 5, 2011, de Guzman revealed that he would be undergoing knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus which might have plagued his performance for the last quarter of the season. In January 2011, Toronto hired Aron Winter as the head coach of the club to bring in a new style of possession soccer, many pundits believed that this new style would benefit de Guzman's abilities and allow him to succeed within the MLS. Ten days before the new season kicked off it was revealed that de Guzman would miss this first game against Vancouver and potentially a few more, due to Winter not wanting to aggravate the recent successful surgery. De Guzman scored his first goal for Toronto in CONCACAF Champions League play against Tauro FC August 18, 2011, the game ended in a 2–0 away victory. FC Dallas On July 13, 2012, de Guzman was traded to FC Dallas in exchange for forward Andrew Wiedeman. De Guzman made his debut for Dallas against San Jose Earthquakes on July 18, the game ended in a 2–1 away defeat. De Guzman scored his only goal for Dallas on September 15 against Vancouver, a