David Beckham, Inter Miami in talks to sign America's Roger Martinez

Dec. 10 (UPI) -- Inter Miami, David Beckham's Major League Soccer franchise, is in talks to sign Club America's Roger Martinez as a designated player.

Sources informed The Athletic and ESPN of the negotiations to acquire Martinez. The 25-year-old attacker would be Inter Miami's second designated player, after the squad acquired Estudiantes winger Matias Pellegrini in July.

The designated player rule allows MLS clubs to acquire up to three players whose total compensation and acquisition costs are outside the salary cap, with the club being financially responsible for the amount of compensation above each player's budget charge. The rule allows MLS teams to compete for star players in the international soccer market.

MLS stars Carlos Vela, Wayne Rooney, Diego Valeri and Josef Martinez were among the designated players from 2018. Beckham was also once a designated player, when he played for the Los Angeles Galaxy after a long career playing in Europe.

Roger Martinez scored 15 goals and had three assists in 43 games for America last season. He transferred from Villarreal to America in July 2018. He played for Jiangsu Suning in the Chinese Super League before arriving at Villarreal.

He made his professional debut in 2013 at Racing Club. He has 18 appearances for the Colombia national team.

Inter Miami has signed 18 players for its inaugural season. The club begins MLS play against LAFC at 5:30 p.m. EST March 1 at Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles. Inter Miami hosts the Galaxy March 14 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.