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Real Salt Lake has locked up its star playmaker, who made it clear said he wants to finish his career in Utah.

The club announced Thursday it re-signed midfielder Javier Morales to a new multi-year contract, keeping the ageless Argentine midfielder in Utah for the immediate future. Per league and club policy, official terms of the deal aren't disclosed.

"Real Salt Lake is the most important team in my life," Morales said in the club release. "It's the team that didn't just make me a better player. The club made me a better person. I came here and it was magic."

Morales, who turns 36 in January, had eight goals and 12 assists in 2015, leading RSL in both statistical categories. Since 2013, Morales has 25 goals and 34 assists, continuing the trend established as the one of the most crucial attackers in Major League Soccer.

Seeing the club's most talented and decorated offensive player go out-of-contract when the season ended could've formed clouds over an organization already headed into an offseason needing to address several holes in the roster.

Instead general manager Craig Waibel got a deal done.

"It's an amazing day for us and thankfully Javier wanted to be here," Waibel said in an interview on ESPN700 Thursday.

Now Morales will return to RSL in 2016 for his 10th season the club. Since his arrival at RSL, Morales has been named an MLS All-Star on three different occasions (2009, 2010 and 2013). He is one of nine MLS players to play over 200 matches for one club.

According to the MLS Player Union salaries released on Sept. 15, Morales' previous deal featured a guaranteed compensation amount of $300,000 this season. That made him the fifth-highest paid player at RSL behind midseason acquisition Burrito Martinez, captain Kyle Beckerman, goalkeeper Nick Rimando and midfielder Luis Gil.

Before RSL's disappointing 2015 season came to a close, Morales said his main priority was to return to RSL after his previous contract expired. Four weeks after the season ended, the two sides officially agreed to the new deal.

"I can feel the love of the people at the club, so I want to finish here," Morales said on ESPN700.

The midfielder has 45 goals and 77 assists in his RSL career, which equals to roughly 25 percent of the club's all-time goal production despite arriving at RSL in the summer of 2007.

Re-signing Morales is the first official move of RSL's offseason. The club has decisions to make on other big-name players out of contract like Gil, Chris Schuler, Jamison Olave and Luis Silva, whom RSL acquired from D.C. United in the deal for Alvaro Saborio in July.

"[Morales] really encompasses and defines our club," Waibel said on ESPN700. "He's one of the long-time faces of our club."

ckamrani@sltrib.com

Twitter: @chriskamrani