The Chicago Fire acquires Nigerian
striker Chinonso Offor from Latvian club FK Rigas Futbola Skola in less than a
week after missing out on the Major League Soccer playoffs
The Fire on Friday announced the
signing of the 20-year-old attacker, who is under contract through 2023 with a
team option for 2024.
“We are very pleased to welcome
Chinonso to the Fire family,” sporting director Georg Heitz said in a statement.
“His signing is the latest example of our intention to add promising young
players to the roster. With his skill set, we believe Chinonso will complement
our current attacking players very well and be a key contributor.”
The move comes one day after the Fire
announced several moves, the biggest of which was allowing forward C.J. Sapong
to enter free agency. Sapong, 31, scored 15 goals in 43 appearances for the
Fire over two seasons, but injuries and time away from the team because of the
birth of his daughter limited him to just 11 appearances (four starts) this
season.
The
Fire also allowed midfielder Micheal Azira to become a free agent and declined
team options on midfielder Jeremiah Gutjahr and goalkeeper Connor Sparrow. The
team exercised options on forward Elliot Collier, midfielder Djordje Mihailovic
and defenders Wyatt Omsberg and Nicholas Slonina, and is in negotiations with
midfielder Brandt Bronico about his future.
Offor,
who is 6-foot-3, comes to the Fire having scored 16 goals in 40 appearances for
two Latvian first-division clubs. He is the 14th player on the Fire under 24
years old.
