By IVES GALARCEP
The Chicago Fire offense has looked more dangerous since the arrival of standout forward Mike Magee, but that isn’t stopping the Fire front office from looking to bolster the offense even more.
The Fire have signed Ecuadorian forward Juan Luis Anangonó, the club announced on Tuesday. The 24-year-old striker most recently played for Argentine side Argentinos Juniors, where he spent a season on loan from Ecuadorian side El Nacional.
“Juan Luis is a young, up-and-coming goal scorer who is technically gifted and can hold the ball well,” said Fire President of Soccer Operations Javier Leon. “He provides us with attacking options and will bolster our squad, not only for the second half of the season, but for the future.”
The 6-foot-1 striker is expected to help provide the strong and physical forward presence up top the Fire have spent several years looking for. The Fire are signing Anangonó as a Designated Player, but that designation is tied to the transfer free being paid to acquire him, and not his actual salary.
Anangonó joined the team on Tuesday and is expected to be available for selection for the Fire’s match against the Houston Dynamo on Saturday.
Anangonó’s is expected to mean the end of Sherjill MacDonald’s time with the Fire, though the team has yet to formally announce anything on that front. Leon told local media on Saturday that the team was looking to loan out MacDonald, who has played in just one of the team’s past five matches and has yet to score a goal this season.
What do you think of this development? Excited to see how Anangonó fits into the Fire attack?
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