TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS:Roster Updated
Columbus Crew SC on Monday annoucned they have claimed forward Fanendo Adi off the MLS Waiver List. The 29-year-old Adi is a six-year MLS veteran who won the 2015 MLS Cup while making 138 regular-season appearances while scoring 55 goals and adding 14 assists.
All but one of those goals came with the Portland Timbers. He was signed by FC Cincinnati as the club's first ever MLS player in the middle of the 2018 season and helped Cincy win the 2018 USL regular-season championship, but scored only once for Cincy on the MLS level.
At Portland, 51 of his 54 MLS goals came under now-Columbus coach Caleb Porter, who departed his post with the Timbers following the 2017 season.
Adi will not occupy a Designated Player spot on Crew SC's roster.
“We want to welcome Fanendo to Columbus Crew SC,” Crew SC president and GM Tim Bezbatchenko said in a statement. “Fanendo is a forward whose proven ability as a goal scorer in our league makes him a valuable addition to our team. We recognize that last year was a difficult year for Fanendo both personally and professionally and we believe this new opportunity will be beneficial for him, as it reunites him with Caleb, under whom he found career-high success.”
Adi played a key role in guiding Portland to winning MLS Cup and the Western Conference Championship in 2015. Notably, Adi was twice named the Timbers’ Golden Boot Winner, leading the team with 16 strikes — a single-season career-high for the forward — in both the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
Prior to his time in MLS, Adi plied his trade in Europe for six years, featuring for several teams including FC Copenhagen of Denmark’s first division.
