On Thursday, the Chicago Fire have added fuel to their frontline by inking striker Luis Solignac for two years and keeping him in Bridgeview until 2018. Solignac will look to complement the likes of David Accam, Michael De Leeuw, and new Fire forward, Nemanja Nikolic.
From South America to Europe and back (then MLS)
Luis Solignac began his professional career with Club Atletico Platense in 2008, a season in which he scored two goals in 12 matches. After one season, he traveled overseas to Portuguese club Sporting Braga on loan from 2009-2013.
Following the loan spell in Portugal, Solignac played with Swedish club Djurgardens IF on loan which saw him score a goal in 14 matches. From there, he joined Finnish outfit IFK Mariehamm where he would end up scoring six in nine matches. He extended his stay in Finland and played a full season at IFK Mariehamm.
During the ensuing campaign,he scored 14 goals in 32 appearances. In 2015, Lucho signed for Nueva Chicago in Argentina, scored two goals in 10 matches, before moving to the MLS and Colorado Rapids in May of the same year. With the Rapids, he notched two assists. He began 2016 by scoring three goals while providing two assists for Colorado before making a mid-season switch to Chicago Fire.
A Brighter Future Ahead
A new season looms, the winter transfer window opens, and teams are determined to fill their needs for the long road ahead. The Chicago Fire kicked things off by solidifying their attacking game by way of the Argentina international, Luis Solignac.
Coming into this team late last season, Lucho had to find himself with a new team and new city around him. Acquired on August 3, 2016 in a deal with the Colorado Rapids, Lucho did not take long to find his shooting boots. On August 20, he tallied a goal in 3-0 win against the Montreal Impact to notch his first goal fortheFire. He was able to find the net once more on September 23 in a 4-1 defeat against NYCFC.
Despite yet another disappointing season, the Chicago Fire did the right thing by inviting Lucho to the Fire party for the next two seasons. He is still only 25 years of age and is about to enter his prime years, so expect him to contribute more to Head Coach Veljko Paunovic’s side.
With Chicago adding firepower to its squad with current additions such as Nemanja Nikolic and Juninho, it will be interesting to see how Lucho links up with his new teammates.