Philadelphia Union announces multi-year deal, team record transfer fee for Jamiro Monteiro

Philadelphia Union star midfielder Jamiro Monteiro is not only coming back to Chester; he’s staying for the 2020 season and beyond.

The Philadelphia Union announced a permanent transfer for the 26-year-old on Friday night that will keep the Cape Verde international under club control through 2023 (three-year deal with a club option for a fourth year).

It took a team record $2 million transfer fee to FC Metz to make it happen.

“When he joined the club last season, his impact on-field was immediate,” Sporting Director Ernst Tanner said in a news release officially announcing the deal. “He’s aggressive defensively and very strong in transition which fits in perfectly with the style of play we’ve implemented. We look forward to welcoming him back.”

At season’s end, the prospect of Monteiro coming back didn’t look too likely, leaving fans brace for another season where a game-changing midfielder was brought in on loan — like Borek Dockal in 2018 — only to depart when the loan expired.

Monteiro joins Alejandro Bedoya on the roster as a DP, a league mechanism that enables teams to sign players who exceed the salary cap because of salary or transfer fees paid. Monteiro made $671,200 in guaranteed compensation last season, according to information released by the players association in September.

Bedoya was signed from Nantes in France for the previous club record $1 million in August 2016.