Chicago Fire reveal what attracted them to Puso Dithejane

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Chicago Fire reveal what attracted them to Puso Dithejane

MLS club Chicago Fire have confirmed the signing of TS Galaxy winger Puso Dithejane on a four-and-a-half-year deal.

Dithejane is the second South African player to join the American club in the last one month following the signing of defender Mbekezeli Mbokazi from Orlando Pirates in December.

Chicago Fire coach Gregg Berhalter says the club has been tracking the winger for some time and are convinced that he has all the qualities needed to succeed in the MLS.

Puso Dithejane TS Galaxy

“We’ve been scouting him for a while, and he’s of the most highly regarded talents in South Africa right now,” Berhalter told MIR97 Media as quoted by Flashscore.

What caught Fire’s attention about Dithejane?

“He’s a very dynamic winger, he can change the game. He’s a young player who needs development, but a really great attitude on the pitch, really good speed and one-on-one ability. He has a lot of attributes that make him an exciting winger, and that’s what we wanted to add.” 

Blessed with pace, intelligence and a great finishing ability, Dithejane can play on both wings and has scored four goals and added six assists in 15 games for Galaxy.

Although the financial details of the deal are not out yet, Chicago beat Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs to the 21-year-old’s signature following reports that Galaxy rejected an offer from the PSL champions on Monday.

MLS club believe they have enough depth

Puso Dithejane

“We think we have a really good attack, and we wanted to bolster that,” Berhalter added in regards to the signing of Dithejane, who has made 63 appearances for Galaxy, starting 45 and scoring seven goals.

“We know our schedule is packed next year, we need alternatives, and we think with, Jo Bamba, Phil (Zinckernagel), Maren (Haile-Selassie), Chris Mueller, and Puso now, we have a really good winger group.”

Dithejane will occupy one of the U-22 slots on the Chicago Fire roster, just like Mbokazi. 

<!-- Author Start -->Joel Oliver<!-- Author End -->

Joel Oliver

Author

Joel Oliver is a seasoned multimedia sports journalist with a rich background in covering diverse football stories and events in South Africa and beyond.
His extensive coverage spans subjects touching on the PSL, with a focus on the Big Three (Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs & Mamelodi Sundowns), Bafana Bafana and Banyana Banyana.

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