PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Timbers today announced that the club has acquired $650,000 in General Allocation Money (GAM) in 2018, $100,000 GAM in 2019, $300,000 in Targeted Allocation Money (TAM) in 2018 and an international spot through Dec. 31, 2018, from Atlanta United FC in exchange for midfielder Darlington Nagbe and defender Gbenga Arokoyo. Additionally, the Timbers will receive up to $600,000 in future TAM based on Nagbe’s performance with Atlanta United.
“As the club’s first-ever MLS draft pick, Darlington has grown with this team from its beginnings in the league and has been a great player and representative in his seven years with the Timbers,” said Gavin Wilkinson, general manager and president of soccer for the Timbers. “On behalf of the entire organization, I want to sincerely thank Darlington for everything he has given this club and for helping Portland win its first MLS Cup in 2015. He will always be a part of the Timbers family, and we wish Darlington, his wife, Felicia, and their two children all the best.”
Selected by the Timbers as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft, Nagbe, the Timbers’ leader in games played (214) across all eras in club history (since 1975), recorded 27 goals and 30 assists in his seven seasons with the club. Playing in his 200th league appearance against Seattle Sounders FC on June 25, Nagbe, 27, became the second-youngest player in league history to play 200 games with a single club in MLS during the 2017 campaign.
"Thank you, Portland, and everyone that supported my family and me the past seven years,” Nagbe said.
Nagbe’s 27 goals also rank as the third-most in the club’s MLS era, while his 30 assists rank as the second-most since Portland joined MLS in 2011. Additionally, Nagbe made 12 postseason appearances with the Timbers, helping the club capture its first MLS Cup trophy in 2015, starting and playing 90 minutes in each of the Timbers’ six playoff matches during the team’s championship-winning campaign.
Signed by the Timbers on Aug. 2, 2016, Arokoyo, 25, made one regular-season appearance with Portland before suffering a season-ending injury during preseason ahead of the 2017 MLS campaign. Prior to signing with Portland, Arokoyo played over 90 matches in Europe, featuring in Sweden and Turkey after beginning his professional career in Nigeria.
Transaction: The Portland Timbers acquire $650,000 in General Allocation Money (GAM) in 2018, $100,000 GAM in 2019, $300,000 in Targeted Allocation Money (TAM) in 2018 and an international spot through Dec. 31, 2018, from Atlanta United FC in exchange for midfielder Darlington Nagbe and defender Gbenga Arokoyo. Portland will receive up to $600,000 in future TAM based on Nagbe’s performance with Atlanta United.
