MONTREAL -- The Montreal Impact will be able to count on its quintessential player from 2019 on its roster during the upcoming campaign, as Orji Okwonkwo will be back in black and blue.
Montreal announced Friday that it has concluded a second loan agreement with Bologna FC for the midfielder. The club has an option to make the loan a permanent transfer which it can take advantage of at the end of the 2020 season.
Okwonkwo is 22 years old. In his first season with the Impact, the Nigerian international under-23 scored eight goals, the highest total for a player in his first season with the club since Didier Drogba, who scored 11 in 2015. He also added two assists in 28 games, 24 of which he started.
The footballer finished second on the team for goals and shots (55).
Before joining the Impact, Okwonkwo played three seasons in Italy from 2016 to 2019, scoring three goals in 27 Serie A games with Bologna.
Internationally, Okwonkwo started three games with the Nigerian squad at the U23 African Cup of Nations in 2019, scoring a goal against Zambia. He also was on the winning side for the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile, playing five games in the tournament. He scored a goal in the 4-2 semi-final victory over Mexico.
