TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS: Loan
- SJ receive: Ayo Akinola
- TOR receive: 2023 int'l roster spot
The San Jose Earthquakes have acquired striker Ayo Akinola on loan from Toronto FC through the 2023 MLS season, the clubs announced Tuesday.
The deal for the Canadian international and 23-year-old homegrown player includes a purchase option through 2024. Toronto also receive a 2023 international roster slot.
As Akinola gets a change of MLS scenery, he boasts 15 goals and two assists in 78 regular-season games (39 starts; ~3,800 minutes). He'll offer depth alongside Jeremy Ebobisse in an attacking group that also features Cristian Espinoza, Cade Cowell and Benjamin Kikanović.
"Ayo is a dynamic attacker with the strength, pace and finishing ability to impact any match," Earthquakes general manager Chris Leitch said in a release. "Ayo has already made a mark in Major League Soccer, becoming the third youngest player in MLS to score a hat trick in 2020. We are excited to welcome a player of Ayo’s caliber to San Jose while adding to the Quakes front line depth."
Akinola had fallen down the depth chart in Toronto, with veteran C.J. Sapong seeing the majority of minutes in the club's No. 9 role. The Reds also brought in Adama Diomande during the offseason, but he's been limited to five matches due to injury.
"I am really excited and happy to be joining the Earthquakes," Akinola said. "San Jose’s coaching staff and GM have made me feel wanted, and it makes me want to go out there and compete for their winning culture."
In San Jose, Akinola joins a side in the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs hunt as the Western Conference's sixth-place team; it's also the team's first season under head coach Luchi Gonzalez. Meanwhile, Toronto are second-from-last (14th place) in the Eastern Conference table and searching for a new head coach after parting ways with Bob Bradley in late June.
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