MLS: Kwadwo “Maala” Opoku in Montreal to stay

MONTREAL – On Monday, CF Montreal announced that they have awarded forward Kwadwo “Mahala” Opoku a new contract in a press release. The agreement is effective from now until the end of the 2026 season with an option year in 2027.

Opoku was acquired from LAFC on July 5 for a general allocation amount of $1,650,000 in 2023 and a general allocation amount of $100,000 in 2024.

Since joining the Bleu-blanc-noir, the Ghanaian striker has started twice, played 121 minutes and scored the winning goal in a 2-0 win over Charlotte FC on July 15 at Stade Saputo. He also played 77 minutes against Pumas UNAM in the first game of the Leagues Cup.

A match won by the CFM on penalties, while the Montrealers had let the Mexicans come back at the very end of regulation time.

Moreover, Opoku had won the MLS Cup in 2022 with LAFC. In three and a half seasons with the Californian club, the 21-year-old Ghanaian striker played 60 regular season games, including 35 starts, and 3254 minutes of play.

Having been the attacking partner of MLS stars Denis Bouanga and Carlos Vela, “Mahala” has nine goals and seven assists with LAFC. In the MLS Cup playoffs, he appeared in four games, including scoring in the Californians’ 3-0 win in the Western Conference Final against Austin FC last October.

Before making the leap to North America, he had scored 29 goals in 64 games for Attram De Visser Soccer Academy, a Ghanaian professional club. Internationally, he has represented Ghana at U-17 and U-20 levels, including taking part in the 2017 U-17 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon, where he featured in two of the group stage matches.

With the uncertainty surrounding the Romell Quioto case and the situations of Chinonso Offor and Sunusi Ibrahim, who both have a 2024 option year in their contracts, Opoku is the first offensive element to be secured for the future at CF Montreal.