Philadelphia Union Sign Mexican Playmaker Marco Fabian

The Philadelphia Union have landed their marquee offseason signing by acquiring Marco Fabian from Eintracht Frankfurt.

The Philadelphia Union have landed their marquee offseason signing by acquiring Marco Fabian from Eintracht Frankfurt.

The signing had reportedly been close to completion for a few days, but it was pushed over the finish line just shy of a month before the start of the new season. With attacking spark–and 2018 MLS assist leader–Borek Dockal having his loan to the club expire, it left a playmaking void for the Union, one that they hope will be filled at a high level by the 29-year-old Fabian.

The Union reportedly did not have to pay a transfer fee to sign Fabian from Eintracht Frankfurt, but it did relinquish a 5% sell-on clause to his now-former Bundesliga side. His contract was set to expire at the end of this season in Germany. In comments made to the media following the announcement of Fabian's signing, Union sporting director Ernst Tanner said Fabian is on a one-year deal with two years of club options to extend.

“We have been targeting Marco as a creative midfielder and we are extremely happy to complete this deal to bring him to Philadelphia,” Tanner said in a statement. “Marco is a high caliber number 10, a true professional, and we believe he is a good fit for our system."

The two-time World Cup veteran and 2012 Olympic gold medalist will enter with lofty expectations, and he becomes the latest Mexico international to join MLS, following in the footsteps of brothers Giovani and Jonathan Dos Santos (LA Galaxy) and Carlos Vela (LAFC).

Fabian had a move to Fenerbahce in Turkey fall through earlier this winter, with reports suggesting it was related to a back injury that hampered him for the bulk of last season. Fabian and Eintracht Frankfurt denied those claims, though, saying that finances prevented the move from completion. The Union will hope that detour is their gain. Only five teams scored fewer goals than the Union's 49 last season, and they'll look to Fabian to help be the spark for a more consistent attack.