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Portland Timbers sign defender Chance Myers, re-sign Amobi Okugo

PORTLAND, Ore. -- The Portland Timbers have signed veteran free agent defender Chance Myers, one of several moves the team made Monday before leaving for training camp in Arizona.

Myers, who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft, played the past nine seasons with Sporting Kansas City.

"Chance is a proven MLS player, and his experience and qualities both on and off the field will help strengthen the club," Timbers general manager Gavin Wilkinson said on Monday. "His addition reflects a primary objective of ours to bring in starting-caliber players to, in turn, provide more depth within our squad."

The Timbers also re-signed defender-midfielder Amobi Okugo, who joined the club last May, and welcomed back winger Dairon Asprilla, who had been on loan with top-division Millonarios in Colombia.

"Amobi will continue to give us experience and depth in two positions and when called upon like last year, we know he has the ability to step in and get the job done," Timbers manager Caleb Porter said of the former U.S. youth international.

Asprilla, 24, scored two goals in 16 games for Millonarios last season after being sent out on loan by the Timbers midway through the 2016 campaign.

"We know what Dairon can bring on the pitch and he is hungry to come back and invest fully in the team," said Porter. "We're happy to give him that opportunity again and feel his soccer qualities will benefit even more to our squad moving forward."

The Timbers planned to leave Tuesday for a 12-day training camp in Tucson. Portland opens the season at home on March 3 against the expansion Minnesota United FC.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.