The Portland Timbers' USL side, Portland Timbers 2, have had a quiet offseason so far, bringing in new coach Andrew Gregor but otherwise flying below the radar. That changed today, however, as the side announced the signing of Nigerian youth international Akinjide Idowu.

Idowu, 19, is a versatile midfielder, known in the Nigerian footballing world as a defensive player and capable of playing fullback as well as in the center of the pitch. According to this article on O-Posts.com, Idowu has been referred to as the "human shield" and a player who could "mark the devil out of a game."

Idowu has appeared more than 50 times for the Nigerian U-17 and U-20 national teams, winning the U-17 World Cup in 2013, and advancing to the knockout rounds of the U-20 World Cup in 2015.

For T2, Idowu seems likely to compete for a role in the center of the pitch, taking on either the defensive midfield role as typified in the first team by Diego Chara, or the box to box shuttler role played by Darlington Nagbe. Either way the competition will be stiff, with George Fochive and Nick Besler both likely to see significant time on loan to T2 from the Timbers and New Zealand midfielder Tim Payne likely to be returning to the side................congrats to him

http://www.stumptownfooty.com/2016/1/22/10815906/portland-timbers-2-make-first-signing-of-2016-bring-in-akinjide-idowu