Portland Timbers Sign Ghanaian Attacker Ishmael Yartey On Loan

The currently depleted Portland Timbers appear to still be on the hunt for another attacking piece and may have found their man in 25-year-old Ghanaian attacking midfielder Ishmael Yartey if a report out of Switzerland, first circulated here by @theaxepdx, is true. According to the report, the Timbers will bring Yartey in on loan as soon as his paperwork goes through.

Edit: Word around the Timbers camp is that the report is accurate and the Yartey deal is done, although the usual caveats about waiting for the paperwork to go through, including his visa and international transfer certificate, apply.

Yartey most recently played for Switzerland's FC Sion on loan for the 2013-14 before the team bought out his contract for the 2014-15 season. While last season saw him play a regular role in FC Sion's midtable finish, appearing 22 times for the first team and scoring two goals according to transfermarkt.com, Yartey had seen his playing time drop off significantly this year, only making six appearances for the first time in the first half of the season.

Primarily a left winger, but capable of playing all across the front line, Yartey could fit in with Caleb Porter's stated desire for another attacking piece. Yartey, however, seems to be more of a potential playmaker than an out and out scorer in the vein of Omar Cummings, the experienced Jamaican speedster that the Timbers looked at during the preseason.

The recent injury to Michael Nanchoff, who will miss at least a month after having surgery to repair a sports hernia, combined with the continued absences of Will Johnson and Diego Valeri, however, may have altered the Timbers immediate needs. Three games into the season with the Timbers' substitutes struggling to make an impact could have the Timbers looking to bring in depth in the attack now, rather than waiting for their injured players to recover.

While Yartey's signing seems far from a sure thing, t The Timbers will almost certainly announce some signings this week as the team has yet to make official any of the 2015 draftees still with the team, as well as needing to fill out the still coming-together T2 side.

Assuming that the Timbers make Nick Besler, Anthony Manning, and Andrew Thoma all official first team signings, which seems likely given that each is on the Timbers' roster page, the team has one roster spot remaining of its 28 total with which to add Yartey.

(h/t to Hailfire97 for putting this up in the FanPosts.)