CHICAGO FIRE MEDIA CONFERENCE

March 3, 2021

Chinonso Offor

Press Conference

Q. I guess what for you would be a successful 2021 season?

CHINONSO OFFOR: Yeah, making it into the starting 11, that should be a start for me.

Q. I think when you were first signed by the Fire, I think the reaction around a lot of fans was we didn't know a team would be scouting a guy playing in Latvia. How did you end up going from Nigeria to Latvia and now to Chicago and what was all that like for you?

CHINONSO OFFOR: Well, it's really my work. You just have to play well because I was in an academy in Nigeria. You just have to play well, and obviously you have matches and then you have video. They sent all of that, so I got scouted by the Latvian agents, scouts, directors so I was invited. Then a year and a half, then it all worked out fine, and I'm here. So it's always like that in football; just one season can make a difference for you.

Q. I haven't been here very long but I wondered what you thought of the city and also of your coaches and teammates and the facility? What do you think of everything so far?

CHINONSO OFFOR: Yeah, I'll start with the players and the coaches. They are all professionals, especially the -- everyone here is professional. The teammates, the new ones got to know big, of course the captain came in. He was all friendly. The veterans in the team are all friendly. They speak with everyone, with the young players, with everyone, everyone that's playing for here, both with the coaches and the younger ones. So yeah, the facilities are excellent. Everything is perfect for me.

And the city, I haven't had time to go out yet because of COVID and the cold, but it's getting a bit warmer now, so hopefully I will get to do more, see more about the city.

Q. I'm curious, obviously coming up in Nigeria and playing in Latvia, before you arrived in Chicago, what were your impressions of Major League Soccer as a league, the level of play and all that? What information did you know?

CHINONSO OFFOR: As of three years ago it was just a league where all the players would come to, but one year, two years now, you have to -- you start seeing younger players moving from the U.S. to top leagues in Europe like the guy on Juventus, Pulisic, the guy in Shackelford (phon), Barcelona. So yeah, the U.S. right now, it's a platform for younger guys. Right now everyone is watching, everyone is watching the league, so I think it was the right decision for me to come here.

Q. You played in Latvia, which is a smaller country geographically than the United States. I don't know how many time zones there are there, but you have the potential to play in four time zones this season. You have the potential to play in so many different elevations in this country. How do you deal with that, and what have your coaches and teammates told you about dealing with the travel and all of those challenges with MLS?

CHINONSO OFFOR: Well, the first time I spoke to the coach here, they explained to me about the weather, the travel and everything, so I had that at the back of my mind that I was going to be facing something quite different from where I used to be. So I guess I'm up for it. I have to tune in my body. I have to be more professional now.

Q. Going back off of something you were asked about your impression of MLS, just kind of curious what was it about Chicago and the Fire and the league that made you want to come here as opposed to staying another year or two in Europe?

CHINONSO OFFOR: Well, it wasn't really something I saw from the TV. It was more like -- it was more of the coach speaking to me because after I spoke to the coach, it took me like five minutes to just say, okay, I want to be here because obviously I saw with the whole media, the platform is quite agreeable. It's something you have to think of again because you don't just go somewhere because you feel it's big or something. So yeah, after speaking to the coach, I thought I should come here.

Q. Obviously it's just been a couple of training sessions here in Chicago, but you said your first goal was to crack the starting 11. I'm curious what are your early impressions of your teammates around you in the attack, and how do you feel your skill set complements the players around you?

CHINONSO OFFOR: Well, so far, like I said earlier, they are professionals here, so I've been impressed with their overall playing of each player. I've been impressed. And in the attack line, as well, they are quite impressive players, so it's left for me to fight for my spot. It's not going to be easy, of course. You don't go anywhere and train easy. So yeah, just going to have to work extra hard and try and break into the starting 11.

Q. We only really know you from video and highlights we've seen of you play. What can you tell us about yourself as a person, maybe what you like to do off the field? Did you have a favorite team growing up, things like that?

CHINONSO OFFOR: Yeah, I had a favorite team. I support Arsenal. Off the field I really don't do much. Most times I'm at home I'm watching movies on Netflix, talking to friends and family. And sometimes I do take a walk. Not often but sometimes I do take a walk just to -- I mean, it's good for athletes to do that, so yeah, I do that, too.