Timbers Offseason Roundup: A shrewd CB signing, Y. Chara just about gone, and some Brazilian movement in (and out)?

The hot-stove is truly revving up as Portland's offseason rumor mill keeps churning

The days of wondering if Ned Grabavoy and the Portland Timbers were making serious moves in the offseason feel like last year (heh), as now the reports and rumors are flying.

Portland is reported to have swung a major intra-MLS trade for a centerback, Yimmi Chara’s departure looks like essentially a done deal, and there are some rumors about Brazilian players — one rumored to come in, and one who is being courted to head out.

Let’s dive in:

Timbers trade for defender Kamal Miller

Image Credit: Transfermarkt/IMAGO

The big news reported by Tom Bogert of The Athletic on Friday was that Portland has swung a trade with Inter Miami CF for Canadian international centerback Kamal Miller. The Timbers will reportedly be sending $625K GAM plus up to $150K GAM in performance-based incentives to Miami to bring Miller to Portland.

Miller, 26, would be reunited with Phil Neville, who helped bring Miller to Miami from Montreal when Neville was still the head coach in Florida back in April. Miller was a major defensive anchor for the Herons, and started all of their games on the way to winning the inaugural Leagues Cup.

With centerback being near the top of Portland’s shopping list this winter, Miller checks essentially every box the Timbers could be looking for. He’s a reliable central defender entering his prime with MLS and international experience. Him and other presumed starter — and fellow Canadian international — Zac McGraw could form a centerback (centreback?) pairing the Timbers could lean on in 2024, and for years to come.

It appears to be a very shrewd and smart move for general manager Ned Grabavoy, and one that alone could help vault Portland back into the playoffs in 2024.

Portland wasn’t just working to bring players in, as it looks like they have also finished sending a player out…

Yimmi Chara to Atletico Junior appears to be done

There was very strong rumored interest last week between the Timbers and Atletico Junio FC for a move for Yimmi Chara.

Now, we have a picture of Yimmi in a Junior FC jersey:

Photo credit: Junior FC/Twitter

The Junior FC official twitter account tweeted that photo yesterday, and it looks to be the closest to a confirmation of Yimmi’s departure we’ve had yet. There is no official word from the Timbers yet, but based on the reported interest and reports that have been bubbling up, it likely is just a matter of time before Portland announces the move.

Yimmi’s outgoing transfer will open up a Designated Player spot for the Timbers, an incredibly valuable asset, which may come into play for the next rumor that popped up around their transfer business…

Timbers in for Brazilian winger?

A rumor out of Brazil popped up on twitter on the first day of the new year that Portland is interested in Brazilian forward Gabriel Fortes Chaves, known as Gabriel Pec. He currently is with Brazilian Serie A side Vasco de Gama, and can play as a winger on either side or at central attacking midfield.

Pec, 22, fits the description of one of the types of attacking players the Timbers were looking to bring in this offseason. Grabavoy discussed looking for a dynamic goalscoring winger as one of the potential options for a transfer, and a young attacker like Pec would be pretty much exactly that. Pec has tallied eight goals and four assists in about 2,600 minutes with Vasco de Gama this year. For a young forward on the rise, those numbers could translate well in MLS.

Here’s the rub: according to the rumors, his pricetag would be steep. According to the rumor Vasco de Gama is asking for at least $10 million for Pec.

At the moment though this is all based on just one rumor on twitter, so take it with quite a few grains of salt. Pec fits the profile of a player the Timbers would be looking for, but there are many steps to go before this rises to the level of something more substantial.

Something that is also not at the substantial stage, but is still a rumor out there, is about another Brazilian, one already in Portland…

Flamengo interested in Evander?

Because this is silly season, there is of course one outlandish rumor that has popped up. And this one involves Portland’s club-record transfer, and a player that is assumed to be a centerpiece of the squad in 2024.

Rumors started bubbling up on social media last week that Brazilian side Flamengo is interested in a transfer for Evander. And on New Year’s Eve, Tom Bogert confirmed that the interest was real.

Obviously, it would take a lot for Portland to part with the 25-year-old midfielder — if they even want to part with him at all. The Timbers paid reportedly close to $10 million to bring Evander in, a club-record fee, and Portland would likely want to recoup at least that in any kind of outgoing transfer fee.

And all of that is even before considering that Evander has only had just one season in MLS so far. His productivity, nine goals and five assists, doesn’t exactly stack up with the top attackers in the league last year, but historically it usually takes players about a season to fully adapt to MLS and settle in before showing their quality.

Portland very much will still believe in Evander’s potential to breakout in 2024. Especially when considering that new head coach Phil Neville claimed that he wanted to sign Evander during Neville’s time at Inter Miami. It would make sense to give player and coach at least one year to develop a relationship.

Because of all of the above factors, it is probably quite unlikely that Evander leaves Portland this winter. Still, every player has a price. And the rumor that Flamengo are circling is out there. So as with everything this offseason, it’s still “wait and see what happens”.