Phoenix Rising signs former Saint Louis center back Tobi Adewole

Phoenix Rising FC announced on Tuesday that it has signed center back Tobi Adewole ahead of the 2021 USL Championship season.

The 25-year-old comes to Phoenix as a free agent from Saint Louis FC, as the club dissolved following the conclusion of the 2020 playoffs.

“I’ve been in the East my whole career and I haven’t really gotten a taste of what the West feels like,” Adewole said.

“And Phoenix is the biggest club out there so I just wanted the opportunity to play for a big club like Phoenix out in the West, so it was a no-brainer for me.”

Adewole has spent four seasons in USL Championship, three of which were with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds from 2017-19.

In that time, the 6-foot-2 center back has appeared in 86 matches and scored three goals en route to three consecutive playoff runs.

“It’s a known culture of winning in Phoenix, which is another reason why I wanted to join the club,” Adewole said. “Obviously the main goal is to win some silverware and that’s definitely been in the conversation here and there.”

Prior to his professional playing days, the center back played his college ball at George Washington University.

The addition of Adewole comes shortly after the announcement of Damion Lowe’s signing with Egyptian side Al Ittihad Alexandria Club.

Lowe stands at a similar height and turns 28 at the start of next season, so to see manager Rick Schantz and GM Bobby Dulle sign a center back with similar stature and athletic ability should come as no surprise.

“We are very excited to have Tobi join our team,” Schantz said in a press release. “His size and athleticism compliments our team well. He is strong in the air and a very good defender with experience at this level. He will help us in our quest for trophies.”

Phoenix Rising now has 10 players signed to its roster ahead of the 2021 USLC campaign:

Goalkeepers: Zac Lubin

Fullbacks: Darnell King

Center backs: Joey Farrell and Tobi Adewole

Midfielders: Jon Bakero, Kevon Lambert, Sam Stanton

Forwards: Solomon Asante, Rufat Dadashov and Santi Moar

Follow @jwa1994