Manneh appears ready to join FC Union Berlin

Kekuta Manneh appears to be on his way to Germany.

FC Union Berlin tweeted Tuesday that the 22-year-old winger is on trial with the club, which is in the second level of German professional soccer.

Sources told The Dispatch on Tuesday that FC Union Berlin has been tracking Manneh for a while, that the club views him as a real prospect and that Manneh is in Germany to complete a move. If Manneh does officially join FC Union Berlin, he would do so as a free transfer as his contract with Crew SC has expired.

The speedy winger spent much of the 2017 season with the Crew after being traded from the Vancouver Whitecaps in late March for Tony Tchani and $300,000 in allocation money.

If Manneh signs in Germany, the Crew will retain its firstround draft pick in the 2018 MLS SuperDraft. As a condition of the trade, the pick would go to Vancouver if Manneh re-signed with Crew SC.

Manneh played in 19 regular-season games — starting nine — and scored four goals with three assists. He subbed on for all five of the Crew’s postseason games.

A move by Manneh away from MLS would not be surprising. He told The Dispatch last month that he would “regret it for the rest of my life” if he did not at some point explore playing in Europe. Manneh has scored 26 goals over five seasons in MLS.

Manneh’s return to the Crew was considered unlikely beyond this season, as Crew SC has a front four of Justin Meram, Pedro Santos, Federico Higuain and Ola Kamara under contract through the end of next season.

Manneh’s agent, Daren Flitcroft, declined to comment on a potential move.

The Crew announced last week that it had extended Manneh a contract offer.