Marcelo Salas Ready To Train With Fire

Chilean international Marcelo Salas has been invited to train with the Chicago Fire for an indefinite period.

Salas has scored 35 goals in 65 appearances for the Chilean national team, and has played for River Plate, Lazio and Juventus during his career. He was a released from Universidad de Chile in December of 2006, a move that many supporters did not agree with, as he is a fan favorite for the club.

The 32-year-old striker, nicknamed El Matador, also scored four goals in four games in the 1998 World Cup. "We are pleased to have someone of Marcelo's caliber in camp with us and we hope to make a decision regarding his possible signing in the near future," said Fire President/CEO John Guppy.

On Luis Arroyave's blog, Guppy talked about the trial: "We've had several players come in for trials. [Salas] is just the highest profile one we've had. We had Danny Dichio in here and didn't think he was the kind of player we wanted to sign."

For the Fire to sign Salas, he would have to be paid no more than the league maximum as Chicago has already used it's DP slot to sign Mexican sensation Cuauhtemoc Blanco. Blanco is expected to join up with the team in early July.