Drew Moor signs new one-year deal with Toronto FC

Drew Moor will be back in a Toronto FC jersey in 2018.

The veteran centre-back has agreed a one-year deal with the Reds that includes a club option of a further year.

Moor had hinted for some time that he planned to re-sign with Toronto and it is likely the announcement of his new deal was held back to keep him out of this year’s MLS Expansion Draft, enabling TFC to protect an extra player.

Moor had a few critics towards the end of the 2017 season, but he was superb in the MLS Cup final and there was never much doubt that one of the key cogs of the club’s defensive turnaround in 2016 would be offered new terms.

With his 34th birthday coming up in January and his 400th MLS game on the horizon, it will be interesting to see how Greg Vanney manages Moor’s minutes in 2018.

Chris Mavinga, Eriq Zavaleta and Nick Hagglund have all proven themselves as starting-calibre defenders over the past 12 months and general manager Tim Bezbatchenko has also expressed a desire to bring back veteran free agent Jason Hernandez.

That will ensure Vanney has the ability to rotate his defence as required, but the depth will also create internal competition.

Hagglund, who was a starter in the 2016 playoffs, was largely excellent when he did feature this season but suffered two injuries and lost his place to Mavinga. Zavaleta, meanwhile, was fifth on the team in minutes during the regular season but did not play in the MLS Cup final after TFC switched to a back four.

Moor, who missed time early in the year with an irregular heartbeat, made 30 MLS appearances in 2017. He logged 14 clean sheets and scored two goals.