I can confirm that South Sudanese star Machop Chol has signed with FK Žalgiris of the A Lyga in Lithuania, the country’s top division. The 26-year-old player arrived in Vilnius this week and signed a contract with the club. He leaves San Antonio FC having scored two goals in 10 appearances.
Chol, 25, was born in Sudan and emigrated with his family to the United States in 2000. He grew up in Tucker, Georgia, and began his youth career playing for Decatur-DeKalb YMCA (DDYSC). He joined the Academy for the inaugural 2016-17 season and helped lead the U-18s to the Southeast Division title, scoring 11 goals in 28 games. He then committed to national powerhouse Wake Forest.
A four-year letterman at Wake, Chol played in 65 games with 42 starts, scored 13 goals, and added 17 assists. During the shortened 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chol played and started in eight games, scoring three goals with two assists. After playing in 13 games without a start as a freshman, Chol broke through during the 2018 season as a sophomore. He played in all 21 games, started 14, and scored a career-high five goals while adding seven assists as Wake Forest finished the regular season as the No. 1 team in the country. The following year, Chol played in 23 games, started 20, and scored four goals with a team-high eight assists, leading Wake Forest to the national semifinals. Chol becomes the 10th Homegrown signing in club history.
2021 (Atlanta United / ATL UTD 2): Made his professional debut in the MLS season opener against Orlando City SC, coming off the bench. His first career start came on July 8 in a 2-2 draw vs. Nashville SC. Chol recorded his first career assist on July 21 in a 1-1 draw at FC Cincinnati. Finished the MLS season with 426 total minutes played. ATL UTD 2: Played and started three matches in the USL Championship. Scored one goal on the season against FC Tulsa on Aug. 28.
2022 (Atlanta United / ATL UTD 2): Made six appearances for a total of 73 minutes. ATL UTD 2: Made two starts: against Birmingham Legion FC on Aug. 7 and against Miami FC on Aug. 14.
2023 (Atlanta United / ATL UTD 2): Made 19 appearances and scored two goals. ATL UTD 2: Played three matches for a total of 166 minutes. Had one goal and an assist.
He made four appearances for South Sudan across World Cup Qualifying, International Friendlies, and AFCON qualifying.
-Jon Jones
Photo: ATLUTD