London – League One side Charlton Athletic have signed Macauley Bonne on a deal until the end of the season.
The 27-year-old former Zimbabwe international was a free agent after his contract was terminated by Queens Park Rangers earlier in the January transfer window.
It is Bonne’s second spell at the South London club. He scored 12 goals in all competitions in the 2019-20 campaign, leading to QPR agreeing to a deal worth up to £ 2million for the striker.
Charlton only paid £200,000 for Bonne when they signed him from Leyton Orient in the summer of 2019 after winning promotion to the Championship.
“This club changed my life,” he said, after completing the move. “I came from playing non-League to the Championship and they took a hit on me when no one else would. I have a lot of respect for the club.
“None of what I said in the past was ever meant to disrespect the club whatsoever. I am back here now to pick up from where I left off – scoring goals, making people and myself happy in football and that is very important.”
Charlton boss Dean Holden said: “I’ve spoken to Macauley in depth. Those couple of years he’s been away he’s not enjoyed it like he enjoyed it here. He absolutely loved playing for this football club.
“He chases everything down, he’s a goalscorer, he’s got Championship experience and he scored goals at this level last season with Ipswich. He’s really hungry to pull that shirt on and do well for this football club and that for me tells me everything I need to know.”
Bonne, who still lives in Ipswich, spent the 2021/22 season at Portman Road, scoring 12 goals during a campaign of two halves.
He captured the imagination of supporters during the first few months of his loan, during which he scored 11 goals, but only netted once in his final 30 matches.