Nikolic takes MLS Golden Boot over Villa and Valeri

The Chicago Fire forward finished the 2017 MLS season as the league's top scorer with 24 goals

Nemanja Nikolic has won the 2017 Golden Boot, scoring 24 times in his first season in the league.

The 29-year-old joined the before the season from Legia Warsaw as the Fire looked to rebuild the club's roster.

Joining midfielders Dax McCarty and Bastian Schweinsteiger as key offseason acquisitions, the former Hungarian and Polish league top scorer quickly became one of the most feared strikers in MLS.

Nikolic is the first Fire forward to top the 20-goal mark in MLS, and used a hat trick in the team's penultimate game of the season against the to separate himself from runner up David Villa, who scored twice on Decision Day to run his total to 22 goals, and third-place finisher Diego Valeri who scored 21 times this season.

Nikolic did not find the net in his club's final match of the season against Houston, with the Fire falling to a 3-0 defeat against the , but has helped the Fire to fourth-place finish in the Eastern Conference and an MLS Cup playoff place.