SCOTLAND internationalist Shaun Maloney could end his playing career in the United States after confirming his intention to see out his three-year Chicago Fire contract in full.

The 32-year-old agreed the deal in January and has settled quickly in Major League Soccer, where his side are fifth in the Eastern Conference table. Maloney has helped his side to put together a three-match winning run and edge ahead of Orlando City, a team led by former Ballon d'Or winner Kaka.

Maloney - who turned down an offer from Barclays Premier League side Leicester City before completing the transfer to Fire - has embraced his move to MLS, where erstwhile international team-mates Kenny Miller, Kris Boyd and Barry Robson have all played previously. None of those three players completed their initial deals, with Boyd and Robson both returning to Scotland after only a year in the States.

Scottish footballers can often struggle to settle abroad but Maloney does not give the impression that he is likely to follow that trend. The former Celtic player has developed a strong working relationship with Fire head coach and former Ipswich Town manager Frank Yallop and is comfortable living in Chicago. He has also been given assurances from Scotland manager Gordon Strachan that his place in the national team has not been put in jeopardy by his arrival in the States.

"I've signed three years here and fully expect to honour that," said the Scotland forward. "I really like the manager, the owner has really gone out of his way to get me here and I'm fully committed to being here. It's only been a couple of months but I'm all settled and absolutely love it so fingers crossed I see those three years out.

"I had spoken to the [Fire] manager and to the owner, and once I'd given my word to them to come here there was no going back. With the Leicester thing, it's a really good club and the manager [Nigel Pearson] was a very, very good man about it. But the lifestyle change was a big part of my decision.

"You can talk about Scottish players coming here or going abroad generally and not really liking it, but I just wanted something completely different. This is what this is; it is completely different to what it would have been like signing for another British club."

The regular MLS campaign runs until October, after which there is the possibility of Fire competing in the play-offs, with the close season then offering prominent players an opportunity to make loan moves abroad. Maloney is reluctant to consider such a switch so early in the season and he will seek approval from Fire officials and Strachan before inviting offers.

"A loan is not something I've thought about just now," said Maloney. "I will figure that out with a few people - the manager here, the owner here and the national manager - but that is months away now. Right now it feels an age away."