ORLANDO, Fla. – The Red Bulls lost one defender and added another Tuesday afternoon.
A couple of hours after losing Hassan Ndam to FC Cincinnati in the MLS expansion draft, the Red Bulls acquired Amro Tarek for a fourth-round selection in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft.
The 26-year-old Tarek joined the Lions on loan in February. The Egyptian center back made 20 appearances for Orlando City, scoring one goal against New England Aug. 4. In June, City exercised the option to transfer Tarek’s rights to the club.
The Los Angeles, California, native was loaned to Orlando from Wadi Degla FC, an Egyptian Premier League side.
“We are pleased to add Amro to our club,” Red Bulls sporting director Denis Hamlett said. “He is a versatile defender with experience both in MLS and abroad, and he has qualities that we like. We look forward to Amro joining us for preseason camp and seeing how he fits with our team.”
Tarek made his senior team debut in the Egyptian Premier League at the age of 22 for El Gouna FC on Jan. 9, 2014. Overall, he made 83 combined appearances for three different Egyptian Premier League teams (Wadi Degla, El Gouna, Enppi) and accrued 7,033 minutes played.
He made his international debut March 28 against Togo in a 3-0 victory. Most recently, he was called into the national side for it Africa Cup of Nations Qualification matches, earning one start in four matches. He also appeared for the United States at the Under-20 level.
The SuperDraft will take place at Chicago’s McCormick Place Friday, Jan. 11. Expansion side FC Cincinnati will have the first overall selection.
