HARRISON, N.J. – The Red Bulls have added Malian central midfielder Youba Diarra on loan from Red Bull Salzburg pending receipt of his P-1 visa and International Transfer Certificate, the club announced Monday.
Diarra will occupy an international spot on New York’s roster through the end of 2021.
“Youba is an exciting player for us, as he has experienced success in a very similar style of play,” Red Bulls head of sport Kevin Thelwell said in a statement. “He has very good habits and a high work rate against the ball, and quality going forward, especially in transition. We expect Youba to be a good complement to our midfield group.”
Diarra, 22, competed with both FC Liefering, a second-division club affiliated with Red Bull Salzburg, and FC St. Pauli, a 2. Bundesliga club, during the 2019-20 season. The Malian midfielder spent the end of the 2019 with St. Pauli, starting in two of the three matches he appeared in. After recovering from an injury, he finished out the 2019-20 season at Liefering with six total appearances and two goals in 307 minutes played.
“Youba is a player with a very clear mindset, who always gives his best effort in every game,” head coach Gerhard Struber said in a statement. “Physically, he is very dynamic, and there is an advantage that he already understands our style of play. We look forward to working with him to quickly integrate him into our team.”
The 5-10, 176-lb. Diarra opened up his professional ledger on loan from RB Salzburg with 1. Wiener Neustädter SC, a second-tier Austrian Bundesliga squad prior to relegation, on March 9, 2018 at 19-years-old. He made 14 starts and recorded one assist in 1,185 minutes played. Diarra was then loaned to TSV Hartberg, an Austrian Bundesliga team, and tallied 10 starts with two assists and 887 minutes.
