The Houston Dynamo announced today the club has signed defender Jalil Anibaba. Per club and league policy, terms of the transactions were not disclosed.
“We’re very pleased to announce the addition of Jalil to our roster,” Dynamo vice president/general manager Matt Jordan said. “His MLS experience, athleticism and professional approach to the game will be a welcomed addition to our backline. He joins our club at a very good age and is eager to contribute to the success of the team moving forward.”
Anibaba, 27, has appeared in 128 games (121 starts) and added five goals and 10 assists across five MLS seasons. The defender tallied one goal and four assists while making 16 appearances (14 starts) for Sporting Kansas City in 2015. The California native started 34 games and played every minute of the 2013 season with the Chicago Fire. Anibaba appeared in 96 of 102 league games over his first three seasons in the league. He was a part of playoff teams in Chicago (2013), Seattle (2014) and Sporting KC (2015), appearing in two career playoff games.
“We are delighted to bring a player of Jalil’s quality and experience to our club,” Dynamo head coach Owen Coyle said.
Anibaba played for the United States Under-18 and U-20 national teams and attended Santa Clara University, earning All-WCC honors three straight years. He transferred to the University of North Carolina for his senior season and helped the Tar Heels advance to the NCAA College Cup and was named first-team All-ACC.
The Dynamo currently have 24 players under contract for 2016: Jalil Anibaba, Giles Barnes, DaMarcus Beasley, Bradley Bourgeois, Calle Brown, Will Bruin, Ricardo Clark, Tyler Deric, Boniek García, David Horst, Taylor Hunter, Rob Lovejoy, Christian Lucatero, Alex Lima, Cristian Maidana, Mauro Manotas, Rasheed Olabiyi, Memo Rodriguez, Raúl Rodríguez, Zach Steinberger, Erick Torres, Andrew Wenger, Sheanon Williams and Joe Willis.
JALIL ANIBABA
Full name: Jalil Anibaba
Pronunciation: Jah-LEEL Ah-Nee-BAH-Bah
Position: Defender
Date of Birth: October 19, 1988
Birthplace: Fontana, California
Height: 6’0”
Weight: 185
Citizenship: United States
Previous club: Sporting Kansas City
College: Santa Clara, University of North Carolina
Twitter: @jalil_anibaba4
How acquired: Signed on Jan. 11, 2016
