Tim Ream is officially a member of Bolton after his transfer from the New York Red Bulls was finalized on Thursday.
The transfer, believed to be valued near $3 million, is the highest ever paid for an MLS defender, surpassing the $2 million paid by French club Boulogne for former Chicago Fire defender Bakary Soumare.
Ream's transfer paves the way for the Red Bulls to secure a replacement in former Chicago Fire centerback Wilman Conde, who New York acquired the rights to weeks ago. Now with Ream's departure completed, the Red Bulls have the allocation money to make that deal happen.
Here is my Fox Soccer column on Ream's transfer, which was completed after Ream won a UK work permit appeal.
Ream leaves the Red Bulls have two seasons, the last one being a tough one for the former Saint Louis University centerback. He had several shaky moments, both for the Red Bulls and U.S. national team, but still showed enough skill to impress scouts, particularly Bolton, which came away impressed after Ream had a training stint with the club in December.
What do you think of the Ream transfer? See him doing well in England? Think the Red Bulls will miss him?
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