By DAN KARELL
While plenty of Americans have decided to start their careers in Major League Soccer, former U.S. Under-20 defender Sebastien Ibeagha is going to try his luck in Europe.
Following a trial, Ibeagha has signed a contract through June 2015 with AC Horsens in Denmark’s second division. Horsens is currently in second place while the league is on winter break. The club will be promoted to the Superliga next season if it continues to play well and finishes in first or second place.
“We have seen Sebastien for a few days, and he has left a very good impression,” Horsens head coach Johnny Mølby said in a statement. “He is a young, exciting and physically strong player who among other things has made his name with a calm ability on the ball. He has good potential that we need to work to redeem, and his approach means that we are less vulnerable and have even better competition for positions in the back line.”
In his four years at Duke, Ibeagha started all 70 games he played, scoring eight goals and adding three assists. Prior to attending Duke, the 22-year-old Ibeagha was a member of the Houston Dynamo’s academy. Sebastien is the brother of former Duke defender Christian Ibeagha, who currently plays for Bohemians in the Czech Republic.
Ibeagha made waves by turning down what sources tell SBI was a lucrative Homegrown Player contract offer from the Houston Dynamo, which had tried to sign Ibeagha for the past two years.
Ibeagha has also made 10 appearances for the U.S. U-20s and has trained with the Under-23 squad in the past.
“I left Duke to look for the place I could develop most as a player, and I chose Danish football, where more Americans have done well,” Ibeagha said in a statement. “The players and coaches have shown me a lot of confidence, and everyone in and around the team and the front office have welcomed me.”
American defenders Michael Parkhurst, Clarence Goodson, and Heath Pearce have all spent time in their careers playing in Denmark, and all three of them have spent extensive time with the U.S. Men’s National Team.
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