Columbus Crew SC are getting a little help from the Spanish first division.
Defender Amro Tarek will be joining the Crew for the 2016 season on loan from Real Betis of Spain's La Liga.
"Amro is a young player, but he brings a lot of experience at the professional level," said coach Gregg Berhalter in a statement. "He has displayed a good developmental path over the course of his career by virtue of playing at several quality clubs. We believe he is going to help bring depth and talent to our backline."
Prior to joining Real Betis last year, 23-year-old left back played for two seasons in his native Egypt for El Gouna FC, making a total of 45 appearances for the club in the Egyptian Premier League.
Before he moved to Egypt, Tarek played in Germany where he began his career with lower-tier 1 FC Magdeburg II in 2010-11, making 22 appearances for Magdeburg's Under-19 side, scoring six goals and adding five assists. Tarek then joined SC Freiburg, where he made 15 appearances for the reserve team. In 2012-13, Tarek played for VfL Wolfsburg II, making 20 appearances with one goal and two assists.
Internationally, the defender has made one appearance for the Egyptian U-20s. Born in Los Angeles, Tarek remains eligible for both Egypt and the United States at the senior roster level.
