Possessing the second most potent attack in MLS clearly isn't enough for the New York Red Bulls. On Thursday, the club announced the addition of Israeli international forward Omer Damari on loan from Bundesliga side RB Leipzig.
Damari, 27, will occupy a Designated Player spot on the roster and will be available for selection upon receipt of his ITC and P-1 visa. The loan is through the remainder of the MLS season.
"We're really looking forward to Omer joining the team," Red Bulls Sporting Director Ali Curtis said in a statement. "We follow a lot of the Red Bull-associated clubs pretty closely, so we've gotten to see him play on a number of occasions, and we think he can add a lot of quality to what we're doing in the final third."
A native of Rishon LeZion, Israel, Damari started his career in his native country, featuring for Maccabi Petah Tikva and Hapoel Tel Aviv, where, combined he notched a total of 85 goals and 13 assists in 180 appearances.
In 2014, Damari moved to Wien in the Austrian Bundesliga, where he was a teammate of another recent Red Bulls signing, Daniel Royer, before joining RB Leipzig in January 2015. He spent a half-season with Leipzig and then returned to Austria, on loan to Red Bull Salzburg, where he posted four goals and four assists in 16 appearances, helping the club win the 2015-16 Austrian title.
For his country, Damari has scored nine goals in 20 appearances, including during qualifying for the 2016 Euro Championships.
With his move to New York, Damari becomes the first player to feature for all three clubs in the Red Bull global system, which includes RB Leipzig, Red Bull Salzburg, and the New York Red Bulls.
