The Bundesliga giants acted quickly, signing the 18-year-old prospect from LAFC, the last American to move to Germany.
Bayern Munich have announced the signing of 18-year-old Bajung Darboe from LAFC, the latest in a long line of transfers from MLS to the German top division.
Darboe, an attacking midfielder, trained with Bayern in 2022 and will initially strengthen the reserve team. He is rated as one of the top American talents in his age group and has already played 29 games in the MLS Next Pro, the third tier of soccer in the US.
“A big dream has come true for me. It's nice to see where my path has taken me,” Darboe explained in an interview with the Bundesliga website. “It was always a great wish of mine to one day be able to put on the shirt of this great club. The fact that it has now happened fills me with great pride. I'm still dealing with the jetlag, but otherwise I feel good and ready to get started.”
According to Tribuna, the youngster comes for a transfer fee of 1.5 million dollars. He has represented the United States at the Under-17 level, but is also eligible for both Gambia and Finland. Darboe was born in Gambia and has dual American-Finnish nationality.
American players continue to move to Germany
Ties between the United States and Germany are widespread in the soccer world, and Darboe is the latest player to move from the former to the latter. Young midfielder Giovanni Reyna joined Borussia Dortmund in 2019 and went on to make over 100 appearances for the German giants. He followed in the footsteps of USMNT teammate Christian Pulisic, who spent four successful years at Signal Iduna Park before being picked up by Chelsea.
Many of the USMNT's most celebrated players have played in Germany during their careers. The likes of Landon Donovan, Michael Bradley and Brian McBride spent time in the Bundesliga. Five of the top seven USMNT goal scorers ever played in Germany.
The move to Germany also gives Darboe the opportunity to train and one day play alongside some of the best players in the world. The 18-year-old revealed which new teammates he is especially looking forward to meeting.
“As a child I always looked up to Cristiano Ronaldo. At Bayern I look up to Jamal Musiala, Kingsley Coman and especially Joshua Kimmich,” said Darboe.
“My family is proud, they are very happy for me. My parents have accompanied me throughout the journey and are very happy that the efforts of the past few years have paid off. Without their support I wouldn't be here today. I owe a lot to them.”
Comments