|
Galaxy
Sign U.S. National Team Forward Jovan
Kirovski; Striker Leaves Birmingham
City on Permanent Move -- STM
Staff
CARSON, CA (Friday, February 6, 2004)
- The Los Angeles Galaxy have filled
the allocation spot received from
the retirement of Mauricio Cienfuegos
with the signing of U.S. National
Team forward Jovan Kirovski. The announcement
was made on Friday by Galaxy Vice-President
and General Manager Doug Hamilton.
Kirovski, a forward by trade, joins
the Galaxy after two years with Birmingham
City of the English Premier League
(EPL). As usual, the financial terms
of the MLS contract were withheld,
but it is likely that Kirvoski will
make around the league maximum.
"I'm very excited to join the L.A.
Galaxy, I've been thinking about coming
back to play in the U.S. for a long
time. Being from Southern California,
this is a great opportunity for me
to come home and have all of my family
and friends around me," said Kirovski
in the same press release. "With my
style of play, I look forward to being
another offensive weapon, to create
and score some goals and, hopefully,
I can do that. The most important
thing is to win games and go on to
win the MLS Cup."
The addition of Kirovski is a bit
of a surprising move for the Galaxy,
considering he does not have that
great of a track record when it comes
to scoring. He does bring experience
from the German and the English top
divisions, having played his soccer
in Europe since leaving the U.S. as
a 15 year old. He has spent time with
massive clubs such as Manchester United,
Borussia Dortmund and Sporting Lisbon.
He famously joined the Manchester
United youth program as a 15-year-old
in 1992, but never made the full senior
squad. The chance for regular first
team football was enough to draw him
back over the pond.
"We're very pleased to bring Southern
California native Jovan Kirovski back
to Los Angeles," said Hamilton in
a club press release. "He is an experienced
international who brings a strong
physical presence and the ability
to run at people as well as great
technical ability to challenge defenders
and score goals, which he has demonstrated
with his play in some of the top European
leagues."
Kirovski
has been in and out of the U.S. National
Team since 1994. He has a respectable
59 international caps and has taken
part in FIFA World Cup Qualifying,
Copa America, CONCACAF Gold Cup, and
the U.S. Cup.
It is his goal-scoring record that
leaves something to be desired. He
has scored only nine goals (good enough
to rank him in the top 20 all-time
- how sad is that). He earned his
first cap on Oct. 19, 1994 in a 2-1
loss to Saudi Arabia in Dhahran.
"We're thrilled to add Jovan to the
Galaxy's growing offensive arsenal,"
said Galaxy Head Coach Sigi Schmid
in the same club release. "He is anxiously
awaiting an opportunity to play first
team football on a regular basis and
is a player that by his performance
with the Galaxy can earn his ticket
to the World Cup in 2006."
Kirovski
started his professional career when
he joined Manchester United in 1992,
playing with the reserve team. He
spent four years with Manchester United,
playing with their A and B reserve
squads. In August 1996, with first
team football the target, he was sold
to Borussia Dortmund of the German
Bundesliga. For the next two seasons
(1996-98), he played in 20 games with
Dortmund, scoring his first professional
goal for Dortmund in a Champions'
League match vs. Sparta Prague in
a 3-0 win on Dec. 10, 1996. He won
the UEFA Champions League with Borussia
Dortmund in 1997 and the 1997 World
Club Championship.
He was then loaned to second division
club Fortuna Cologne for a season.
He scored two goals in 20 appearances
then returned to Dortmund for the
1999-2000 season, but failed to make
a first team appearance. He joined
Portuguese league champion Sporting
Lisbon in 2000, but again failed to
crack the starting lineup, making
five appearances all as a substitute.
In 2001, he moved to England, signing
with then first division club Crystal
Palace. Kirovski played in 26 games
(22 starts - with five goals). His
form with Palace earned him a move
to Birmingham City (EPL), where he
has spent the better part of the last
two year, playing in 20-plus games
and scoring two goals.
Will
Kivovski's European experience be
enough to allow him to score regularly
(and at will) in the MLS? Certainly,
a player of his caliber and background
should be able to have a 15 to 20
goal season in MLS. If he does, L.A.,
along with Carlos Ruiz, will be very
hard to beat in 2004.
PLAYER BIO Jovan Kirovski
Position: Forward
Height: 6-1
Weight: 175
Date of Birth: March 18, 1976
Birthplace: Escondido, California
Citizenship: USA
International Appearances: 59
International Goals: 9
Citizenship: USA
First Appearance: 10/19/94 vs. Saudi
Arabia
First Goal: 11/22/94, vs. Jamaica.
Last Club: Birmingham City (England)
Former
Clubs:
Birmingham City (English Premier League:
2002-04), Crystal Palace (English
First Division: 2001-2002)
Sporting Lisbon (Spanish Liga: 2000-01)
Fortuna Cologne (German First Division:
1998-99)
Borussia Dortmund (German Bundesliga:
1997-98 and 1999-00)
Manchester United Reserve Team (England:
1992-96)
|
