Jalil Anibaba

Jalil Anibaba

Personal information
Full name	Jalil Anibaba
Date of birth	(1988-10-19) October 19, 1988
Place of birth	Fontana, California, United States
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Playing position	Defender
Club information
Current team	Houston Dynamo
Number	2
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2007–2009	Santa Clara Broncos	61	(3)
2010	North Carolina Tar Heels	24	(0)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2010	Carolina Dynamo	12	(0)
2011–2013	Chicago Fire	96	(4)
2014	Seattle Sounders FC	16	(0)
2015	Sporting Kansas City	16	(1)
2016–	Houston Dynamo	30	(0)
National team‡
2007	United States U18	3	(0)
2007	United States U20	1	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of November 7, 2016. ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of August 4, 2012

Jalil Anibaba (/dʒəˈliːl ɑːniˈbɑːbə/; born October 19, 1988) is an American soccer player who currently plays for Houston Dynamo in Major League Soccer.

Career

College and Amateur

Anibaba attended Davis Senior High School, where in his senior season he was the California Gatorade Soccer Player of the year, and played college soccer at Santa Clara University for the first three years of his college career. In 2009, Anibaba captained the Broncos was selected for the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-West Region team.

For his senior season he transferred to the University of North Carolina, where he won numerous awards, including – NSCAA Second Team All-America, NSCAA First Team All-Region, First Team All-ACC, ACC All-Tournament Team and 2007 WCC Freshman of the Year.^[1]

Anibaba made twelve appearances for USL Premier Development League club Carolina Dynamo during their 2010 season.^[2]

Professional

On January 14, 2011, Anibaba was drafted #9 overall in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft by the Chicago Fire.^[3] He made his professional debut on March 19, 2011, in Chicago's first game of the 2011 MLS season, a 1–1 tie with FC Dallas.,^[4] and scored his first professional goal – a 40-yard screamer – on March 30, 2011 in a 2–1 victory over the Colorado Rapids in the qualifying round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.^[5] Anibaba would go on to tally two more goals in the 2011 season finale, heading home two strikes in the space of 19 minutes in a 3–2 win vs. Columbus Crew on October 22, 2011. Anibaba closed out his first season in MLS setting a club record for regular season appearances by a rookie with 29 and had his March 30 strike vs. Colorado voted the team's "Goal of the Year" by the team's fans following the campaign.^[6]

After three seasons with Chicago, Anibaba was traded in January 2014 with the #8 pick in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft and a conditional third-round selection in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft to Seattle Sounders FC in exchange for the #13 pick in the 2014 SuperDraft, defender Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, and defender Patrick Ianni.^[7]

On December 10, 2014, Anibaba was selected by Orlando City SC with the fifth pick in the 2014 MLS Expansion Draft.^[8] After the draft, Anibaba was shipped to Sporting Kansas City as part of the trade for Aurelien Collin.^[9] Anibaba was dropped by Sporting Kansas City on November 25, 2015.^[10]

Anibaba was released by Kansas City at the end of the 2015 MLS season, but later signed with Houston Dynamo on January 11, 2016.^[11]

Personal life

His brothers Sule and Jammil played college soccer during the 2000s for the UC Davis Aggies,^[12] while half brother Josh Reese plays American football for UC Davis Aggies.^[13]

References

External links

• MLS player profile
• U.S. soccer profile
• Tar Heels profile