Harambee Stars midfielder Richard Odada joins MLS club

Harambee Stars midfielder Richard Odada has signed for the American professional soccer club, Philadelphia Union.

The Major League Soccer club has announced that the midfielder has penned down a two-and-a-half-year contract with a club, with an option for a third and fourth year in exchange for an undisclosed transfer fee. 

Richard Odada's squad inclusion

The player is expected to be included in the squad after he acquires his International Transfer Certificate and P1 Visa.

Philadelphia Union Sporting Director, Ernst Tanner while announcing the player's arrival stated that the midfielder has the physicality that the team needs.

“Richard is a holding midfielder with positional versatility and a great potential to be a valuable contributor as we continue to develop our roster,” he said.

 “He can play multiple midfield roles as well as centre back, and he has the height, speed and physicality we were searching for. We look forward to integrating him this year and encouraging his development for the future,” he added.

Odada, 21, joins Philadelphia from the Serbian SuperLiga, the country's top flight, where he played for Red Star Belgrade and made two appearances.

Richard Odada's loan spells

In 2020, he was loaned to RFK Grafiar Beograd, where he contributed three assists in 25 games (22 starts). Odada was loaned to FK Metalac Gornji Milanovac in 2021, making 27 appearances (18 starts) for the Serbian club before returning to RFK Grafiar Beograd on loan in 2022.

Odada has five international caps for Harambee Stars. His first senior call-up came in September 2021, ahead of World Cup qualification matches, and he made his debut on September 2, 2021, in a goalless draw against Uganda. On November 15, 2021, Odada scored his first international goal in a 2-1 win against Rwanda.

Odada joins former Harambee Stars skipper Victor Wanyama in the MLS Eastern Conference.