#3375: Galaxy signs Sebastien Vorbe (fwd)

[Robert Corbett <bcorbett@netcom.com>]

From: A. =?iso-8859-1?Q?M=E9dard?= <amedard@gte.net>

> HOL contacts - http://www.haitionline.com
>
> Galaxy Signs Haitian National Team Midfielder Sebastien Vorbe
> PASADENA, CA - Los Angeles Galaxy head coach and vice president of soccer
> operations Sigi Schmid announced today that the Major League Soccer (MLS)
> club has signed midfielder Sebastien Vorbe as its 2000 Discovery Player.
> Vorbe, who trained with the Galaxy during preseason, arrived in Los
> Angeles Saturday and will train with the team and be available for the
> club's international friendly tomorrow night against the Chivas Rayadas de
> Guadalajara (7:30 p.m. kickoff).
> "We are excited to add Sebastien to our team, because he is someone who
> can play up front and can also play in the midfield," said Schmid. "He has
> shown that he can score goals on the international level and we are
> excited to see what he can do for the Galaxy."
>
> The 23-year-old Vorbe will fill the fourth foreign player slot on the
> Galaxy's roster. The slot was vacated after MLS did not resign Mexican
> striker Carlos Hermosillo. Los Angeles' four foreign players now consist
> of Mauricio Cienfuegos (El Salvador), Roy Myers (Costa Rica), Simon
> Elliott (New Zealand) and Vorbe.
>
> A native of Thomassin, Haiti, Vorbe has over 10 National Team caps,
> including appearing in both of Haiti's games in CONCACAF's recently
> concluded 2000 Gold Cup Tournament. He scored Haiti's lone goal in the
> tournament, striking in the 61st minute of the Haitian's 1-1 draw against
> Peru (2/14/00). Vorbe, who also spent several years with Violette A.C. in
> Haiti's First Division, comes from a strong soccer lineage, as his uncle,
> Phillipe Vorbe, was part of Haiti's 1974 World Cup team. In fact, the '74
> World Cup team was the only Haitian side to qualify for soccer's ultimate
> prize.
>
> Vorbe, who like Galaxy defender Robin Fraser attended Florida
> International University (FIU), appeared in 37 career games at FIU over
> two seasons (1997, 98), scoring nine goals and adding 13 assists good for
> 31 points. Vorbe started all 20 matches as a freshman at FIU, recording
> four goals and a team leading nine assists (4-9=17) including scoring a
> goal and adding an assist in his first intercollegiate game against the
> University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (8/29/97).
>
> "We had the opportunity to see Sebastien in a couple of international
> competitions, including the CONCACAF Gold Cup qualifying tournament in Los
> Angeles and the Gold Cup tournament in Miami," added Schmid. "He also had
> the opportunity to train with us during the preseason, so we definitely
> know what kind of player we are getting."
>
> Vorbe, who spent part of the Galaxy's preseason with the club, appeared
> several games for the Galaxy during the preseason, including Los Angeles'
> 2-1 win over Talleres de Cordoba of the Argentine First Division on March
> 8. The 5-10, 170-pound crafty midfielder started the match up front and
> scored the Galaxy's game-winner off a pass from Mauricio Cienfuegos in the
> 50th minute.
>
> Vorbe and his Los Angeles Galaxy teammates will host Chivas Rayadas de
> Guadalajara in an international exhibition match on Wednesday, April 26,
> 2000. The Galaxy (4-0-2) will face off against Chivas (6-3-6, 24 points)
> at the Rose Bowl beginning at 7:30 p.m. (PT).
>
> Up Next in MLS action, the Los Angeles Galaxy visits the NY/NJ MetroStars
> led by German star Lothar Matthäus and former Galaxy head coach Octavio
> Zambrano on Saturday, April 29, at the Rose Bowl (1:30 p.m. PT kickoff).
> The Galaxy match versus the MetroStars will be broadcast nationally on
> Telemundo, marking Los Angeles first appearance of 2000 on the Spanish
> language network. Likewise, the game will be broadcast live via our
> English radio partner KRLA (1110 AM) and Spanish radio partner (KTNQ 1020
> AM).
>
> #26 SEBASTIEN VORBE
> Position: Midfielder
> Height: 5-10
> Weight: 170
> Date of Birth: June 4, 1976
> Birthplace: Thomassin, Haiti
> Citizenship: Haiti
> College: Florida International University (FIU)
> Last Club: Violette A.C. (Haitian First Division)
> Acquired: As Galaxy's 2000 Discovery Player and Fourth International.
>
> VORBE'S FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY CAREER STATISTICS
>
>                --------REGULAR SEASON----------
> Year  Team     GP     GS     G      A      Pts.
> 1997  Florida  20     20     4      9      17
> 1998  Florida  17     16     5      4      14
> FIU Totals     37     36     9      13     31
>