After a productive offseason in which Austin FC shelled out for upgrades at striker, defensive midfielder, and right wing, the Verde saved its most important and anticipated move for last. Finally, the club has its starting-caliber center back. Or, at least, it thinks it does.
Austin FC on Monday announced the signing of 29-year-old Norwegian international Ruben Gabrielsen, who was a free agent, to a two-year contract. Gabrielsen last played for FC Copenhagen in Denmark, on loan from Toulouse FC of the French second division. He has also made two appearances for the Norwegian national team, most recently serving as a seldom-used substitute in 2021 World Cup Qualifying.
Gabrielsen is an imposing physical presence at 6-foot-1, 190 lbs. He has served as captain at multiple destinations during his club career.
“Ruben is a natural leader and has all the physical attributes of a top-level center back in Major League Soccer,” Austin FC Sporting Director Claudio Reyna said in a statement. The verbiage in that quote is significant. Gabrielsen is a virtual unknown to most fans of the sport, yet the club clearly believes he will bring immediate improvement to its back line, which desperately needed beefing up.
Following Matt Besler’s injury midway though the 2021 season and subsequent retirement, Austin FC was limited to the pairing of Julio Cascante and Jhohan Romaña in central defense for the vast majority of its remaining games. The duo looked overmatched and overworked frequently during that stretch, and the club conceded an average 27 goals over its final 12 games. It had given up 29 over its first 22 games with Besler, an above-average MLS defender even in the twilight of his career, in the lineup.
Austin FC lucked out when top collegiate center back Kipp Keller fell to them at No. 5 overall in the MLS SuperDraft earlier this month and the 21-year-old will likely factor into the center back rotation at some point during his rookie season. However, Austin FC needed an experienced player who could start for the club on Match Day 1. Rather than chase down a known quantity within Major League Soccer — which, historically, is a difficult league for defenders to adapt to — the club has taken the risk of going the international route. The upside is that, if Gabrielsen thrives like Austin FC hopes he will, he will have come at a vastly reduced price from his U.S.-based counterparts.
Gabrielsen is the second important signing Austin FC has made from the under-the-radar French second division after striker Moussa Djitté was purchased from Grenoble last summer. The club has also successfully done business in Slovenia (Žan Kolmanič) and Russia (Sebastián Driussi).
Gabrielsen speaks fluent English. “It’s a privilege to have the opportunity to join Austin FC and play at Q2 Stadium,” he said in the club’s press release. “It’s an ambitious club, in a great city, with the best support in Major League Soccer. I can’t wait to contribute.”
In order to sign a foreign-born player like Gabrielsen, by rule, Austin FC first needed to free up an international roster spot. It freed up three. In an impressive feat of immigration lawyering, the club revealed on Monday that Romaña, Kolmanič and Rodney Redes — who have all been in the U.S. less than a year — obtained Green Cards to become permanent residents of the U.S. and therefore no longer occupy international roster spots.
With a surplus suddenly on hand, Austin FC flipped one of its unused international roster spots to Inter Miami CF for $225,000.
Austin FC begins its campaign of preseason friendlies on February 9.
This article appears in January 21 • 2022.
