Birahim Diop (born February 7, 1979 in

Thiès Thiès (; ar, ثيس, Ṯyass; Noon: ''Chess'') is the third largest city in Senegal with a population officially estimated at 320,000 in 2005. It lies east of Dakar on the N2 road and at the junction of railway lines to Dakar, Bamako and St-L ...

) is a

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

ese

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

Club career

Diop began his career in Senegal with US Rail de Thiès. In one year at the club he appeared in 25 matches scoring 15 goals. He then moved to

ASC Jeanne d'Arc Association Sportive et Culturelle Jeanne d'Arc or ASC Jeanne d'Arc for short is a Senegalese football club based in Dakar. It was founded in 1923 and one of the oldest in the country. They play at the Stade Léopold Sédar Senghor. The club ...

and scored 12 goals and added 7 assists in his one year at the club. In 2001 Diop moved to the United States and joined the MetroStars reserve squad, after impressing coach Octavio Zambrano he moved up to the senior squad appearing in 4 league matches in 2002. Following his stay in New York, Diop would join Colombian side

Deportivo Pereira Deportivo Pereira is a professional Colombian football team based in Pereira, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera A. They play their home games at the Hernán Ramírez Villegas stadium. History Early years While there are several ...

, before being re-united once again with coach Zambrano at CS Tiligul-Tiras Tiraspol in

Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...

. In his first season with CS Tiligul-Tiras Tiraspol Diop appeared in 15 league matches and scored 3 goals playing as a holding midfielder. In 2008 Diop returned to the United States and played for FDR United in New York City's amateur leagues, scoring 19 goals in 25 matches. On March 17, 2010,

Kansas City Wizards Sporting Kansas City, often shortened to Sporting KC, is an American men's professional soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The administrative offices are located in Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and the team clubhouse and ...

officially announced the signing of Diop, as an addition to their midfield. Diop was reunited with coach Octavio Zambrano, an assistant for Kansas City who was instrumental in bringing Diop back to

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

. Diop scored his first two MLS goals on August 21, 2010 in a 4-1 victory over

New England Revolution The New England Revolution is an American professional soccer club based in the Greater Boston area that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), in the Eastern Conference of the league. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having compet ...

. Diop then recorded the first hat trick of his career on October 23, 2010 in a 4-1 victory over

San Jose Earthquakes The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional soccer team based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete as a member club of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). Originally as the San Jose Clash, the franchise ...

. Diop enjoyed his best year in Major League soccer in 2010 with

appearing in 14 league matches and scoring 5 goals. Diop was waived by Kansas City on March 26, 2012.

Personal

Diop has a U.S. green card, granting him

permanent residence ''Permanent Residence'' () is a 2009 Hong Kong film starring Sean Li and Osman Hung. It was directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Danny Cheng, also known as Scud. The film explores several themes traditionally regarded as 'taboo' in Hong Kong society, ...

in the United States and qualifying him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.

References

External links

*
moldova.sports.mdeurofotbal.info
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diop, Birahim 1979 births Living people Senegalese men's footballers Sporting Kansas City players New York Red Bulls players Deportivo Pereira footballers ASC Jeanne d'Arc players Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Major League Soccer players Men's association football midfielders US Rail players Footballers from Thiès