Gale signs four-year deal for Austria’s SK Rapid

The Barbados Football Association (BFA) has announced that senior men’s national footballer Thierry Gale completed a move from FC Dila Gori to SK Rapid Wien in Austria today. Gale, one of the island’s best natural talents, signed a four-year deal at Austria’s most successful club to play in the Austrian Football Bundesliga until 2027 for a Barbadian record transfer fee of €700 000 plus €100 000 in add-ons (BDS$1.7 million). The 21-year-old was unveiled on the club’s social media website as the team’s new No. 16. Gale signed his first professional contract in August 2020 with Hungarian top- flight club Budapest Hoved FC after joining their academy in 2018. He made 45 appearances for the senior team and scored five times in two seasons. Gale then moved to Georgia last year to play for FC Dila Gori where his promising career came alive. The Barbadian sensation scored 10 goals and had five assists in 19 matches in the Erovnuli Liga. Gale said: “I come from a rather atypical footballing country and have always had to work very hard for everything in the past. I am all the happier that the performances I showed didn’t go unnoticed by the club officials at SK Rapid. “Rapid is a big club that has an international reputation and is also known far beyond national borders due to its incredible following. It’s the biggest transfer of my young career so far and I’ll do my best from day one to repay the trust placed in me with good performances. I’m really looking forward to the whole club, the fans and especially to my first home game.” Gale has made 10 appearances for the Barbados senior men’s national team, scoring twice. Rapid’s managing director Sport Markuskatzer said: “Thierry is currently playing an outstanding national and international season, which is also underlined by his statistics. “With his enormous speed and fine ball handling, he is an asset to our offensive. He’s a type of player that we don’t have in the squad in that way. “In addition, Thierry not only has a good goal finish, but also knows how to stage his teammates very well in the decisive moments. We see far more potential in him than he has hitherto exploited and we want to help him achieve his maximum sporting performance at Rapid. We are proud that the player has chosen SK Rapid, even though many international clubs wanted to sign him.” (PR/NC)