FC Edmonton Signs Karsten Smith

FC Edmonton announced today the signing of 27-year-old center back Karsten Smith. As per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed. 

Smith, a native of Huntington Station, New York, joins the Eddies after making four appearances for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds of the United Soccer League (USL) this year. Last season, the defender collected 918 minutes in 11 appearances with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers.

Smith is the Eddies’ second signing in as many weeks, joining recent addition Shawn Nicklaw on the team’s back line. The Eddies currently feature the league’s top defensive unit, with just eight goals allowed through 12 league matches heading into Sunday’s contest against Ottawa Fury FC.

“Karsten is a very experienced player,” FC Edmonton head coach Colin Miller said. “He has played with Tomi Ameobi before and I spoke to Tomi about Karsten, and he raved about how competitive he was and how he would be a very, very strong addition to our back four. He is also a left-sided centre back. 

“I spoke with Karsten and he is very excited about joining the club. We’re excited, he’s excited, and it’s a fresh face in the group. There are additional moves being made behind-the-scenes and we’re hopeful there could be a couple of additional announcements being made as early as next week.”