Wellington Phoenix have signed American defender Alivia Kelly to her first professional contract following the exit of Algeria international Imane Chebel.
It was a busy Thursday for Ninja A-League outfit the Phoenix, who announced the sudden departure of Chebel in order for her to return home to Canada before swiftly confirming the arrival of new centre-back Kelly.
Chebel only joined Wellington a fortnight ago but “unforeseen circumstances” led to the Phoenix mutually terminating her contract.
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As a result, the ‘Nix have turned to Kelly, who has enjoyed a decorated college career at New Hampshire Wildcats before joining NC State Wolfpack this year in the United States.
Kelly – who graduated from the University of New Hampshire with a Bachelor of Science degree in neuroscience and behaviour – will link up with the club next week.
“It’s definitely not something I had on my bingo card for this month,” Kelly said. “But I’m very excited and I can’t wait to meet everyone and get started.
“It’s a cliché but one door is closing for another one to open.
“I’m very excited about stepping into the pro ranks, developing as a player and a person and getting new life experiences abroad.”
Kelly added: “Speaking with Paul (Temple) was great. I can tell that he cares about us as people and that was important to me because I’m very family oriented.
“I talk to my parents all the time even though we weren’t in the same state for this past year. That was the first thing that struck me.
“And I’ve also talked to a bunch of people from around the A-League and about Wellington Phoenix specifically and everyone has had such great things to say about the environment and the culture, and that was really appealing.”
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The winless Phoenix are preparing for a showdown with Adelaide United in Unite Round across the A-Leagues.
Netstrata Jubilee Stadium is the venue as the entire Ninja A-League descends on Sydney this weekend.
“As soon as it became evident we needed to bring in a new visa centre-back we went through a pretty comprehensive list of available players, and Alivia really shone out on a number of levels,” said head coach Paul Temple.
“I think she is a player who will do very well in the A-League.
“She has good athletic and physical qualities to handle the nature of the league but has also got good ability on the ball to help the team in its style of play.
“We did our research into her and without fail everyone we spoke to talks of her in glowing terms as a player and a person, so it feels like this is a really good fit for us right now and we’re excited to have her join the team next week.”
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