Published 1/30/2007 10:57:36 AM by Staff from MLSNet.com

The New York Red Bulls on Monday announced they have signed former Dutch national team goalkeeper Ronald Waterreus as a senior international. The 36-year-old heads to New York after a very successful career in Europe, including winning several championships in his native country as a member of PSV Eindhoven.

"It has been one of my goals to play here in the United States," Waterreus said. "I spoke to Bruce Arena and Jeff Agoos about being someone who has played at a high level in Europe and can use that experience to lead and help the younger players with the club. I am looking forward to that."

In addition to his impressive club resume, Waterreus is also a former international. He earned seven caps for the world-renowned Dutch side, including one against the U.S. side in a friendly leading up to the 2002 World Cup. His 11-save performance helped the Orange to a 2-0 win against Bruce Arena's side.

"We've added a proven goalkeeper with a lot of experience," said Arena, the sporting director and head coach of the Red Bulls. "We are hopeful he will assume a leadership role in the locker room which will be beneficial to us. Ronald and Jon Conway give us a very strong pair of goalkeepers. We think this position has been upgraded considerably."

"Ronald brings leadership, experience and professionalism that can only help us in our search for championships," added Agoos, the Red Bulls' technical director.

Waterreus began his professional career at Roda JC in 1992, where he played two seasons before moving to PSV. He was the started for that powerhouse for 10 seasons, playing 285 games and winning Eredivisie titles in 1997, 2000, 2001 and 2003.

Claudio Reyna, the former U.S. captain who signed with the Red Bulls last week, is a former teammate of Waterreus, when the two played for Manchester City of the English Premier League in 2004/05. Waterreus also had a stint at Scottish club Rangers before returning to the Netherlands to play for AZ Alkmaar. He started six games for Alkmaar this season.

With the addition of Waterreus, the Red Bulls now have just one senior international spot left open on their roster. MLS regulations stipulate that each team may have no more than four non-domestic players over the age of 25. The other two senior internationals currently with the Red Bulls are Austrian Markus Schopp and Dave van den Bergh, another Dutchman.

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