UPDATE -- Click on link to read Khari Stephenson assisting on
Earthquakes's game-winner in his debut vs. Kansas City -- LINK.
San Jose Mercury News STORY.
Quakes Photo Gallery #3 and #21 are of Khari Stephenson -- VIEW.
SAN JOSE, CA – Former Eph men’s soccer standout and Jamaican International Khari Stephenson is now on loan to the San Jose Earthquakes in the MLS until November 30th from his home club Aalesunds FK, which plays in the top league in Norway. In 2009 Stephenson was a member of the Aalesunds team that won the Norwegian Cup and qualified for play in the Europa Cup.
A defensive midfielder Stephenson has netted four goals in 39 games for Aalesunds in two seasons.
Prior to playing in Norway Stephenson spent three years in Sweden with AIK, a perennial top of the table club and GAIS in the Swedish Allsvenskan (the top Swedish league). With AIK in 2007-08, Stephenson scored a pair of goals in 25 appearances. In 2006, he scored two goals in 25 appearances for GAIS, one of the oldest clubs in Swedish football.
Stephenson is being brought in to solidify the Quakes midfield and they are not wasting any time as Stephenson in finding out if he is the answer in their midfield as he is projected to start tomorrow evening when the Quakes host Stephenson’s old team the Kansas City Wizards. The game may be seen on MLS Direct Kick.
Stephenson has not played competitively since June 6th, but he is confident he can contribute right away. “I'm quite fine with that,” said Stephenson. “I came here to play, so I'm ready for it. The last game I played was June 9th in a cup game. The last league game was June 6th...”
“He’s a different sort of midfielder compared to what we have: A big, powerful, strong-running offensive player,” said Quakes head coach Frank Yallop. “Not that he’s going to score a ton of goals, but he’s going to drive forward, with and without the ball. He’s athletic. And I think it gives us a different look in there.”
Stephenson will likely play at the point of a midfield diamond in Yallop’s preferred 4-4-2 formation, furthering the notion that the Quakes brought him in to be a factor right away.
“Adding an experienced physical presence like Khari to our team is something we have been looking to do for a little while now,” said general manager John Doyle. “He brings a great touch and solid work rate to our midfield that will benefit us in our push for the playoffs and in the future.”
San Jose marks the third team in MLS that Stephenson has signed with as he was drafted 27th in the 2004 MLS Draft by the Chicago Fire and then traded to Kansas City where he played in the 2005 MLS Cup. While with Kansas City he scored a goal in the playoffs on the Wizards’ run to the MLS Cup Final. He appeared in nine regular season matches for the Wizards, where he was a teammate of current Earthquakes forward, Scott Sealy.
Aalesunds FK retains the rights to Stephenson, but San Jose would have the opportunity to purchase Stephenson’s contract if they like what they see during the loan period.
Stephenson is the most capped player in Eph history collecting 31 for Jamaica to date. His last game for Jamaica came last August versus Ecuador at Giants Stadium.
“I would have to say that Khari is the most talented player we’ve ever had,” said Eph head coach Mike Russo who will be entering his 31st year at the helm of the Ephs this fall. “He has the speed, size, skill and experience to do the job in the midfield for San Jose.”
At Williams Stephenson twice earned All-America honors. Stephenson is the second Eph to be drafted by an MLS team, joining former teammate Alex Blake '03 who was drafted by the Colorado Rapids last year.
Dan Calichman '90 who played in the MLS for the LA Galaxy, New England Revolution and the San Jose Earthquakes and made two appearances for the U.S. National Team was not drafted by the MLS, but was an allocated player in the first year of the MLS and was assigned to the LA Galaxy.
KHARI STEPHENSON
Eph Career Highlights
40 goals – 18 assists = 98 points
2003: Named a first team all-American by the NSCAA for the second straight season. Led Williams College in goals scored (15) and points (34). Earned first team all-NESCAC and first team all-New England honors. Named the NESCAC Player of the Year. Finished his college career with 40 goals and 18 assists for a total of 98 points. Invited to MLS Super Draft Camp in 2004. Helps Jamaica advance in Olympic qualifying rounds.
2002: In his junior year, finished second on the team in goals (15) and points (37) and tied for third in assists (7). Named a first team all-American. Also named first team all-New England and NESCAC Player of the Year. Ranked third in the conference in points per game (1.76). Led Williams to a second straight NESCAC Championship. Collected his first cap for Jamaica in an appearance the Jamaican National Junior Team in a game against Brazil. Also played for the Jamaican Olympic Team.
2001: Finished fourth on the team in scoring, tallying five goals and three assists for a total of 13 points.
2000: Tallied five goals and four assists for a total of 14 points.
Some material in this report was supplied by the San Jose Earthquakes of the MLS.
