Abdi Salim

Abdi Muya Salim (born 1 April 2001) is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for Orlando City of Major League Soccer. Born in Kenya, Salim has represented Somalia internationally.

Abdi Salim
Personal information
Full name Abdi Muya Salim
Date of birth (2001-04-01) 1 April 2001
Place of birth Nairobi, Kenya
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Orlando City
Number 28
Youth career
2013–2018 Delaware SC
2018–2019 Empire United
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019 Buffalo State Bengals 18 (1)
2020–2022 Syracuse Orange 30 (1)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022 Ocean City Nor'easters 7 (0)
2023– Orlando City 3 (0)
2023– Orlando City B 16 (2)
International career‡
2023– Somalia 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 24 September 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 14 October 2023

Early years

Born in Nairobi, Kenya, Salim grew up in Dagahaley refugee camp in Dadaab. Having applied for asylum in the United States before Salim was born, his parents were granted a visa in 2003 and relocated once Salim had recovered from malaria.[1] They settled in Buffalo, New York. Salim attended Hutchinson Central Technical High School and played his first-ever organized soccer game with youth club Delaware SC in 2013. In 2018, he was recruited for Rochester-based Empire United where he captained the US Developmental Academy under-17 and under-19 teams during a two-year spell.[2]

College career

In 2019, Salim began playing college soccer for the Buffalo State Bengals, a Division III State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) program at Buffalo State University where older brother Saleman had already played the 2018 season.[1] He played one season, starting 18 games, scoring one goal and leading the Bengals in minutes played. He was named SUNYAC Rookie of the Year and SUNYAC Defensive Player of the Year.[3]

Ahead of the 2020 season, Salim entered the transfer portal and joined Division I program Syracuse Orange of the Atlantic Coast Conference. With the season disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, he started the first eight games of the season before suffering an ACL tear against Bowling Green Falcons on 23 February 2021 and underwent surgery, ruling him out for the remainder of the 2020–21 spring season and the subsequent 2021 fall campaign.[4][5] He returned for the 2022 season, playing in 22 of a possible 25 games including every minute of all three ACC Tournament games and all five in the NCAA Tournament. Syracuse did the clean sweep of 2022 ACC regular season, 2022 ACC tournament and 2022 NCAA Division I tournament titles, the first national championship win in program history.[4][6]

Club career

Ocean City Nor'easters

In May 2022, during the college offseason, Salim joined USL League Two side Ocean City Nor'easters.[7] He made seven appearances as Ocean City went undefeated and topped the Mid Atlantic Division.[8]

Orlando City

On 21 December 2022, Salim was selected in the first round (17th overall) of the 2023 MLS SuperDraft by Orlando City.[9] After training with the club in preseason, he was signed to a one-year contract with three additional club option years on 14 February 2023.[10]

International

In October 2023, Salim was called up to represent the Somalia national team at senior level.[11] He made his debut on 14 October, captaining the team in a 3–0 defeat to Niger.

Career statistics

College
School Season Division Apps Goals
Buffalo State Bengals 2019 SUNYAC (Div. III) 181
Syracuse Orange 2020–21 ACC (Div. I) 81
2021 00
2022 220
Total 301
Career total 482

Club
As of 14 February 2023
Club Season League Cup Continental Playoffs Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Ocean City Nor'easters 2022[8] USL League Two 70——00—70
Orlando City 2023 Major League Soccer 000000—0000
Career total 700000000070

International
As of match played 14 October 2023
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Somalia 202310
Total10

Honors

Syracuse Orange

Individual

  • SUNYAC Rookie of the Year: 2019[3]
  • SUNYAC Defensive Player of the Year: 2019[3]

References
  1. "Kenyan brothers overcome upbringing to share college soccer field at Buffalo State". WKBW 7 News Buffalo. 1 November 2019.
  2. "From street soccer to Syracuse, Abdi Salim paves his path to SU's backline". The Daily Orange. 9 November 2020.
  3. "Buffalo State lands eight players on All-SUNYAC Men's Soccer Teams, Abdi Salim named Rookie and Defensive Player of the Year". Buffalo State University Athletics.
  4. Lenzi, Rachel. "'Let's do this, let's win it all': Hutch-Tech's Abdi Salim helps Syracuse to national men's soccer championship". Buffalo News.
  5. "After an ACL tear, Abdi Salim returns to SU's backline as physical as before". The Daily Orange. 21 September 2022.
  6. Camargo, Alberto. "Syracuse wins the 2022 Men's College Cup on PKs after dramatic 2-2 draw". www.ncaa.com.
  7. "Nor'easters' 2022 defense features variety of international talent". Ocean City FC. 8 May 2022.
  8. "USL League Two profile". www.uslleaguetwo.com.
  9. "Orlando City SC selects defender Abdi Salim with No. 17 pick in 2023 MLS SuperDraft". www.orlandocitysc.com.
  10. "Orlando City SC signs 2023 MLS SuperDraft selection Abdi Salim". www.orlandocitysc.com.
  11. "Kenyan-born talent to make debut in historic Somalia friendlies against Niger, Sierra Leone". Pulse Sports Kenya. 12 October 2023.
  12. "Abdi Salim - Men's Soccer". Syracuse University Athletics.
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