FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Revolution have signed defender Claude Dielna, a 29-year-old center back with more than 10 seasons of professional experience in France, England, Romania, and Slovakia. He will officially be added to the roster via either a Designated Player slot or Targeted Allocation Money (TAM) pending receipt of his International Transfer Certificate (ITC) and P-1 Visa.
Across all competition as a professional, Dielna has totaled 162 appearances, 136 starts, five goals, and two assists in 12,628 total minutes of action. Of those appearances, 109 were split between Ligue 1 (22 games) and Ligue 2 (87 games) in France. He also played in 23 games in the England's Football League Championship with Sheffield Wednesday FC during the 2014-15 season.
"We've been clear about our desire to add players to the roster during this transfer window," said Revolution General Manager Michael Burns. "We're pleased we were able to add to our back line and we look forward to getting Claude integrated into the team."
"I'm very happy to sign for this club. I'm very excited to start the competition," said Claude Dielna. "I watched many games and I spoke with the staff. The club looks to be a family and that's what I need. I will try to bring my international experience and my quality to help the team."
Primarily a central defender, Dielna began his professional career with Lorient in April 2007 and made his senior debut with FC Istres on Sept. 3, 2008. He went on to total 68 appearances and two goals with Istres from 2008-12. Dielna then transferred to Greek power Olympiacos, but soon returned to France on season-long loans with CS Sedan-Ardennes (2012-13), where he played in 27 games and scored two goals, and AC Ajaccio (2013-14), where he totaled 24 appearances and one assist across all competitions.
Most recently, Dielna spent three years with Sheffield Wednesday FC, joining the club ahead of the 2014-15 campaign. During his time with Wednesday, he also spent time on loan with FC Dinamo Bucuresti of Romania's Liga 1 (2017) and a partial season with Slovan Bratislava of Slovakia's top-tier Fortuna Liga (2016). During the 2016-17 season, Dielna made 12 total appearances, all starts, and recorded 1,110 minutes of action with Dinamo Bucuresti.
Name: Claude Dielna
Pronunciation: KLOD dee-ELL-na
Position: Defender
Height: 6-0
Weight: 190
Hometown: Clichy-la-Garenne, France
Date of Birth: December 14, 1987 (Clichy-la-Garenne, France)
Nationality: France
Last Club: Sheffield Wednesday FC (ENG)
