It has been a long time since Andrew Jean-Baptiste was on the New York Red Bulls' roster: he was waived at the end of June. But head coach Jesse Marsch said AJB might be back with the team in the future. The defender has reportedly found himself a new team - Spanish lower-league outfit CD Alcala - but he doesn't appear to have played competitive club soccer for a while.
He has, however, finally played senior international soccer. Haiti played El Salvador on Friday, October 9, and won 3-1, in BBVA Compass Stadium (home of the Houston Dynamo). Jean-Baptiste wasn't listed in the starting lineup:
Haiti XI vs El Salvador #Amical pic.twitter.com/ITVYddudU1
— Haiti Futbol (@HaitiFutbol) October 9, 2015
But he did win his first cap:
Now it's official, my 1st Men's National Team cap and we won 3-1 against El Salvador. #TrulyBlessed
— Andrew Jean-Baptiste (@ajeanbaptiste92) October 10, 2015
Details of the game are a little hard to find - if you know when and why AJB was subbed in, please do tell.
Still, the important thing here is that AJB has officially made his debut for the Haiti men's national team. Congrats!
The squad has moved on to Brazil for a friendly with a Brazilian Olympic selection.
En route pour Brazil #ALASOOO pic.twitter.com/OJPNxzlu3R
— Haiti Futbol (@HaitiFutbol) October 10, 2015
November will bring World Cup qualifying matches. If RBNY is indeed still keeping tabs on its former defender, it will be watching AJB's burgeoning international career with interest.