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Ronald Zubar has departed the New York Red Bulls. In a warm, honest, and seemingly heartfelt open letter posted to his Instagram account, the 31-year-old said goodbye to the club he has played for since 2015.
RBNY had announced it was in talks to bring Zubar back for the 2017 season almost as soon as it declined his contract option. In late December, Zubar indicated to FootMercato.com that he had started to at least consider the possibility he wouldn't be back with the Red Bulls for another year. And now he has revealed the negotiations with RBNY are over and he and the team will go their separate ways.
"Once A New York Red Bull, always a Red Bull!" - you said it, Zubi.
The well-traveled defender struggled with injury throughout his time with RBNY. But he was on the pitch when the Red Bulls won the 2015 Supporters' Shield. Perhaps his greatest contribution to the club, however, was his own fragility. An injury on his debut for the team opened the door for Matt Miazga to step into the starting lineup - and the young center back delivered the stellar 2015 season that ultimately earned him a move to Chelsea.
He seemed to form a strong French connection with fellow center back Damien Perrinelle and, latterly, Aurelien Collin.
French Connection in da place @DamP_92 @zubarronald @ampC2 let's go #RBNY !!!! pic.twitter.com/tvZ95PvvmG
— Pascal Perrinelle (@PPerrinelle) July 9, 2016
All told, Zubar made 40 appearances for RBNY in all competitions, scoring four goals - including one of the more controversial strikes in Red Bulls' history.
Thanks for the memories, Zubi. All the best.