New England Revolution sell ex-Manchester United defender
By Harry Mail
New England Revolution have sold defender Alexander Buttner to APOEL
Alexander Buttner has left New England Revolution. The left-back has departed the MLS to move back to Europe. He has completed a switch to Cyprian side APOEL, as announced by their official club Twitter account.
Buttner, who is 31 years old, joined New England in November 2019 and spent the past year in the States. He made 18 appearances for Bruce Arena’s side in the past season and gained three assists from defence. He helped the Revs get into the play-offs but has now moved back closer to home.
The full-back has now linked up with APOEL, who are managed by former Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy. He has also previously managed in the Premier League with Wolves and Sunderland and will now about Buttner from his time in the English top flight.
The ex-Holland youth international had a spell at Manchester United from 2012 to 2014. He joined the Red Devils from Vitesse having previously been on the books at Ajax as a youngster. The defender played 28 times for the Old Trafford club and was part of their side who won the Premier League title seven years ago.
Buttner left England for a move to Russia with Dynamo Moscow. He spent three years playing in the Russian Premier League, one of which he spent out on loan in Belgium with Anderlecht. Vitesse then re-signed him in 2017 and he stayed for a second spell before New England decided to hand him an opportunity in MLS last year. He will now be looking forward to a new chapter in his career at APOEL. His time in MLS was brief but he still got the experience of playing soccer in a different league and culture.