Manor Solomon in action while playing for Israel during the UEFA Euro 2024 Qualifier, Israel v Andorra, at Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem, Israel on June 19, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

The English Premier League soccer club Tottenham Hotspur has officially signed Israeli star Manor Solomon on a five-year deal, the club announced on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old, who played last season on loan at the west London club Fulham, will join the team as a free agent.

“I’m so delighted and excited to be joining this fantastic football club,” Solomon said in a social media post, which includes a photo of him wearing his new Tottenham jersey. “It’s truly an honor to be here and I can’t wait to get started. to [sic] dare is to do!”

Solomon made 24 appearances and scored five goals while playing for Fulham last season, including goals in consecutive Premier League games and a Football Association Challenge Cup goal. He was nominated for the Premier League’s Player of the Month award for February.

The Israeli athlete began his professional soccer career playing for Maccabi Petah Tikva at the age of 17 in November 2016. He scored eight goals in 73 appearances with the team and moved to the Ukrainian soccer team Shakhtar Donetsk in January 2019. His contract with the latter was suspended when FIFA announced a new transfer regulation that would allow foreign players in Ukrainian and Russian teams to put their contracts on hold and play for other teams during the ongoing war between the two countries. FIFA recently extended that regulation through to the summer of 2024, which allows Solomon, who contract with Shakhtar expires at the end of this year, to move to a new team.

Shakhtar Donetsk is currently pursuing legal action against FIFA for losing its players during the war on Ukraine, the Associated Press reported.

Solomon made 106 appearances with Shakhtar and scored 22 goals. He won the domestic league title twice, along with Ukrainian Cup and Ukrainian Super Cup, and became the the youngest Israeli to score in the UEFA Champions League when he scored a goal in Shakhtar’s group-stage game against Atalanta in October 2019.