Date of birth: 29/07/1979
Place of birth: Paris, France
Height/weight: 183 cm / 79 kg
Position: Right winger
Former clubs: Red Star Paris, Club Meaux (France), Club Africain (Tunisia), Bodø/Glimt, Tromsø
League games/goals 2005: 21 / 1
League games/goals in Norway: 94 / 6
International caps/goals: 6 / 0
"Of course I am pleased! Rosenborg are the greatest club in Norway and Scandinavia, and I am looking forward to the challenges I will get there. I feel comfortable by playing under Per-Mathias Høgmo, and even though he knows me well, I will have to work even harder than before," Essediri tells Trondheim daily Adresseavisen.
The 26-year-old is now on christmas holiday home in Paris, but did visit Trondheim and Rosenborg last week.
"I was really, really impressed. There is no doubt that this is a great club," he tells Tromsø daily Nordlys.
It is not known how much RBK pay for the winger with the good cross balls. Essediri did not want to sign a new, extended contract with Tromsø, who then let him negotiate with Rosenborg. RBK's first bid of aprox. 250,000 Euros was rejected by the Northlanders on Tuesday, but the negotiations did continue. Rosenborg probably ended up paying a transfer fee of aprox. 500,000 Euros.
Karim Essediri was signed by Tromsø in front of the 2001 season. Despite of being a regular, he was loaned to Bodø/Glimt the next season, before returning to the "Nordic Paris". His big breakthrough came in 2004, being coached by Høgmo. This led to his debut on Tunisian national team, and he is likely to represent his parents' native country in the World Cup this summer.
The signing of Essediri may indicate that Alexander Ødegaard is on his way away from Rosenborg. He has been kind of a fiasco at Lerkendal after being signed from Sogndal for 1.25 millions Euros last year. Viking Stavanger are one of the clubs interested in signing Ødegaard.
Rosenborg's interest for Patrice Bernier has by the way decreased. Essediri's team-mate is quite simply too expensive, since Tromsø are said to insist on a 2.5 million Euros price tag.
PS! As was the case with Lars Hirschfeld, Essediri is "cup tied" after competing with Tromsø and will not be able to play for RBK in the UEFA Cup this season.
