Columbus Crew SC completed the signing of U.S. youth international goalkeeper Zack Steffen on Friday.
Steffen, 21, joined German club Freiburg after leaving the University of Maryland in 2014. He played with the club's reserve side last season and had been expected to be their No. 3 goalkeeper this year as Freiburg were promoted to the top flight.
Instead, he will return to the U.S. with Columbus, where he will compete with veteran goalkeeper Steve Clark.
"Zack is a talented goalkeeper with great potential and someone who has performed on the biggest stages for the United States youth national teams," Columbus coach Gregg Berhalter said in a statement.