MLS Seattle Sounders FC

Sounders FC News & Notes

Published on January 24, 2012 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Seattle Sounders FC News Release


Gary Wright Honored as Seattle Sports Executive of the Year

Gary Wright, Sounders FC Senior Vice President of Business Operations, will be honored as Sports Executive of the Year on Wednesday night at the 77th Annual Seattle Sports Star of the Year Awards. With Wright's guidance, Sounders FC has set Major League Soccer season attendance records and excelled in the areas of merchandise sales, corporate sponsorships and local broadcast ratings. In 2009 Wright was named the MLS Executive of the Year.

The club also received a nomination for Sports Story of the Year for winning their third straight U.S. Open Cup. And Kasey Keller received a nomination for Professional Sports Star of the Year as he completed his 20-year professional career as the MLS Goalkeeper of the Year in 2011.

The complete list of awards and nominees can be found by visiting SeattleSports.org. Winners will be announced during the show on Wednesday, January 25, 2012, at Benaroya Hall in downtown Seattle.

Roster Breakdown: New Look Rave Green

Offseason departures and player acquisitions have lead to a new look roster for the 2012 season. Five players new to Sounders FC hope to make a positive impact as they join the 23 returnees in preseason camp. Draft picks, trialists and invitees fill out the group of nearly 40 training camp participants.

Quick Facts:

-There are currently 28 players on the Sounders FC roster

-Nine players were with the team during the inaugural season in 2009

-With the addition of four internationals, half of the players are foreign

-The average age of the group is 25. Defender Zach Scott is the oldest at age 31 and newcomer Cordell Cato is the youngest at 19.

-Twelve players are primarily midfielders with eight defenders and five forwards. The three goalkeepers round out the group.

Seattle Newcomers: First-year Sounders Known to Make a Mark

Just three years in to Major League Soccer and the Seattle staff has already brought in two Newcomers of the Year, and more are expected to challenge for the honors in 2012.

In 2009 it was the crafty young Colombian Fredy Montero who burst onto the MLS scene with 12 goals and seven assists on his way to Newcomer of the Year. Two years later the creative Argentine Mauro Rosales ran away with the award after scoring five goals and serving a club record 13 assists in his 26 appearances.

The 2012 season will bring similar opportunity for a handful of Sounders FC players new to MLS. Goalkeeper Michael Gspurning will be Seattle's primary netminder and Swedish international Adam Johansson will join the defensive efforts on the backline. Danish midfielder Christian Sivebaek is expected to see time on the wing and speedy youngster Cordell Cato will join the group up top.

Road to Recovery: Players on the Mend

Often the best cure for injuries is time, and with over two months of offseason rest and rehab several Sounders FC players are readying to make their return.

Most notable is the electrifying left winger Steve Zakuani, who has spent the past nine months recovering from a broken leg. Zakuani trained for the full session on the first day of camp; his first full-out effort since last April. Fellow teammate O'Brian White has also dealt with health issues since April and continues to recover from a blood clot in his leg.

Other Sounders FC players are further along in the recovery process. Mauro Rosales, who missed most of the final seven matches last season with a knee injury, has been in full training every day. Midfielders Brad Evans and Alvaro Fernandez have also recovered from injuries that forced them out of the final playoff game last season.

International Success: Two Sounders Earn Caps in Wins

Two Sounders FC players appeared in international friendlies for their national teams last week. Brad Evans was a late substitute for the U.S. in a dramatic 1-0 win over Venezuela. Evans took the field in the 88th minute and Ricardo Clark's game-winner was scored in stoppage time. Teammate Jeff Parke was on the bench for the match and will continue to wait for his international debut. The U.S. travels to Panama City for a friendly against Panama on Wednesday.

Swedish defender Adam Johansson started and played 90 minutes in Sweden's 2-0 win over Bahrain last week. It was Johansson's 10th international cap. Sweden's second friendly, scheduled for Monday against Qatar, was postponed and the team played Qatar's U23 squad instead. Johansson played the second half in Sweden's 5-nil victory (all five goals were scored in final 45 minutes).

Evans, Parke and Johansson will meet Sounders FC in Arizona for training camp next week.

Sounders FC Signs Trinidad & Tobago U20 Forward

Seattle Sounders FC have signed forward Cordell Cato, it was announced today. Cato will be officially added to the Sounders FC roster upon receipt of his P-1 Visa and International Transfer Clearance (ITC). Per Major League Soccer and club policy, terms were not disclosed.

Cato, 19, is a native of Trinidad and Tobago and was chosen to his country's squad for the 2011 CONCACAF U-20 Championships. He most recently played with Port of Spain's Defence Force FC. Cato joined that club as a youth before later moving to San Juan Jabloteh FC.

Cato had trained with Sounders FC last summer.

Sounders FC Adds Five Players in MLS Supplemental Draft

Seattle Sounders FC selected four players in last week's Major League Soccer Supplemental Draft. In a related move, Seattle also acquired the rights to UCLA midfielder Andy Rose from Real Salt Lake in exchange for the rights to defender Leone Cruz, taken 21st overall in 2011 MLS SuperDraft. Rose was taken by Salt Lake with the 6th overall selection in the 2012 Supplemental Draft.

Defender Tim Pontius of the University of California-Santa Barbara was taken with Seattle's top pick (33rd overall) and midfielder Jason Banton of the Liverpool reserves was chosen with its second pick (34th overall). Seattle selected University of Washington forward Abdul Aman in the third round (53rd overall) and Cal Poly defender Wes Feighner with its final pick (72nd overall).

Rose, 21, played four seasons at UCLA. A native of England, the holding midfielder was named to the All-Pac-10 Conference First Team in 2010 and 2011. He started all 24 appearances as a senior and started 73 of 81 appearances in his college career, scoring five goals and adding 11 assists.

Pontius, 22, played four seasons at UCSB, making 34 starts in his 72 appearances. He was named to the All-Big West First Team as a senior when he started a career-high 20 games and scored three goals and one assist. Pontius is the younger brother of D.C. United forward Chris Pontius.

Banton, 19, played for England at the U-17 level and made his professional debut with League Two side Burton Albion in October 2011. He played in the youth systems of Arsenal, Blackburn Rovers and Liverpool before signing with Leicester City in July 2011.

Aman, 22, played one season for the Huskies, scoring two game-winning goals, and started six of his 14 appearances. Before joining UW, Aman played one season at Whatcom Community College in 2009 and was named the NWAACC North MVP after leading the league in scoring with 27 goals. He spent the 2008 season at Clarke University in Dubuque, Iowa, where he started 15 of 17 appearances, scoring 12 goals with five assists.

Feighner, 21, made 69 appearances for Cal Poly during his four-year college career. He was a second team All-Big West defender as a senior as he led the Mustangs to a 0.90 goals against average and seven shutouts. Feighner was part of the U-17 National Team in 2007.

Seattle had traded its 15th overall supplemental pick to Chicago in August for rights to Sammy Ochoa and acquired the 33rd overall selection from Dallas (originally Colorado) for Chris Seitz last year.

Prior to the supplemental draft, Sounders FC had selected two players in the MLS SuperDraft on January 12.

Throw-ins

Santos Laguna, Seattle's opponent in next March's CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals, are currently level on points with Club Tijuana at the top of the Mexico Clausura championship (Tijuana top the early standings on goal differential). Santos defeated Jaquares, 1-0, over the weekend with Aaron Galindo scoring the winner in the 86th minute...Cordell Cato will wear No. 21 on his jersey...Sounders FC U16 and U18 Academy games scheduled for January 21 were postponed due to inclement weather...Sounders FC Academy keeper Paul Christensen will remain in the U17 Residency Program for the Spring Semester. Christensen, a Woodinville native, trains full-time in Bradenton, Fla....In Vancouver, the U.S. Women's National Team won its first two Olympic qualifiers in resounding fashion, 14-0 over the Dominican Republic and 13-0 against Guatemala. Already qualified for Thursday's semifinals, the U.S. faces Mexico on Tuesday night to decide the group winner...The kickoff for Seattle's game at Vancouver on May 19 has been changed to 2 p.m. PT.

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Major League Soccer Stories from January 24, 2012


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