The Rave Green are in for a painful season, if they don’t make any specific additions to their roster for the upcoming season.
The Seattle Sounders have a very thin squad with just 19 players on their roster, to add insult to injury only one of them is an out and out center back.
Sounders are permitted to start their preseason training camp for the CONCACAF champions league on 11th of January.
A statement from the Major League Soccer said, “The five MLS clubs in the CONCACAF Champions League will get an early start to preseason training camp, beginning just 11 days into the new year. All other MLS clubs can kick off as early as January 18.”
The defending MLS champs have around a month to turn their fortunes and revamp their squad before they kick start preseason training camp.
The men from Seattle have several problems all over the pitch, but none bigger than the one at the back.
The trio of Roman Torres, Xavier Arreaga and Kim Kee Hee competed for the two available spots at the back last season, often rotated and used based on the requirement.
Kim and Torres’s partnership in the final against a pacey Toronto team played an important role in Seattle clinching the championship.
Korean International Kim’s 1.7 interceptions per game and Panama Skipper Torres’s 4.2 clearances per game played a key role in Seattle being crowned the best in the league.
Kim’s contract with the club expired, making him a free agent for the time being.
Torres’s four-year stint with the club also came to an end after the title winning season.
Kim could once again be seen in the Rave Green of the Sounders if he puts pen to paper with the Seattle franchise.
Given that, the Sounders are just left with one out and out center back, leaving the ball club to desperately search for a center back partner for Xavier Arreaga.
It will be tough ask for the Sounders to replace both these experienced heads in the span of a month.
In a surprising turn of events, MVP winner from last season’s MLS cup Victor Rodriguez has left to the club as well.
Rodriguez’s nine goals and 10 assists in league stage and one goal and two assists in the playoffs helped the men in green clinch the trophy.
Rodriguez was versatile when he played in the raven green, playing in all three positions behind the striker.
It will be tough for the Seattle franchise to replace his numbers, his versatility and his creativity.
Besides these positions, the Sounders need back up options up front, at the center of the pitch and at right back.
Speaking in terms of pure numbers, courtesy of these three departures Sounders have lost 25 goal involvements.
Given the situation, it will be an uphill task for the sounders to retain their title.
Naga Prudhvi Panguluri can be reached at [email protected].