As expected, the Sounders FC didn’t make many roster changes heading into the offseason. The club announced Tuesday it exercised the 2023 contract options of multiple players to have 23 under contract.
There could still be movement via trades and as MLS on-boards St. Louis City SC with an expansion draft in November. Seattle can protect 12 players in addition to those tagged as Homegrowns. If St. Louis picks an unprotected player, the team will be paid $50,000 in General Allocation Money (GAM).
The Sounders expect to open training camp Jan. 4 to begin the 2023 campaign with the FIFA Club World Cup. The Rave Green advanced to the tournament by winning the CONCACAF Champions League title, the first MLS club to do so.
But the club failed to advance to the league postseason, ending a then-record 13-year streak of playoff appearances. MLS Supporters’ Shield-winning Los Angeles FC and Austin FC will vie for the Western Conference championship at Banc of California Stadium on Sunday at noon PT on ABC.
Garth Lagerwey, the Sounders’ general manager and president of soccer, noted his team earning a place in history this season but, he said in a news release, “that does not take away the disappointment of missing the postseason for the first time in club history, and we are already amid preparations to bounce back in 2023.”
The Sounders declined the contract options of 12-year league veteran forward Will Bruin and Homegrown midfielder Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez. Left fullback Jimmy Medranda and club original Fredy Montero are out-of-contract, but the Sounders remain in active negotiations with Montero.
Sam Adeniran, a forward who was sent on loan to USL championship side San Antonio FC, will determine his outlook with the Sounders after San Antonio’s postseason run.
Seattle exercised their 2023 options for forward Jordan Morris, midfielder Josh Atencio, defender AB Cissoko, midfielder Danny Leyva, defender Jackson Ragen, midfielder Dylan Teves, and keeper Andrew Thomas. The Sounders had 16 players already under contract for the 2023 season in defender Xavier Arreaga, (although he’s expected to go on loan to a club in his native Ecuador), midfielder Cristian Roldan, striker Raul Ruidiaz, defender Nouhou, midfielder Albert Rusnak, defender Joao Paulo, keeper Stefan Frei, midfielder Nico Lodeiro, defender Yeimar Gomez Andrade, keeper Stefan Cleveland, defender Alex Roldan, forward Leo Chu, midfielder Reed Baker-Whiting, midfielder Kelyn Rowe, midfielder Obed Vargas, and midfielder Ethan Dobbelaere.
Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer has already begun evaluating training plans to optimize success for what is expected to be another grueling schedule in 2023. A few months after the CCL win, the technical staff reduced the volume of trainings and increased the intensity. Schmetzer said he wished he would have made that adjustment a month earlier.
“We’ll look at that,” Schmetzer said when asked if the strategy could be carries through a whole season. “We’ll need them to have a very good base of fitness when they come in on Jan. 4 so their offseason is going to be very important for the players. Our fitness guys have given each player a specific, individually tailored to them fitness plan for the offseason and it’s our expectation that they follow that.”