The rumors about Garth Lagerwey’s future started swirling around the MLS landscape before Christmas, and the surprise name connected was Sounders FC.
Just over a month later, the former Real Salt Lake General Manager has officially joined the Sounders despite much interest from other clubs, taken in the MLS Combine and made a number of moves at the SuperDraft.
Signing on as Seattle’s General Manager and President of Soccer, Lagerwey is seeking to make the same impact he made in Utah, where he guided RSL to a 2009 MLS Cup win and established the club as a perennial contender.
“We are a team that’s pretty well established at this point, pretty well put together so I’m listening right now and I’m learning about how things are done here while trying to add some things that we did at RSL,” said Lagerwey following the SuperDraft in Philadelphia. “It’s all about blending those two things together and trying to get the best possible outcome.”
Moving up to 16th overall in the First Round to select the University of Washington’s Cristian Roldan, a Generation adidas player, Lagerwey and the rest of the Sounders FC Technical Staff made waves as the 19-year-old was previously touted to go in the top five. The trading trend continued in the Second Round with the decision to deal with New England and take goalkeeper Tyler Miller.
Being able to coordinate this kind of activity so early on in his tenure with the club, according to Lagerwey, is a very promising sign.
“You saw with the movement [at the SuperDraft], we were all over the board,” Lagerwey said of the first two rounds. “I thought we communicated very well through that process, especially in a high-stress environment. I think that bodes very, very well on the future in terms of our working relationship. I thought we made good decisions collectively considering the different viewpoints and that was very important to me coming in.”
After two weeks on the job, Lagerwey continues to engrain himself in the Seattle culture and understands part of that includes the droves of Sounders supporters ready to welcome him to the city.
“It’s really cool if they’re looking forward to seeing me and hearing from me,” Lagerwey said of the club’s supporters. “I look forward to meeting all of them. It’s a really exciting thing for me to come and join the Sounders when there is this understanding that it’s not just a club…there is a 40-year tradition here.”
He knows though that despite the rich history that the Sounders possess, the franchise has one glaring hole in its trophy case, an issue he hopes to rectify in the coming seasons.
“I’m just happy that I have the first week under my belt, we’ve got some players in now and we have a really good team. I’m just looking forward to working with everybody and hopefully getting everyone on the same page, march forward and take this thing over the top and win the whole thing.”
