SEATTLE, WASH. - Seattle Sounders FC defender Chad Marshall has been voted the Etihad Airways Player of the Month for September. Marshall, whose selection directly follows Seattle midfielder Nicolás Lodeiro’s nod for August, becomes the first defender to win MLS Player of the Month since he claimed the award in August of 2009. With 30.66% of the vote, Marshall edged out New York City FC forward David Villa (29.94%), New York Red Bulls forward Bradley Wright-Phillips (18.43%), LA Galaxy forward Giovani dos Santos (14.74%) and Columbus Crew SC forward Ola Kamara (6.23%). After a break this week due to the FIFA international window, Marshall and Sounders FC are set to host the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday, October 12 (7:30 p.m. PT / JOEtv, Univision-Seattle, KIRO Radio 97.3 FM, El Rey 1360 AM).
Marshall played 90 minutes in all four of Seattle’s matches in the month of September, leading the Rave Green to a 3-0-1 record and a league-low three goals allowed. The 32-year-old Stanford product scored the lone goal in a 1-0 home win against the Chicago Fire on September 28, heading in an Andreas Ivanschitz corner-kick in the 24th minute to secure three points at home for Seattle. Currently amidst a four-match winning streak, Sounders FC has climbed to fifth place in the Western Conference with 44 points (13-13-5) and can clinch a spot in the 2016 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs with a win over Houston next Wednesday.
The only three-time MLS Defender of the Year in league history (2008, 2009, 2014), Marshall has been a stalwart on the back-line since joining the Rave Green in December 2013. This season, Marshall has started all 27 of his MLS appearances and matched a career-high with four goals, tied for the most among MLS defenders this season. The Riverside, California native was selected second overall in the 2004 MLS SuperDraft by Columbus, where he starred for 10 seasons, making over 250 appearances and winning an MLS Cup in 2008 before being traded to Seattle following the 2013 campaign. Marshall made an immediate impact with Sounders FC, as the Rave Green won the 2014 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and Supporters’ Shield, with Marshall earning his record-third MLS Defender of the Year trophy.
Voting for MLS Player of the Month presented by Etihad is open to public, with the five final nominees chosen by the MLSsoccer.com editorial staff.
Unbeaten in 11 of its 12 matches under Interim Head Coach Brian Schmetzer and a single win shy of clinching a playoff berth, Sounders FC hosts the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday, October 12 (7:30 p.m. PT / JOEtv, Univision-Seattle, KIRO Radio 97.3 FM, El Rey 1360 AM).
