Six Seattle Sounders were named among the top 50 players in Major League Soccer by MLSsoccer.com on Thursday.
Ahead of the 2020 MLS campaign, which marks the 25th season in league history, MLSsoccer.com has been rolling out content spotlighting the biggest stars in the game. The latest piece, highlighting and ranking the 50 best players in MLS, had a distinct Sounders flavor. The list was compiled by aggregating the individual rankings from each member of the site’s editorial team.
Key contributors to the spine of Seattle’s 2019 MLS Cup-winning team like Cristian Roldan (45), Stefan Frei (34) and Jordan Morris (30) all cracked the list. Although he’s yet to kick a ball in MLS regular season play, new Designated Player João Paulo has already turned plenty of heads across the league, earning the No. 42 spot on the list.
Two Sounders also managed to break into the top 15, putting Seattle level with LAFC and the LA Galaxy for most players ranked in the upper-echelon of the league. Striker Raúl Ruidíaz, who notched an absurd four goals and four assists in four playoffs games in 2019, came in at No. 11.
After leading the Sounders to three MLS Cup finals in four seasons, winning the trophy in 2016 and 2019, Nicolás Lodeiro was named the No. 3 player in the league.
“A wonderfully gifted playmaker, Lodeiro’s talent has been obvious to the world since making the move to Ajax and appearing in the 2010 World Cup for Uruguay,” the article said. “But in Seattle, Lodeiro has found his true home, repaying the Sounders with the best soccer of his career and two MLS Cups in four years.”
The Sounders face C.D. Olimpia in the Leg Two if their Concacaf Champions League Round of 16 series on at CenturyLink Field Thursday (7:00 p.m. PT; FS2 | TICKETS) before hosting the Chicago Fire in the club’s 2020 MLS home opener on Sunday (12:00 p.m. PT; ESPN, 950 KJR AM, El Rey 1360 AM | TICKETS).
You can view the full top 50 list here.
