SEATTLE — The Seattle Sounders’ signing of South Korean defender Kim Kee-hee on Tuesday may not have happened without the help of a certain familiar forward almost 6,000 miles away.
Kim and former Sounders scoring machine Obafemi Martins played together for two seasons for Shanghai Greenland Shenhua in the Chinese Super League. Kim joined in 2016 from K League 1 side Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, while Martins headed to Asia after three wildly successful seasons in Rave Green. Martins tallied 40 goals from 2013-15, good for third in club history, and helped Seattle capture the 2014 MLS Supporters’ Shield.