Just days after helping the Seattle Sounders win the club’s first MLS Cup in franchise history, a slew of key players could find themselves playing for an expansion franchise in 2017.
The Sounders on Monday released their list of players left unprotected for Tuesday’s MLS Expansion Draft, and the list includes several players who played key roles in the title run, including forward Nelson Valdez, midfielders Andreas Ivanschitz and Erik Friberg and defender Tyrone Mears.
The Sounders opted to protect the following 11 players, making them ineligible for the Expansion Draft: Stefan Frei, Tyler Miller, Tony Alfaro, Joevin Jones, Chad Marshall, Roman Torres, Osvaldo Alonso, Cristian Roldan, Brad Evans, Nicolas Lodeiro and Clint Dempsey.