Sounders lock up three locally grown players in Cristian Roldan, Danny Leyva, and Jordan Morris
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA – As the Club World Cup fast approaches and the Sounders gear up for a season in which they are trying to prolong their contending window, Seattle has extended three locally developed players. Midfielder Cristian Roldan and forward Jordan Morris have both signed five-year extensions with the rave green, making it entirely possible that the two will spend the entirety of their league careers with one club, a seemingly rare feat in today’s age. Danny Leyva has signed a four-year extension with the club, having first joined Seattle’s academy back in 2017.
Seattle will retain a key winger in Morris and an early season MVP candidate from last year in Roldan, but the club are banking on both to see better overall seasons in 2023 and beyond. The Sounders are hoping to find more creative ways to deploy their youth, whether that will be on their first team or in a loan, a crossroads that we will see Leyva sent down. The Sounders now have the three players under club control through 2027.
Cristian Roldan looks to make a pass up field (Photo by Jane Gershovich)
Cristian Roldan: Born in California, adopted by Seattle
Cristian Roldan is the player that has the highest chance of making his extension the most valuable of all. Roldan was playing at an MVP level this season prior to a bit of a slump in the middle of the season while also dealing with an injury during the 2022 campaign. The older of the two Roldan brothers, Cristian’s play in the midfield for Seattle has been critical to properly executing their attack and we saw that even this season when the Sounders offense lacked much of a punch at all.
Roldan’s usage and underlying stats were at the top of the league, and if he can sustain that next season, Seattle will have two of the top midfielders in all of MLS. Getting Joao Paulo back healthy will help the entire club, but allowing Roldan to play without so much of that responsibility that he had when Paulo was injured allows things to flow far more freely. Roldan spoke about his extension with local media prior to the deals being officially announced by the Sounders.
“There was interest, but I always felt that I wanted to be here. It was outside noise. In the end, we sorted out something that I think we’re both really happy with. I’ve said it many, many times, this is my home. This is where I’ve matured and how I’ve been received has been incredible and tremendous. To be able to be here five more years is pretty special”
Danny Leyva looks on (Photo by Jane Gershovich)
Danny Leyva: A statement of confidence for the future
The young midfielder born in Nevada, Leyva saw the most minutes that he has ever recorded in the 2022 campaign for Seattle. Considering the massive loss of Joao Paulo to injury, as well as the Sounders wanting to get their youth more involved, Leyva saw starting action in 12 matches and appeared in 19. While his stats really didn’t impress (two assists, eight shots, and an 86.4% passing percentage), Leyva was the third highest rated player in the midfield. Behind Nicolas Lodeiro and Albert Rusnak, it also wasn’t like the Seattle midfield played well at all this past season.
After the final match of the regular season for the Sounders, Seattle head coach Brian Schmetzer stated that the club must do a better job of integrating their youth into first team play next season. Leyva may be part of that, but with the return of Paulo as well as Obed Vargas from injury in addition to the starting roles of Rusnak and Lodeiro, we may could see him loaned. There are currently no developments on Leyva being loaned, but the extension given to him makes it more possible than before. Regardless, the club giving Leyva an extension of this length is an obvious statement of faith in the young midfielder.
Jordan Morris chases down the ball (Photo by Lindsey Wasson)
Jordan Morris: Potential trip back to Europe on pause as Mercer Island man stays home
Jordan Morris may be the most divisive of the three players that received substantial extensions, due to a few factors. Considering his injury history, his still present desire to play in Europe, and his somewhat inconsistent performance since MVP-like years in 2016, 2019, and 2020, it’s a minor gamble. On the other side of that, note the last piece of that sentence and Morris’ loyalty to the club. Morris discussed that loyalty with the local media prior to the extensions becoming official.
“The designation doesn’t matter, I’m here to help the team and do whatever I can to make the team better, so the designation definitely doesn’t matter. Things worked out to definitely make me feel valued here and I’m just excited”
When fully healthy, Jordan Morris has put up some outstanding campaigns and plays a key role in a Sounders attack alongside Raul Ruidiaz at the top. Keeping Morris healthy while also revitalizing this Sounders attack, something that Brian Schmetzer has said the club will do to generate more offense, will be critical towards making this extension worth it. Morris really failed to contribute as the season winded down, only finding the back of the net once in the final twelve matches.
What these mean for the club moving forward
As some of the very first extensions given out by somewhat-recently appointed general manager Craig Waibel, Seattle is putting their trust in Morris and Roldan to continue to be productive throughout their prime. Leyva is an interesting case as his contract still has the freedom for him to potentially be loaned out over the four years of his extension. These are all key moves and will prove to be solid for the club, with the possibility of becoming great decisions. Seattle still benefits greatly from making other additions like those they have been tied to this offseason, but getting their core unit back to form is a major step in yet another deep MLS playoffs run.