The day before they take on the Portland Timbers in the Rose City, the Sounders acquired former Seattle Pacific University star and one-time U.S. international goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann, 40, Friday via allocation.
The Sounders obtained the No. 1 selection in Major League Soccer’s allocation process from Toronto FC in exchange for a conditional draft pick. Hahnemann. a Seattle native will be added to the roster pending receipt of his international transfer clearance.
“Adding Marcus for the final stretch gives us experience and quality on and off the field to supplement our current core of goalkeepers,” Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid said in a club statement.
Hahnemann returns to MLS after 13 years and more than 300 appearances in the English Premier League for Fulham FC, Reading FC, Wolverhampton and most recently for Everton FC. He also has nine caps for the U.S. National Team and was a member of the 2006 and 2010 World Cup teams.
“This is where I started my career and I wanted to finish here,” said Hahnemann. “This is what we’ve always dreamed would happen in Seattle, and what I always wanted when I was here.”
Hahnemann began his MLS career in 1997 with the Colorado Rapids. He played three seasons, posting a 39-25 record in 66 appearances, before joining Fulham in 1999.
Hahnemann moved to Reading where he became a mainstay for The Royals, making more than 250 appearances from 2002-2009 and helping the club gain promotion to the EPL in 2005-06. Hahnemann also played for Wolverhampton from 2009-11, and with Everton from 2011-12.
His professional career began with the A-League Sounders in 1994 after a prolific career at SPU, where he was a three-time All-America and helped SPU to the 1993 Division II National Championship.
The 6-foot-3, 220-pound goalkeeper was an All-Star in his rookie year and led the Sounders to the A-League title in 1996.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="2114929 http://sounders.sportspressnw.com/?p=2114929">2 Comments
Welcome home, Marcus. You’ll see things have changed a bit since you played in front of 3,000 people rattling around Memorial Stadium during the A-League days…your new bosses have done a masterful job of selling Championship-level soccer in Seattle: Think of it as playing against teams like Milwall or Burnley but in front of Premiership crowds.
Welcome home, Marcus. You’ll see things have changed a bit since you played in front of 3,000 people rattling around Memorial Stadium during the A-League days…your new bosses have done a masterful job of selling Championship-level soccer in Seattle: Think of it as playing against teams like Milwall or Burnley but in front of Premiership crowds.