Seattle Sounders: Move Brad Smith to defensive midfield
Brad Smith is currently playing left-back for the Seattle Sounders. If the Bournemouth loanee is signed permanently, however, his future lies as a defensive midfielder.
Brad Smith, left-back of the Seattle Sounders, wants to stay in Washington. But his contract runs out June 30, at which point he will return to parent club, Bournemouth. There is hesitance surrounding his future.
Neither the Seattle Sounders nor Smith should be faulted for their indecision. Nor any confusion. That’s because left-back isn’t his best position. What the winger produces befits a defensive midfielder.
Smith joined the team last August on loan from AFC Bournemouth and started six games, scoring an assist. This season, Smith has started the first four games of this season. He has already notched an assist. And all of this comes with his future heavily shrouded.
That fog extends to Smith’s style of play and where his effectiveness fits the 4-3-3 defensive scheme that Seattle relies on. Smith’s best game so far this season was a 4-2 win over the Chicago Fire. In that game, Smith had a tackle, won an aerial duel and dispossessed an opponent with 87 touches. He got his lone assist of the season. He also ranked among the top-five players in that game with possession as well. It was a complete performance.
The Sounders should work their deal to permanently sign Smith. His performances have demanded as much. But then they should move him permanently to where he belongs in their 4-3-3, the spot where he can benefit the team the most: defensive midfield.
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Smith has the strength and stamina to hold up in a central midfield position. His performances that excite scouts the most are those in which he looks like someone in that position.
A defensive midfielder must make support runs, win duels and stay in between the backline and attackers, in support of both. Smith likes to dribble and cross, fitting the profile of the position nicely. Those most acclaimed games by Smith are those when he performs just in that manner, as he did against the Fire, even though he is not playing in a defensive midfield role.
Overall, as a defender, the scouts remain unmoved. Their report says he has no significant strengths. But that’s because scouts don’t understand Smith’s situation as a defender. They’re in the same fog as he is about his contract situation.
Assessed as a defensive midfielder instead, dribbling as a necessary outlet to evade pressure and then delivering the ball to offensive midfielders and strikers, Smith’s value would become clear to everyone.
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The Seattle Sounders shouldn’t begin his transition before completing a favorable permanent transfer with Bournemouth, however. Too much uncertainty reigns at present. But if and when Smith is a confirmed Sounder, move him up the necessary yards. And then, everything well become clear.