Seattle Sounders MLS Cup 2016: Where are they now?
By Matt Coles
RW – Nicolas Lodeiro – Seattle Sounders
The first of the Seattle Sounders’ was Nicolas Lodeiro, who was playing in his first season with the side. He has since become one of Sounders’ most influential players. Lodeiro signed for Seattle midway through the 2016 campaign, scoring eight times and assisting eight more in 19 appearances. Lodeiro also scored in the penalty shootout in the final against Toronto.
The winger’s professional career started with Nacional in the Uruguayan Primera Division, where he won the league title, along with a Torneo Apertura and a Liguilla in his time there. Also during his three-year spell with the club, the winger made his international debut for Uruguay. He has gone on to play more than 60 times for his country, and he was part of the squad that won the 2011 Copa America.
Lodeiro then made the move to Ajax and won the Dutch Eredivisie in both 2010-11 and 2011-12, as well as winning the KNVB Cup in 2009-10. After spells with Botafogo and Corinthians in the Brazilian Serie A, the winger then spent a couple of years with Boca Juniors, where he helped the club win the Argentinian Primera Division and the Copa Argentina.
He moved to MLS midway through the 2016 campaign and instantly became an integral part of the Sounders’ starting line-up. Lodeiro has now played over 100 times for the Rave Green, scoring over 30 times, while adding a further 50 assists to the tally.