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Morning MLS Ticker: Seattle addresses Montero absence, Rapids top Sounders and more

FredyMontero (AP)

Fredy Montero is on his way back to Seattle.

At least that's what Seattle Sounders FC general manager Adrian Haunauer was saying late on Thursday when asked about the Colombian striker's absence.

"Fredy Montero traveled to South America to complete some personal administrative details that required the player's attention prior to the start of the MLS season," Hanauer told the Seattle Times on Thursday. "The player's contract is finalized and there are no open issues.

Fredy is en route back to Seattle and we look forward to his participation in training later this week and on opening night."

Rapids top Sounders

The Seattle Sounders lost their final tuneup match ahead of next week's MLS season opener, falling to the Colorado Rapids, 1-0, in a closed-door match.

Conor Casey converted the penalty kick he drew after being taken down in the area by an unidentified Seattle defender.

The Sounders were without Colombian strker Fredy Montero and No. 1 overall pick Steve Zakuani.

MLS News & Notes

The Columbus Dispatch is reporting that the Columbus Crew is close to a deal with the New York Red Bulls for defender Eric Brunner, who the Red Bulls still have the MLS rights to. … The Rapids added a defender on Thursday, signing former Rochester Rhinos left back Scott Palguta. A two-time trialist with the New York Red Bulls, Palguta is a left-footed defender who is more equipped to play in central defense in MLS than left back. …Chivas USA added a striker on Thursday, signing Mexican forward Eduardo Lillingston, who had been with The Goats all of pre-season. …D.C. United completed the signing of goalkeeper and 2009 MLS second-round draft pick Milos Kocic. …The Kansas City Wizards are likely to start the 2009 season without forward Adam Cristman, who has been sidelined by a foot injury. The Wizards are also still awaiting the paperwork of Argentine midfielder Santiago Hirsig to go through before he can officially become part of the Wizards roster. …

That's all for now. What do you think of these stories? Are you relieved to hear that Montero is expected back with Seattle soon? Will you believe it when he's actually on the field? As a Crew fan are you glad to see Eric Brunner potentially joining Columbus?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Right, so the opinion of NFL players- who are in a sport where the ball should never bounce off the ground- should be applied to soccer?

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  2. Ha! Remember when there was a ‘breaking’ news issued that Fredy Montero wasn’t on the roster and down in South America? Then people were jumping to conclusions and thinking that it was because he wasn’t getting enough money and its come-uppance for the field turf Seattle uses? Wasn’t that hilarious? Well, now that its all settled we can still go off on how much we hate Seattle for their blasted field turf and their impressively attractive fan base. Those suave jerks! Nowhere near as great as people that live in Portland, where their only claim to fame is being located near the city where Goonies was filmed.

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  3. I hate, in this order:

    1-SSFC

    2-Chivas

    3-C.Rapids

    4-Revs

    5-LA

    6-DCU

    7-TFC

    8-SJ

    9-Houston

    10-Chitcago

    11-Cowlumbus

    12-FCD

    13-KC

    14-RBNY

    15-Phili

    16-Vancouvour

    17-Portland

    Go back to the USL.

    Posted by: NONAME | March 12, 2009 at 07:14 PM

    *********

    Noname, you Portscum idiot. How can Portscum even make your list, since they don’t exist, regardless of any recent vote? Oh, I guess they do exist (barely) back in USL, where you tell the Sounders to go? Idiot.

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  4. lassidawg, i said before, that you didnt read, i respect the team and the FO, but dont like how the fans defend the turf that the team will play on, and can sit there and try to justify WCQ on the same surface.

    As a revs fan the turf is the thing i hate the most about games i go to see. It won’t stop me from going, but I will never think it is a good surface and would never want our nat’l team to play in foxboro as long as there is turf there.

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  5. Jesse, I’m aware of what the Sounders are saying– what, you expect them to bash their new home? FieldTurf is still FieldTurf. It’s an improvement, and the more layers you put underneath the better, but still NOWHERE near grass.

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  6. Ask any Sounders fan if we’d rather have grass than our current turf and of course we’d say yes. Having said that, the barely noticeable difference isn’t worth the whole hubbub with the Seahawks. Atleast right now it isn’t. We’re just happy that our club is off on the right foot, maybe giving us the possibility of getting a SSS later.

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  7. I don’t know how many times Sounders fans have to come on here and scream that Qwest fieldturf is not the same as the green concrete in Giants Stadium before people believe it. No, it’s not grass. For sure, it does play better than Toronto, NY, Foxboro, etc….

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  8. lassidawg, I agree that a team’s surface is no reason to hate them. However, after years of watching Metrostars/Red Bulls games, I assure you it makes a BIG difference. You still get ridiculous bounces and the ball skids all over the place when its wet. FieldTurf just plays a lot different than grass. Personally, I think MLS needs to pass a grass only rule so Seattle and Toronto will be forced to eventually convert.

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  9. i dont think any sounders fans have delusions of being the top team this year. we are just excited to have a team that actually has some support from the owners and a staff that is making good decisions for the team. they are not afraid to pull the trigger when it comes to filling the roster. unlike all our other teams that have just left us disappointed year after year.
    my whole life has involved the questioning of the owners and managers of the hawks, M’s or supes, and so far, the sounders have been doing nothing but making us happy. win or lose, we are psyched.

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  10. Thanks for the good laugh, hating a team because of the surface they play on. I will bet you don’t even notice much of a difference. The way pro grass fields are cut they might even play faster than the turf in Seattle. We aren’t talking the old concrete turf where the ball won’t stop and the ball is constantly bouncing.

    It is mainly jealousy of all the coverage the team is getting, and maybe it is overblown just a little. Like I keep saying I am looking forward to having a real team to follow again.

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  11. lets not let one idiot sour sounders fc relationship with ives. i know personally i hold ives reporting with the highest regard and the fact that montero didn’t come back to seattle is a big deal, whether we want to admit it or not. his arrangement is shaky and i think the question does need to be raised until he is actually in seattle

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  12. I don’t think you’ll ever hear a Sounders (or RSL or TFC) fan say that synthetic turf is the optimal playing surface. But, its cheaper, and for a sport that is still gaining a foothold here its a decent solution. Is it the worst thing in the world? Nope. Does it warrant an unbridled hatred? Nope. In the world of synthetic turfs is it probably the best? Yup. Its asinine to justify the smack talk over the type of turf.

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  13. brant- clearly he’s referring to all the times NJRB were interested in players that Columbus had the rights to and they told them to take a flying leap…. oh wait, was that columbus?? 😀

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  14. As an organization i like the sounders and what they have been doing my vitriol comes from the fans defending the synthetic turf.

    Everywhere i turn i hear a supporter saying “its just a good as grass” “the team has no complaints”

    Sounders supporters are the only ones in MLS that actually think turf is a good thing, every other supporter i’ve ever heard hates it.

    And the players arent’ going to bite the hand that feeds them.

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  15. I’ve never had a problem with what Ives has reported, just what some of the people on the blog go off on. Granted the post did lead a few people to jump the gun, but it happens on blogs

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  16. @ Adam R, who said “Payback is a bitch.”

    Payback for what? Beating a team that was lucky to make the playoffs and lost in the title game to the team that was the best in the league all year?

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  17. Listen folks, Montero was gone and now he’s supposedly on his way back. Yes, the original post might have scared some folks, but I felt it was a fair question, and will remain one until Montero is actually back and with the team.

    As for the smack talker who decided to open his mouth, I’m not sure what alternate reality he was coming from but I have never had an issue with the Montero signing. It’s one of the best signings of the MLS off-season. I have never said otherwise.

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  18. ST Sounder –

    I don’t think we should bash Ives too hard. I’m sure he’d be the first to admit he might have overplayed the implication that the Montero trip was anything more than the club said it was. Ives gets its right way more than he gets it wrong. Besides, this is a blog. This isn’t something that would ever get printed in a newspaper, but blogs are allowed a little more speculation on the part of the author. That means they sacrifice a little accuracy sometimes in the name of interesting content.

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  19. The Red Bulls aren’t going to give Brunner up without holding up Columbus and getting more than he is worth out of them.

    Payback is a bitch.

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  20. Hey SeaTac,

    Maybe you should go back and read Ives first article where he first mentioned this and click the link to the Seattle Times where this was mentioned.

    “The Seattle Sounders’ leading forward has left the club to return to South America, where reports say he is dealing with contract issues.”

    Ives certainly isn’t a’homer’….well maybe a little bit.

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  21. Yeah there is a lot of bile directed Seattle’s way. Is it the attention they have? The stadium they play in? The fact that they got Montero pretty cheap? If that’s the case lets all hate KC as well. I’m an RSL fan and I’ve seen a definite slant against them on the soccer blogs.

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  22. Hey SeaTac,

    You need to chill out on Ives. There definitely was something there (hopefully, there isn’t any more and whatever issues are fully resolved). If you choose to completely believe the corporate spin, go right ahead.

    And in case you’re questioning my motives, I grew up in Seattle as a little kid, cheering the old Sounders so I’m probably as vested in Montero being committed to Seattle as much as you are.

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  23. “Hopefully the Montero situation is nothing.”

    There is no Montero situation. This originated in the overactive imagination of a a soccer reporter who has had issues with Montero coming here all along. (Jealousy? Homerism?)

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  24. “If you are a Columbus fan who is glad to see Brunner part of the Crew… you have problems.

    Posted by: Trex | March 13, 2009 at 09:52 AM ”

    Based on what exactly? He will be a backup, we have our starters, and he gets a chance to develop at home.

    This comment sounds like a bitter RB fan.

    I’m excited to possibly add depth as a Crew fan.

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  25. Hopefully the Montero situation is nothing. But at least they have a signed contract, so if a bigger club tries to grab him there’ll be some compensation coming back.

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  26. I hope the Sounders are correct (Montero coming back) because it’s more important to have young internationals than over the hill stars. I hope Hanauer pays him what he’s worth to keep him. MLS must do this at some time, why not now.

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  27. Wow, I’m no Seattle supporter (support DCU in MLS), but the level of vitriol directed at them is pretty remarkable, for having never played an official MLS match…

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  28. First!

    Relieved that Montero is indeed going to be in Seattle after all. He’s just the kind of young, exciting talent MLS needs, and is getting, more of.

    MLS is improving year after year. Can’t wait for Opening Night!

    Reply

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