MLS Draft Gets Deeper as Michael Tetteh leaves UCSB for Generation Adidas Contract
by Dave Clark on Jan 5, 2011 10:15 AM PST
in Sounders: MLS Regular Season
Email
PrintIn light of the news that Michael Tetteh signed with MLS under the Generation Adidas program leaving UC-Santa Barbara with one year of eligibility it should be noted that the draft got a touch deeper today. The left-footed left midfielder/left wingback is a native of Ghana who played high school and college ball in California.
In high school he played all over the place, but had success as a forward. His 2010 season was a little off with injuries limiting playing time. In his three years on the team he tallied 6 goals and 8 assists in 59 matches played, with 50 of those as starts. Tetteh also earned several honors in 2009 with the Gauchos. His full bio is here.
CAREER STATISTICSYear MP MS G A P Shots GWG 2008 20 16 2 1 5 20 0 2009 24 22 1 5 7 33 0 2010 15 12 3 2 8 21 0 Totals 59 50 6 8 20 74 0
Ives points out in his post on the Tetteh signing that MLS and Adidas have been trying to sign him all year, and that Michael will be added to the Combine. An updated big board immediately puts Tetteh in the area where Seattle will pick at #12 for overall talent, so for Seattle at 11 he's an option. If there is a need on this team wingback depth would be it, with only James Riley having an even close to the speed and Leo Gonzalez having the ball control. Tyson Wahl and Zach Scott have proven themselves to be more fullbacks than wingbacks.
While his real MLS SuperDraft position will depend on his Combine performance, in tonight's SBN Mock Draft Tetteh immediately appears on my short list.
22 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
this now makes the draft really interesting for us
I read this and got pretty excited. Natural left foot, outside back, GA (!!!)…may be worth a deal to swap for a higher pick if we feel he may go before we pick. I suppose other teams would realize he would be of interest to us, as well…
Ampaipitakwong or Salgado (if we can move up)
It is good for the Sounders to be in a position where they can draft to increase their depth rather than look for someone to be plugged into the starting XI.
Adding another possible GA to our list would be great! I just hope we don’t make the mistake of drafting a young keeper. I am not sure that the draft is the best place to get our depth for GK.
I like the idea of taking Ampaipitakwong, Tetteh, AJ Soares or Salgado (we would probably have to move higher than 11 to get Salgado) over a really young keeper.
Nos audietis in somniis
Nos audietis in altum
I'd love to see Tetteh and Yedlin opposite each other
in a few years. Talk about killing them with speed.
Good news for the Sounders
He can add a lot of speed off the bench on the left side either as a wing-back or an outside midfielder. The fact that he will have a G.A. contract and could be an option for the 11th pick is good news for the Sounders. IMHO, he fills more of an immediate need than MacMath.
Agreed totally
A much as I like Leo he doesn’t seem to fit into the scheme.
It will be an interesting training camp for the LB
If he’s selected there’s going to be plenty of competition and somebody is going to be left out. AFAIK, both Earls and Tetteh will have contracts. So it could be a competition between Leo and Wahl to stay on the team if the team decides that 4 left-backs is one two many.
Wahl can slide back centrally as well
Leo up to LM or to CDM (as he did during the Open Cup once).
With 30 slots (or 34 if you count the IR) they can afford to have several LBs of differing styles.
I am not a Supporter | I am not a Fan | I am a Sounder
Sounder At Heart
Just guessing
But I seriously doubt they would cut someone like Wahl or Leo just because they are natural LBs when there are potentially other players on the roster who are more expendable.
Editor/writer at Sounder at Heart, North American soccer editor SB Nation and of course follow me on Twitter
by Jeremiah Oshan on Jan 5, 2011 12:06 PM PST up reply actions
imo
the only person i can really see Seattle cutting is Noonan
by gstommylee on Jan 5, 2011 12:50 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Hopefully...
From your keyboard to the F.O.’s ears…
by Dizzo on Jan 5, 2011 12:55 PM PST via mobile up reply actions
I'm honestly surprised they haven't already.
I wonder if he has a multi-season contract or something. I really thought he would have been put in the reentry draft. He’s pretty expensive given what he contributes.
he might still be on injury reserve
which could prevent us from offloading him..
just like twellman at NE, they had to wait for him to retire
i'm
kinda puzzled how that works when we are in the off-season. I understand if its in the middle of the season but off-season though.
I think there are a few candidates
By my count, the Sounders have 23 players on their senior roster, plus four more on the supplemental. They might not have to cut anyone, actually, but Noonan and Scott are probably the lowest guys on the totem pole.
Editor/writer at Sounder at Heart, North American soccer editor SB Nation and of course follow me on Twitter
by Jeremiah Oshan on Jan 5, 2011 1:01 PM PST up reply actions
Lowest
meaning most likely to be gone? Or highest to be staying?
I would assume he means most likely to be gone
since that is the theme of the thread…and “low man on the totem pole” is pretty self explanatory.
Thanks I
making sure i was reading it right. I always thought Scott was pretty much safe given the lack of decent to quality RB in depth. Of course Seattle could draft a RB for depth then cut Scott.
Get an Akron player
I would like to see Seattle take Akrons Michael Nanchoff or Anthony Ampaipitakwong. I doubt Nanchoff will be left at pick number 12, but there is a chance Ampai will be there. Ampai is a very good player, at Akron he lead the team in touches nearly every game and was the key part in possession for Akron’s 2010 national championship. I believe he would be a great fit for Seattle.
Welcome Zip
There’s a good shot we draft an Akron player, just because there’ll be so many in the first round.
If we’re playing both Zakuani and Ampaipitakwong can we pencil you in as a Sounders fan?
Also, what does the talent pipeline look like for next year? Can Porter actually replace half his starting roster in one year and still compete?
Nos Audietis
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
Related FanPosts on Sounder At Heart
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
