There’s no question that the Seattle Sounders are in need of reinforcements. The team lacks an in-form striker, is struggling to generate chances from either the wings or the number 10, has no natural back-up to a starting left back who’s hardly been shining of late despite being given the captain’s armband, and in Cristian Roldan’s continued absence the midfield has felt particularly light weight. There are plenty of areas where new pieces are needed, and the window is open, so let’s start speculating.
The Sounders have open u22 spots and one available international spot, although additional international spots could be acquired. Until the club demonstrates that they’re willing to spend on transfer fees, we’ll operate on the assumption that they’re probably going to be focusing on free agents. There is still the possibility of paying a fee for a u22 player, but we’ll assume that would be an outlier and would have to be an almost sure-thing impact player. While we’ve heard from Craig Waibel that they’re looking for players, we haven’t gotten much indication of what positions or where they’re looking beyond mentions of a striker. As a result, striker is where we’ll be primarily focusing, followed by possibilities at winger, defensive midfield, and a possible left back option. Some of the players from similar pieces in the past may still be relevant, but I’ll try to avoid covering too much of the same ground. There are certainly domestic options, but for the sake of this piece we’re just looking abroad for reinforcements.
Strikers
Bamba Dieng
If there’s a possible home-run signing on this list, it’s Bamba Dieng. Dieng was at the World Cup with Senegal, although he only played 7 minutes during the opening game of the tournament against France and was one of the final cuts from my piece with Dave Clark on players the Sounders could keep an eye on at the tournament. The 26-year-old striker has essentially spent his entire professional career in France after moving from Senegalese side Diambars FC to Marseille back in 2020. Following a breakout season with Ligue 1 side FC Lorient in which he had 10 goals and 1 assist in about 1,200 league minutes and added another 5 goals in 3 games in the Coupe de France, Dieng is now a free agent. With a transfer value of $17 million according to Transfermarkt, he’s the highest-valued player on this list, and has been linked with moves to clubs throughout Europe. If Seattle were to try to sign him they’d face plenty of competition, but the pitch of a chance at being the star striker in Seattle with a chance for another move still in his future could be compelling.
If Dieng were to join the Sounders, they’d be getting a pure goal scorer. Not necessarily a poacher, but a player who does the bulk of and his best work in or around the confines of the penalty box. He is capable of opportunistic finishes, finding unorthodox touches to put the ball in the net from broken plays, as well as finding the right shot from 16 to 20 yards out. He can be lethal on counters and in transition, with a combination of technical skill and speed that makes him difficult to handle in open space. He’s not necessarily a player who creates chances, either for himself or his teammates, but he’s able to finish chances at a high level. He could be an immediate upgrade at striker, and even if he’s a free agent would be a signing that shows a lot of ambition if they could pull it off.
