Sounders lose out on Japanese transfer target

There was a chance, ever dwindling as the days went by, that Garth Lagerwey could nab transfer target Hiroshi Kiyotake in the current transfer window. That chance ended today as Sevilla FC sold the Japanese star to Cerezo Osaka.

C Osaka finished fourth in the Japanese second division earning promotion to the J-League for 2017. They are bolstering their squad with a player that succeeded in the Bundesliga and was a fringe talent on one of Spain’s best teams. Kiyotake played for C Osaka in 2010 and is looking to return them to their success (3rd in the league, just behind town rivals Gamba Osaka).

Sevilla was looking for a €6 million transfer, but may have taken less in order to sell Kiyotake to his homeland.

The Seattle Sounders still have space to add a Designated Player, though that player is likely to come in the secondary transfer window later this year in order to maximize the available targeted and general allocation money. If the Sounders were willing to pay that much for Kiyotake, it gives them a significant war chest to play with in acquiring that player. That transfer fee would have been sixth in MLS history, right between Clint Dempsey and Nicolas Lodeiro.