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Kelvin Leerdam has signed a three-year contract with Inter Miami after they acquired his MLS rights from the Seattle Sounders in exchange for a combined total of $75,000 in General Allocation Money that will be spread out between this season and next. The Sounders had declined Leerdam’s contract option at the end of last season.
“We’d like to thank Kelvin for four memorable seasons in Seattle,” Sounders General Manager & President of Soccer Garth Lagerwey said in a team statement. “His quality of play, in addition to his tactical acumen and professionalism off the field were key to our success over the last few years. We wish him the best of luck in the next chapter of his career down in Miami.”
Leerdam joined the Sounders midway through 2017 and quickly established himself as one of the league’s top right backs. Over the course of four seasons, he had 9 goals and 12 assists in regular-season play. He also scored the opening goal of the Sounders’ MLS Cup victory in 2019.
Beyond the offensive contributions, Leerdam was also a solid defender and a clever tactician. Leerdam’s ability to pick out the right times to join the attack were instrumental to the Sounders’ success. The Sounders averaged 1.82 points per game in his starts and were +.72 net goals per 90 minutes better when he was on the field than when he was off.
Although Leerdam’s underlying metrics were among his best ever last year, the 30-year-old was apparently deemed expendable after the emergence of Alex Roldan as a viable option at right back. Roldan will likely make close to the MLS minimum while Leerdam was making more than $600,000 a year the last time the players’ union released salary data in 2019.
Leerdam competed for the The Netherlands as a youth international but has recently been cleared to start competing for the Suriname national team.
Leerdam is the second former Sounder to join Inter Miami since Chris Henderson took over as Sporting Director.
“Kelvin is a dynamic, attacking full back with a lot of winning experience in this league,” Henderson said in a statement. “He is a great addition to our roster and we are looking forward to integrating him to the team following his national team duties.”