MLS released the list of players eligible for the Expansion Draft on Tuesday. Of the seven Seattle Sounders who are available, none should come as a huge surprise. Out of those seven players, only three are currently under contract.
The biggest names who were left exposed were Albert Rusnák, Raúl Ruidíaz and João Paulo. But all three of those players are free agents, which means even if they are picked they could still choose to return to the Sounders (or sign with any other team). Nathan is also out of contract, but is still one year shy of becoming a free agent.
That leaves Jon Bell, Danny Musovski and Braudilio Rodrigues, all of whom could potentially be attractive to San Diego for one reason or another. On paper, Bell is probably the most likely to be picked, as he is coming off a solid season as a backup defender, can play both centerback and left back, and is relatively cheap. Musovski was not particularly productive last year, but does have a solid resume and is also a relatively inexpensive backup attacking option. Braudilio has no MLS experience and would count as an international, but did showcase some significant upside during his time with Tacoma Defiance.
The list of protected players largely mirrors the one Sounder at Heart readers picked, with the most notable exception being Léo Chú. The Brazilian seemed to fall out of favor last year and only made two relatively brief appearances after the team returned from the Leagues Cup break. The Sounders likely protected Chú with the hope that they can ultimately transfer him out of the league and recoup some of their investment.
Sounders list of Expansion Draft eligible players
- Bell, Jonathan
- Rodrigues, Braudílio
- Paulo, João
- Musovski, Danny
- Nathan
- Ruidíaz, Raúl
- Rusnák, Albert
