RENTON – All offseason, rumors have been swirling about foreign interest in Obed Vargas. Some of Mexico’s biggest and most storied teams have apparently be inquiring about him and one report even suggested the Seattle Sounders had slapped a $10 million price tag on the 19-year-old Mexico international.
Vargas, who has always carried himself with a maturity beyond his years, says he’s doing his best not to get too wrapped up in them.
“It’s something you have to get used to,” Vargas said in Spanish and translated by Sounder at Heart. “I see things on social media that I have no idea about, that I’ve never heard of. I’m not sure where everybody gets all these rumors.
“But my mentality stays the same. It’s about giving my all day-to-day. I can’t get ahead thinking about offers or a transfer or there’s this certain amount of money being offered for me. Nothing’s really set in stone. It’s not really going to help me in my career.”
Coming off a season in which he had two goals and nine assists while playing about 3,300 minutes across all-competitions, Vargas says he’s mostly focused on having an even bigger influence on the team.
“I want to get more assists, get more goals, get more involved in the attacking third,” he said. “I want to improve my soccer IQ, that’s a big thing.”
Vargas is taking a similarly level-headed approach to his future. While most of the rumors of interest seem to be coming from Mexico, Vargas has always said his dream is to play at the highest levels of the game.
Reading between the lines, he’s not interested in just any move and is aware that the big Liga MX teams don’t have a great track record of moving players to Europe.
“I want to make sure it’s the right offer,” Vargas said. “If it’s going to help me develop, that’s where I want to play. Europe is the place I want to go.”
One more test
The Sounders will have their final preseason game on Wednesday when they host Louisville City of the USL Championship on Wednesday at Longacres. Although the match is not open to the public, media and select fans will be in attendance. Sounder at Heart will have a full report.
The Sounders will then take two days off before resuming training over the weekend and then heading to Guatemala for their Concacaf Champions Cup match against Antigua next Wednesday.
