Sounders Announce Extensions for 4 Players Ahead of Concacaf Run
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="1600"]
Seattle Sounders defender Alex Roldan dribbles the ball against Real Salt Lake on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026 at America First Field in Sandy, Utah. (Sounders FC Communications) [/caption]
The Seattle Sounders made sure to hold on to some key pieces of their 2025 Leagues-Cup-winning team, extending four players on Tuesday with multi-year extensions.
Defenders Alex Roldan and Nouhou and strikers Osaze De Rosario and Danny Musovski each inked extensions, with the first three set to stick around through the 2028-29 campaign with options for 2029-30. Musovski's deal runs through 2027-28 with an option for 2028-29.
Roldan and Nouhou have each become staples in the backline, with Roldan occupying the right back spot of the 4-2-3-1 alignment while Nouhou stays on the right. Nouhou, a top talent for Cameroon in the upcoming FIFA World Cup, is arguably the best duelist on a Sounders side full of great defenders.
"I have a lot of opportunity to go to Europe, but I figured out to stay here. The most important thing for me in life is to be happy. I'm happy, I just want to continue and try to win more trophies," Nouhou said on Tuesday.
The 28-year-old, who has been part of the organization since he was 18 and has notched 179 MLS starts, knows his value in potentially pushing to compete in a more highly rated league. But with the amount of European talent pouring into MLS like Messi, Son Heung-Min and Thomas Müller, he's content to keep duking it out for the Rave Green.
"To be honest, MLS has been going up the past three years, the level is high," Nouhou said. "So that's why, for me, I decided to stay here and try to be more competitive."
Inking Alex Roldan, a 29-year-old Seattle University man in his eighth season with the Sounders, was another no-brainer. Roldan, often overshadowed by his USMNT-rated brother Cristian in national circles, has provided a consistent quality start at right back. But perhaps even more impressive has been his ability to slide to center back and even move forward in the formation depending on what head coach Brian Schmetzer needs in a game.
With the team positioned to play in three competitions a year for the foreseeable future, Schmetzer would do just fine to have 11 Alex Roldans at his disposal to beat fixture congestion issues with his lineup.
On the offensive side, one could say that Osaze De Rosario earned this extension with how he played in his first year after being called up from Tacoma last season. The 24-year-old found the net once in three MLS starts last season, but starred in Leagues Cup play.
The son of MLS legend Dwayne De Rosario made the most of Seattle's need for another striker as Jordan Morris was out with an injury. He notched three starts and played six games in the competition, scoring four goals to elevate a franchise-record-setting Seattle offense. His magnum opus came in the final against Inter Miami, as De Rosario scored the opening goal in front of a sold-out Lumen Field crowd in a 3-0 win.
Working on reported wages of just over $80,000 in 2025, the striker has found a bit of security early in his MLS career.
"It feels good, feels good to be with the club for longer," De Rosario said.
Of course, he earned a payday with five goals, including two braces, in Seattle's preseason matches. His ability to add value in the scoring department also won him the starting striker spot over Musovski and Morris to start the year — though that fight is just getting started.
Musvoski, the 30-year-old odd-man-out as Morris found a spot on the left wing before suffering a quad injury in the opener, is still a valuable Sounder. In a year that was Seattle's best in franchise history for scoring, it was Musovski's 16 goals across all competitions that led the team.
His opportunity to shine came after Morris was hurt in the summer, as he scored seven goals in six games at one point while Seattle appeared unbeatable. But Schmetzer went back to Morris as the MLS postseason came around, leading Musovski to share reserve duties with De Rosario.
With De Rosario lacking a goal contribution in the first three games, Schmetzer is keeping an eye on the positional duel every day.
"With the fixture congestion, Danny's gonna get minutes, Osaze is going to continue to get minutes. It makes them better pros," Schmetzer said. "One of the toughest choices I got."
Injuries Weigh Heavy Ahead of Concacaf Duel with 'Caps
The Sounders won the Concacaf Champions Cup, a competition pitting teams from across the Americas against each other, in 2022. Seattle hasn't had nearly the same success since then.
Thanks to their Leagues Cup win in 2025, Seattle qualified for the round of 16 directly in 2026. Though the Sounders made it to this stage last season, a 4-1 thrashing by Mexican giant Cruz Azul (which Seattle paid back with a 7-0 Leagues Cup win months later) ended their run.
Now facing a 3-0-0 Vancouver Whitecaps squad fresh off a trip to the MLS Cup Final, Schmetzer's group has its work cut out for it. The matchup starts with the first leg in Vancouver on Thursday night.
The main concern with Seattle, one that will last well through the March 20 second leg of this series, is its center backs.
Yeimar was dealt a hamstring injury in Saturday's 1-0 win over St. Louis, and while the team doesn't have test results back, the outlook isn't great.
"We don't have the results from the MRI back from the specialist in England. But since we sent it back to England to a specialist, you know, it's not good," Schmetzer said Tuesday.
Fellow CB Kim kee-Hee is "on his own training program" per Schmetzer, as the reserve works through a lingering calf issue. New addition Ryan Sailor is also dealing with an injury, as Schmetzer confirmed there will be call-ups from Tacoma as the season progresses.
Schmetzer remedied that issue on Saturday by putting Kalani Kossa-Rienzi in, allowing the versatile Alex Roldan to help with the center back duties. It paid off with a 1-0 win courtesy of Kossa-Rienzi’s goal.
Up front, midfielder Hassani Dotson was in concussion protocol as of Tuesday while Paul Rothrock tries to power through a foot injury that is hinging on his pain tolerance. The winger missed the St. Louis game with the knock.
If Rothrock can't go, the onus of creation falls squarely on the talented attacking midfielder tandem of Albert Rusnak in the middle and Jesus Ferreira on the right. If De Rosario or Musovski can't manufacture goals, one of those midfielders may need to find the net themselves.
It should be noted that Ferreira had a stellar day at training last Tuesday in scoring the ball, and made his money in Dallas as a scorer.
