Sounders FC signs Cuban midfielder

Published 11:49 pm Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Osvaldo Alonso, an All-USL First Division midfielder and league rookie of the year in 2008, signed with Seattle Sounders FC on Tuesday.

Sounders FC acquired Alonso’s rights from the Charleston Battery of USL-1. Per club and Major League Soccer policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed. Alsonso will be added to the club’s official roster upon the arrival of his transfer documents.

Alonso, 23, started 31 games for Charleston last summer, scoring four goals and adding two assists. He also scored two goals in Open Cup play and another in the USL postseason. The Battery advanced to the U.S. Open Cup final, losing to D.C. United.

A native of Cuba, Alonso defected during the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup in Houston. He made 17 international appearances for Cuba, scoring twice. He served as captain of Cuba’s U-23 national team during qualifying for the 2008 Olympic Games.

“It’s great to get a player like Alonso,” Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid said. “As a technical central midfielder, he’s very good with the ball, a clever passer and he’s coming off a very successful USL season.”

Preseason schedule

Seattle Sounders FC announced its six-game domestic preseason schedule Tuesday. Three of the games are open to the public.

Sounders FC, which began practicing last week, opens the preseason on Feb. 9 with a training game against the Los Angeles Galaxy in Carson, Calif. The following day, Seattle plays Chinese Super League champion Shandong Luneng at the Sounders FC training site in Oxnard, Calif.

The first game open to the public is Feb. 11 in Ventura, Calif, against the Ventura County Fusion of the Premier Development League. Seattle’s final game in California is Feb. 13 against the San Jose Earthquakes in San Luis Obispo. After returning to the Pacific Northwest, Sounders FC visits the University of Portland on Feb. 20.

Two closed-door matches are scheduled for Qwest Field. Seattle hosts the Vancouver Whitecaps on Feb. 22 and closes out the preseason on March 12 with a game against the Colorado Rapids.

In addition to the domestic schedule, Seattle is scheduled to play four games during the team’s training sessions in Argentina (Feb. 27 to March 5).

Here is the complete preseason schedule:

Feb. 9 at L.A. Galaxy, 3 p.m. (training game)

Feb. 10 Shandong Luneng at Oxnard, Calif., 4 p.m. (training game)

Feb. 11 at Ventura County Fusion, 7 p.m. (open to the public)

Feb. 13 San Jose Earthquakes at San Luis Obispo, Calif., 7 p.m. (open to the public)

Feb. 20 at University of Portland, 7 p.m. (open to the public)

Feb. 22 Vancouver Whitecaps at Qwest Field, noon (closed)

March 12 Colorado Rapids at Qwest Field, 7 p.m. (closed)