This may be a match made in heaven. Goal-scoring forward Steve Zakuani was excited to hear his name called by Sounders FC on Thursday not only because the club made him the No. 1 pick in the MLS SuperDraft, but also because he’s looking forward to the Puget Sound weather.
“The main thing I heard was the weather was like London,” Zakuani said. “I was excited about that, and that’s the main thing I knew. That’s all it took for me.”
Zakuani (pronounced ZAK-uh-WAH-nee) was born in the Congo, but he grew up in London and played with the Arsenal youth team (1997-2003) before going on to star for two years at the University of Akron.
“Anybody who’s seen Arsenal play knows they play probably the most attractive style in the world,” Zakuani said. “I grew up under that tutelage for five years. They drummed in me the principles that I still use today and I traveled around the world with them to some major tournaments and played against some of the best players in England week in and week out, and some of the best players in Europe. That’s really where I got my soccer education in the early years.”
A knee injury clouded Zakuani’s club career in London, and that led to him taking his skills to the States. He settled on Akron, where he became an All-American his freshman season and led the nation in scoring last season.
That goal-scoring instinct is one of the reasons why the Sounders were as excited about the selection as Zakuani was, and why they turned down some tempting trade offers to grab him.
“He has a huge upside,” coach Sigi Schmid said. “He’s got qualities that you can’t teach. Players are either comfortable on the ball or they’re not – they have an ability to run at people with the ball. He’s got the abilities, he’s got goal-scoring instincts … he’s got the potential to be very, very special. And when you have a chance to nab a player like that, that’s something that we definitely have to do.”
With their other picks, the Sounders selected Wake Forest defender Evan Brown in the second round, Azusa Pacific defender Jared Karkas in the third, and Harvard forward/midfielder Michael Fucito in the fourth.
Only Zakuani – as a Generation adidas selection – already is under contract, for a reported $150,000 to $200,000. General manager Adrian Hanauer said the organization has been in contact with the other three and he expects them to sign.
“We strengthened our team yet again,” Hanauer said. “We feel like we had a great draft. … In terms of some of the characteristics we have been looking for – speed, a good engine, exciting players, players that attack – we feel like we did extremely well.”
The four college players will join goalkeeper Kasey Keller, designated player Freddie Ljunberg, former USL Sounders player Sebastien Le Toux, Gambian midfielder Sanna Nyassi and the 10 players picked up in the expansion draft on the new MLS team’s roster.
Schmid said that group will be augmented by a few planned international signings. Then he will be ready to take the team off the drawing board and put it on the field when training camp begins Wednesday.
“Looking at it on paper we don’t feel there are any holes,” he said. “But once you get out there in the grind of training, once you see how the chemistry is, how it works together, that’s when the coaching staff will be able to determine” if there are weaknesses that need addressed.
“… I think we’ve got pretty good balance.”
Extra time
Other players of local note taken in the SuperDraft included Tacoma native Rafael Cox, who was selected to Real Salt Lake in the middle of the fourth round. Cox played at Stadium High School, the University of Washington and with the Tacoma Tide. Another Husky, midfielder George John, was taken as the 14th overall pick by FC Dallas.
Don Ruiz, 253-597-8808
Additional information on Cox, John and the Sounders’ picks is available at blogs.thenewstribune.com/soccer
Sounders FC draft picks
STEVE ZAKUANI
Forward, Akron
First round, first overall
EVAN BROWN
Defender, Wake Forest
Second round, 16th overall
JARED KARKAS
Defender, Azusa Pacific
Third round, 31st overall.
MICHAEL FUCITO
Midfield/forward, Harvard
Fourth round, 46th overall.
• More on draft picks, C5
