RENTON, WASH. – Seattle Sounders FC sold forward Fredy Montero to Portugal's Sporting Lisbon, the club announced today. Sporting exercised its option to buy Montero on a permanent transfer, and in return, Seattle will receive a transfer fee.
“Fredy has been and will always be a special member of our family,” said Sounders FC Owner and General Manager Adrian Hanauer. “Fredy had a wonderful career in Seattle and is continuing that success overseas. Hopefully his quality of play gives him an opportunity to be added to the Colombia World Cup roster. We wish him well with this next chapter of his career.”
Montero, 26, leads Sporting with 19 goals in 20 games across all competitions, and is the top scorer in the Portuguese Liga with 13 goals this season. Montero joined Sporting on loan from Colombia’s Millonarios FC, where he scored eight goals during the 2012-13 season.
Montero is Seattle's all-time leading scorer with 47 goals in MLS play. Overall, he scored a club record 60 goals with 43 assists across all competitions. A three-time MLS All-Star and 2009 MLS Newcomer of the Year, Montero recorded a team-high 23 game-winning goals and 12 game-winning assists across all competitions in his four seasons with Sounders FC.
