While No. 9 is designated for forwards, Ferreira wore No. 10 with Dallas as a tribute to his father, David, a former league MVP who helped the club win the 2010 Western Conference championship.The Sounders will play an intrasquad scrimmage at their facility in Renton on Saturday. In Spain, the Sounders expect to play four preseason matches against European clubs.Schmetzer was elated to have Ferreira report early to get integrated into the system. Arriola arrived in time to be part of training since Day 1.Kim ultimately signed with K-League side Ulsan Hyundai.The opinions expressed in reader comments are those of the author only and do not reflect the opinions of The Seattle Times.“I told him [Jesús] this could be a blessing in disguise,” Schmetzer said of making a first impression with new USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino when fully fit.
Sounders midfielder Pedro de la Vega is currently No. 10 and forward Braudílio Rodrigues is No. 27.“I was looking to get No. 27 because that’s the number I started with,” Ferreira said of his youth career. “But No. 9 looks good, too.”Ferreira will wear jersey No. 9 for the Sounders. Former striker Raúl Ruidíaz wore the number since his signing in 2018, becoming the club’s all-time leading goal scorer (86) and helping the Sounders win the 2022 Champions Cup and 2019 MLS Cup. The Peruvian didn’t have his contract renewed in December.

“He was like, ‘hey, this is it. This is all you’re getting,’” Ferreira said.The Sounders are close to signing South Korean defender Kim Kee-Hee. Online site Sounder at Heart first reported the sides are in negotiations.Sounders midfielder Josh Atencio, 22, is transitioning into the position and the club signed former Ballard FC standout Leo Burney, 23, to form a competitive pool of defenders.
It was clarified by Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer and Ferreira on Friday there’s no new injury but a need to continue to rehabilitate past hamstring injuries. Under the program with the national team, Ferreira would need to be game fit this week for friendlies set for Saturday (Venezuela) and Jan. 22 (Costa Rica). He’d also likely be limited to 20 minutes playing time.“He may show up in Spain,” Schmetzer said.

Kim Kee-Hee back in Rave Green?

Arriola will wear No. 17 because midfielder Cristian Roldan is his favored No. 7. Sounders forward Danny Musovski (No. 19), defender Travian Sousa (No. 3) and Burney (No. 4) also have new numbers.

Kim started 58 of his 59 matches overall in his initial two-year stint with the Sounders.Former Sounders general manager Garth Lagerwey originally signed Kim in 2018. He anchored a backline alongside the likes of Román Torres, Xavier Arreaga and Chad Marshall to help the Sounders win the 2019 MLS Cup.The 2025 campaign begins Feb. 19 with a CONCACAF Champions Cup series against Guatemalan side Antigua GFC. Seattle opens its MLS schedule Feb. 22 against Charlotte FC at Lumen Field.Instead, Ferreira opted to join his new club and continue the work with the Sounders. The decision also means he’ll be part of the full training sessions when the Sounders move camp to facilities in Marbella, Spain, on Sunday.
“I want to get to know everybody and start a preseason that I haven’t had in a while just because of the [annual USMNT] January camps and last year from injuries, especially since it’s a new team,” Ferreira said. “The good thing is that it’s not an injury at all, it’s strengthening and doing endurance for the leg to be able to sustain minutes … My goal is to have a good year. One thing I told the national team is that if I have a good year, I know I’m going to get other opportunities. So, my focus is to be strong mentally, physically to be able to perform.”RENTON — Jesús Ferreira had a quick question when picked up for Sounders training Thursday.“It’s awesome to get away from the same scenery and environment,” Ferreira said. “I’m loving every second of it but the cold, I’m still trying to walk through it even though Dallas is getting pretty cold recently. But I’m super excited to get to know the city and be able to look around. And the facility, it’s awesome.”

Jersey switch

Pacific Northwest lingo starting with “sunbreak” is among the new things the forward is excited to learn. Ferreira joined the Sounders a week earlier than expected due to leaving the U.S. men’s national team camp to continue to regain fitness with Seattle. “Hey, what time does the sun come out?” he said of a conversation with teammate Paul Arriola. Both were acquired from FC Dallas earlier this month, a club and region Ferreira has been a part of since 2009.The 35-year-old could have a different role in his return to the Sounders. Jackson Ragen and Yeimar are both former Defender of the Year finalists who’ve melded to become the best center back combo in the league the past two seasons.Ferreira spent the past two days working with the Sounders medical and performance staff. U.S. Soccer announced Wednesday he was released to “focus on returning to full fitness.”

Friday was his first meeting with local media — a chilly day that swung from cloudy gray to glimpses of sunny skies as he spoke.

Healthy start

Negotiations for him to re-sign in 2020 folded due to pay. He made approximately 2,000 in the last season of his contract, according to MLSPA.Musovski was part of full training this week after suffering a season-ending quad injury last fall. The league journeyman was signed last winter and appeared in 24 MLS matches (four starts), contributing one goal and one assist.

Jayda Evans: jevans@seattletimes.com. Jayda Evans covers the Sounders and Reign. She offers observations, critiques, and occasional offbeat tales. Evans also has written a book on the Storm and women’s hoops titled, “Game On!”