Swedish splash in Seattle

The Seattle Sounders don’t want to be another bottom feeding expansion team in MLS. They want to make an impact from the start.

That all started this week with the signing of Swedish star, Freddie Ljungberg.

There have been people on both sides of this move. He’s 31 and has been injury prone over the past few years. Some believe that’s why he and West Ham made an agreement to terminate his contract. Some say it’s a hefty price to pay a guy like that $2.5 million per season for two years with his kind of issues.

Then again, he did just captain Sweden in Euro 2008 over the summer and looked effective. He has been known to be a very intelligent player who works hard to keep his mind sharp. He already has MLS DVDs on their way so he can start preparing for next season.

Even if he has lost a step or two since his days as been a big shot with Arsenal, those smarts and a knack for being a gritty player and one who makes the right runs, the move may pay off. But that’s all up to his health.

With that being the being biggest negative, the other is his position. He’s always been a winger. Beckham’s a winger too and look how that’s turned out.

If Sounds FC is smart, they’d try out the $2.5 million veteran in the middle and see if he can create. Maybe even slot him behind a striker or two like what Chicago has done with Blanco. His leadership with the new franchise will be huge.

He may not have the most recognizable name to fans, but looks won’t hurt when it comes to getting women in the seats as a he’s a former Calvin Klein model. Let’s just hope that doesn’t mean he’s another Beckham who’s better at posing for pictures than he is on the pitch.