Houston Dynamos coach Dominic Kinnear added six more players to his all star roster, including two more Sounders to bring their total to four players. Only Houston with five has more, thanks to Kinnear adding three from his own team.
The Sounders players joining already selected Kasey Keller and Freddy Ljungberg were defender Jhon Kennedy Hurtado and striker Fredy Montero. Both players are young and exciting although only Montero has inspired a popular t-shirt to proclaim “I scored with Fredy”.
Montero has inspired this kind of fan devotion from the moment he stepped onto the pitch in Seattle. He scored the first goal in franchise history against the New York Red Bull, adding another one in the second half that was voted goal of the week and earning him player of the week honors. If there is action in the opponent's end, you can lay money that Montero is involved somehow. In 15 games, he has scored nine goals and had six assists, enough to lead the Sounders and place him second in the Golden Boot goal scoring standing.
In the Seattle half, Hurtado has been a leader in the backline. His speed at closing down on an attacker has made him an important cog and trusted member of the defense. His physical, never surrender style has put him in the lead for yellow cards on the Sounders but to his credit, those cards were earned with hard play, not foul play.
In an interesting side note, Hurtado and Montero were teammates in 2008 at Deportivo Cali in Columbia.
Also named to the squad by Kinnear was (Dynamos) goalkeeper Pat Onstad, midfielder Brad Davis, forward Brian Ching, as well as (Kansas City Wizards) midfielder Davy Arnaud.
The complete roster as of today is:
Goalkeeper: Kasey Keller (Seattle Sounders FC), Pat Onstad (Houston Dynamo)
Defenders: Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo), Wilman Conde (Chicago Fire), Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (Seattle Sounders FC), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew)
Midfielders: Davy Arnaud (Kansas City Wizards), Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake). Cuauhtémoc Blanco (Chicago Fire), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo), Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo), Shalrie Joseph (New England Revolution), Freddie Ljungberg (Seattle Sounders FC), Javier Morales (Real Salt Lake)
Forwards: Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Fredy Montero (Seattle Sounders FC)
Coach Kinnear staff will select the starters based on player availability and tactical considerations. The inactive, or alternate All-Star roster, will be announced at a future date.
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