Sounders aquire Eddie Johnson from Montreal, at the cost of Fucito and Neagle

It was announced tonight that the Sounders have aquired US international and World Cup veteran Eddie Johnson, who had recently signed with the league and entered the allocation process for placement, from the Montreal Impact at the cost of Mike Fucito and Lamar Neagle.

In the release Schmid and Henderson voiced confidence in Johnson's abilities, stating:

“Eddie is a high quality striker who is a very good finisher,” said Sounders FC technical director Chris Henderson, who coached Johnson at Kansas City. “We are very excited to have him join Sounders FC in our quest for another successful season.”

“It’s always difficult to part ways with two quality individuals who have contributed greatly to the success of our first three years,” said Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid. “We saw this as a unique opportunity to bring a player in with World Cup experience who can help us in our quest to win the MLS Cup.”

My initial reaction towards this trade is one of complete shock. While having not scored many goals, Fucito has proven an asset up front putting in the hard work hold up the ball and badgering away at the defense. He has been surrounded by something of a cult following as well, as proven by the Church of Fucito hash tag on Twitter. Even more shocking, however, is the loss of Neagle. His Federal Way origins gave him a strong connection to the city, and he has proven himself a that from the midfield scoring the game winning goal against RSL at Rio Tinto as well as the game winner in stoppage time against Sporting Kansas City at Lovestrong Sporting Park. Despite the immense sense of loss I feel for those two, I ultimately understand the motives behind the move. Not only can Johnson offer what the Sounders have sorely been missing up top to pair with Montero (size, finishing ability, as well as international experience to boot) it's known fact that the Sounders roster contains incredible depth especially with the other acquisitions made in pre-season/off-season. These losses may be jarring, but they do not cripple the team and they bring in a quality striker. As fans we must simply suppress out emotions and think logically. In the front office I trust.

Notes

• Notably, the Montreal Impact now have 5 former Sounders after today's trade (Fucito, Neagle, Nyassi, Wahl, and Montano)