The Sounders and GM Garth Lagerwey on Monday announced they were loaning homegrown forward Victor Mansaray to Cincinnati of the USL
Forward Victor Mansaray, the fourth homegrown player signing in Sounders history, has been loaned by the team to FC Cincinnati of the USL so he can gain further playing time and experience. Mansaray, who turns 20 in two weeks, is currently with the US Under-20 team and will join Cincinnati upon his return.
A native of Sierra Leone in Africa, Mansaray also spent time in Jamaica before moving to Fife, Wash. with his family. He joined the Sounders’ youth academy for the 2012-2013 season and was signed by the club in 2014 at age 17 out of Fife High School, making him the youngest homegrown player ever to do so.
Mansaray made his MLS debut in 2015 at age 18 years, 34 days, also the youngest in franchise history to do that. He has three MLS matches under his belt, all in reserve roles.
Last August, while playing for the team’s S2 squad, he was voted the top player in the USL that month. Mansaray scored five goals and added two assists for S2 last year in his second season with that USL club.
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Loaning talented players to other teams is commonplace for MLS squads looking to give prospects a taste of playing elsewhere in hopes of furthering their development. The move reunites Mansaray with forward Andy Craven, 25, who was drafted by the Sounders in 2015 but signed a contract with Cincinnati last month.
Correction: In the original version of this story, a photo of Sounders forward Darwin Jones was incorrectly used to identify Victor Mansaray. The photo has been changed.