page_title: Freddie Ljungberg
section_title: Seattle Sounders
hierarchical_section_title: Freddie Ljungberg / Club career / Seattle Sounders
caption_attribution_description: English: The en:Seattle Sounders FC starting lineup on August 5, 2009 against en:FC Barcelona.
context_page_description: Karl Fredrik Ljungberg is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a winger and is a football manager. He was the former assistant coach of Arsenal F.C.
  He began his career at Halmstad and went on to spend most of his career at Arsenal, where he won honours including two Premier League titles and three FA Cups, scoring in two finals including the victory in 2002. After leaving Arsenal in 2007, he had short spells at a number of clubs in England, Scotland, the United States, Japan and India. An international for a full decade, Ljungberg earned 75 caps and represented Sweden national team at UEFA Euro 2000, 2004 and 2008, as well as at the 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cups. He was captain of Sweden from 2006 until he announced his international retirement after UEFA Euro 2008.
  Ljungberg was a model for Calvin Klein underwear until 2007. He previously represented brands such as Nike, Procter & Gamble, L'Oréal, Puma, Beats, ESPN and Pepsi.
context_section_description: On 17 October 2008, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported that Ljungberg might be a part of the new Major League Soccer franchise Seattle Sounders. On 28 October 2008, Seattle Sounders officially announced they had signed Ljungberg as their designated player for the 2009 season. The terms of his contract saw Ljungberg earn $10 million over two seasons with the Sounders. Much like the contract of David Beckham and as is the norm for professional sports stars in the US, Ljungberg's contract assured that he kept all of the money derived from his private endorsements. Because of this, Grahame L. Jones of the Los Angeles Times was quick to compare Ljungberg with Beckham. Alexi Lalas stated: "Eddie Vedder, I think, would have a better chance of making an impact at Seattle than Freddie Ljungberg". However, after the 2009 regular season Lalas acknowledged his initial skepticism but admitted he had changed his mind. "For me he's the best DP signing, because of the way he plays in MLS."
  In December 2008, it was announced that Ljungberg would undergo surgery to repair a persistent hip injury that has plagued him throughout his later career. Surgeons repaired a slightly torn hip labrum and shaved a small amount of bone where the hip meets the femur to prevent future injury. The Seattle Times reported that Ljungberg was expected to miss ten to twelve weeks of training and possibly be sidelined for the team's inaugural game, but he recovered from his hip injury sooner than expected. Although Ljungberg did not take part of Seattle's preseason in Argentina, he did however do light training with IS Halmia.
  Once the Sounders returned to Seattle, Ljungberg joined in training. Despite his speedy recovery, Ljungberg did not participate in the inaugural game against New York Red Bulls. He made his debut one week later on 28 March 2009, coming on as a 61st-minute substitute in a 2–0 victory over Real Salt Lake. The following week he made his first start on 4 April 2009 against Toronto FC, where he also scored his first MLS goal. Ljungberg played his first full game against Chivas USA in Los Angeles in which they lost 2–0. While some noted that Fredy Montero and Ljungberg were not cohesive on the pitch, due to Ljungberg's absence in the preseason and few practices with one other, coach Sigi Schmid answered: "That's just something that takes some time. But they're both quality players and it will get sorted out I think a lot sooner than later."
  Ljungberg missed two games against FC Dallas and Colorado Rapids due to a migraine attack. He quickly recovered to play against Chivas USA. On 30 May 2009, the Sounders drew their fifth match in a row, this time against the Columbus Crew, after Ljungberg missed a penalty kick in the 31st minute. Ljungberg scored his second goal for the season against the San Jose Earthquakes on 13 June 2009 as a result of beating Joe Cannon to the ball, lofting it over him and into the center of the net. In the 59th minute, Ljungberg's corner kick set up Montero's goal which led the Sounders to a 2–0 victory. After playing D.C. United, Ljungberg suffered from some hamstring tightness. Ljungberg did suit up for the New York Red Bulls game on 20 June 2009, but he did not play as a result of the injury. On 28 June, Ljungberg assisted Montero's 23rd-minute goal against the Colorado Rapids. He was subbed out toward the end of the game, in which he received a standing ovation. Ljungberg sat out for the US Open Cup game against the USL side Portland Timbers and focused on training during the four-week vacation in July. Following the brief holiday vacation, Seattle defeated Houston Dynamo, a game in which Ljungberg was heavily targeted and fouled. Despite this, Ljungberg outmaneuvered his opponents and assisted a goal to Patrick Ianni. As is so, the Bleacher Report thus dubbed him the man of the match.
  During his 2009 season, the Daily Express noted rumors that Ljungberg was poised to return to a European club, but Ljungberg assured fans that he would stay to fulfill his two-year contract. The Swede also gave the insight that h
caption: Ljungberg (front, second from left) lining up for Seattle Sounders in August 2009 ahead of a friendly against Barcelona
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