TUKWILA, Wash. (AP) — Seattle defender Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, a finalist for MLS defender of the year a season ago, has been placed on the injured list with a torn ACL in his left knee.
Hurtado was injured in the closing seconds of Saturday’s 1-0 loss to San Jose. The Sounders placed their best one-on-one defender on the injured list Monday.
An MLS All-Star in 2009, Hurtado has played all 90 minutes in nine of Seattle’s 10 games this season, sitting out against Toronto. The 26-year-old is in his second season with the Sounders.
The team says it won’t know the extent of Hurtado’s injury until he undergoes surgery, and coach Sigi Schmid says if Hurtado returns this season it won’t be until late in the year. Hurtado was walking with the help of crutches on Monday.
