Sporting Kansas City announced today that midfielder Ilie has obtained his U.S. green card and no longer occupies an international spot on the club’s roster.
Sporting KC now has seven international players on its 30-man roster: Latif Blessing, Cristian Lobato, James Musa, Soni Mustivar, Kevin Oliveira, Tyler Pasher and Daniel Salloi.
Ilie, who signed for Sporting KC in January, has enjoyed an excellent first season in MLS. The holding midfielder has played every minute in 33 appearances for the club, including all five matches en route to the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup title. The 26-year-old Spaniard leads Sporting KC field players in minutes played and has missed just one game all year.
A product of FC Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy, Ilie ranks third in MLS in both total passes (1959) and passes completed (1678). He also ranks third among MLS midfielders with 56 interceptions. Ilie tallied his second assist of the season in Sunday’s 2-1 win over the LA Galaxy.
