Sounders FC trades Khano Smith to New York

The third trade in Sounders FC history, and second this week, involved a player and cash, just like the deal earlier this week.

Seattle dealt midfielder Khano Smith, a player it had chosen from the New England Revolution's roster in November's expansion draft, to the New York Red Bulls in exchange for allocation money.

Smith, 27, started training camp with Seattle last month as an outside midfielder with the top 11 unit, but apparently fell out of favor with the emergence of a pair of smaller and faster players who pose more of an offensive threat, Steve Zakuani and Sanna Nyassi.

Smith was held out of Monday's first exhibition game in California while Seattle worked out trade details, then flew to New York for a physical on Tuesday, according to the Bermuda Royal Gazette newspaper.

Smith is a Bermuda native who spent the previous four seasons in Major League Soccer with New England.

"This is the ideal move for me and I'm delighted. Red Bulls are a great organization," Smith told The Royal Gazette. "Boston was close to Bermuda but New York is even closer."

Smith told the newspaper that he was prepared to stay in Seattle, but earlier this week had a talk with Sounders FC technical director Chris Henderson, who told him the Red Bulls expressed interest and that he'd be traded.

"They sat me down and explained to me the situation," Smith said. "There are a lot of factors behind the trade, and I guess Sounders felt they could strengthen the team ... by letting me go.

"There are certainly no hard feelings, and Sounders are definitely going to be a top-class MLS organization."

Per league and club policy, the amount of the allocation money Seattle received was not disclosed. But Sounders FC gave up allocation money, which is used outside of salary-cap funds to sign players, to Toronto FC earlier this week in a trade for defender Tyrone Marshall. Seattle also lost allocation money to the Columbus Crew to get coach Sigi Schmid.

The first trade Sounders FC made was to acquire defender Patrick Ianni from the Houston Dynamo in January for a 2010 conditional draft pick.

Notes

• Seattle Sounders FC plays the San Jose Earthquakes in an exhibition game tonight at Cal Poly University in San Luis Obispo. It's the team's final exhibition game.

• The team will leave California without GK Kevin Guppy, D Danny Jackson, MF Quavas Kirk, MF Leighton O'Brien, MF Ryan Pore, MF Fernando Screpis and D Adam West, who have been released.

José Miguel Romero: 206-464-2409 or jromero@seattletimes.com