Sources: San Diego Wave lands Sanchez in trade from Houston Dash

The Mexico international requested a trade and has now been dealt to the Wave

Houston Dash forward Maria Sánchez has been traded to the San Diego Wave, multiple sources have confirmed to Pro Soccer Wire. 

Houston will receive $300,000 in a transfer fee and $200,000 in allocation money from San Diego, plus two years of an international roster spot in exchange.

The $500,000 total makes it the largest fee paid for an intra-NWSL transfer.

Last weekend, ESPN reported that Sánchez had handed in a transfer request, sending shockwaves through the league. On Saturday, San Diego confirmed the terms of the deal.

Sánchez confirmed on Thursday that she had requested a trade, after only signing a new contract worth up to $1.5 million in December. The 28-year-old was a restricted free agent and at the time, her deal was the richest in the NWSL.

The Wave were understood to be one of the teams interested in Sánchez during the offseason, but the winger would ultimately re-sign with the Dash.

In a statement on social media announcing her trade request, Sánchez said that the affair had “taken a toll” on her and she wanted to be traded in a “timely manner.”

Friday’s trade came just hours before the league’s midnight ET transfer deadline. If that deadline passed, Sánchez wouldn’t have been able to be traded until August 1.

Sources familiar with the situation said that the Mexico international took a meeting with Houston general manager Alex Singer and head coach Fran Alonso on March 27 to air her frustrations with the club.

Multiple clubs were in contact with the Dash over sealing a trade for Sánchez, but the Wave were able to get the deal over the line early on Friday afternoon.

After a chaotic few seasons in Houston where she played under five coaches including interims, Sánchez is heading to a more stable environment. After winning the 2023 NWSL Shield, San Diego extended head coach Casey Stoney’s contract through the 2027 season.

The Englishwoman won the NWSL’s Coach of the Year award in 2022 and has made the playoff semifinal in both of her two seasons so far. The Wave began the 2024 season by lifting another piece of silverware, the Challenge Cup. In regular season play, it has been a more level start (1W-1D-1L) for the California club.

Houston has gone 1W-1D-2L over the first four weeks of the NWSL season with many fans and pundits questioning Alonso’s deployment of Sánchez as a wingback. At the best times in her career, Sánchez has been a pure winger and will be expected to assume the role at her new club.

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