December 13, 2022 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Indy Eleven News Release
INDIANAPOLIS – After playing against Indy Eleven for all nine years of the club’s existence, forward Sebastian Guenzatti will now join forces with the Boys in Blue after signing with Indiana’s Team for the 2023 season. Per club policy, details of the contract that brings the prolific Uruguayan scorer to the Circle City will not be released and are pending league and federation approval.
“I want to thank Indy Eleven for giving me this opportunity,” said Guenzatti. “I am still hungry and have the same motivation as my first day, and my family and I are very excited to get to work and achieve great things.”
Guenzatti (gwen-zah-tee) most recently left his mark in the record books of the Tampa Bay Rowdies, where he became the club’s career leading scorer with 65 goals (59 regular season, 6 postseason) from 2017-22, during which he also contributed 19 assists in 160 matches in official competitions. The forward led Tampa Bay in scoring in four straight seasons from 2018-21 and played a vital role in the Rowdies’ success in recent years, which included USL Championship Eastern Conference titles in 2020 and 2021, another Conference Championship game appearance in 2022, and the league’s top regular season mark in 2021.
“Sebastian has been one of the top marksmen in the league the past four to five seasons, so to bring him to Indy is a show of intent on the type of players we want in this group – winners, leaders, and fierce competitors,” expressed Indy Eleven Head Coach Mark Lowry. “However, it’s not just Sebastian’s goals that stand out. We appreciate his all-around game, his ability to link the play with the midfield and to get on the ball and create as well as being inside the box when the ball comes in.”
The 31-year-old striker assumed the captain’s armband for the Rowdies in 2019 and responded with a USL Championship All-League Second Team performance courtesy of an 18-goal, six-assist campaign. Guenzatti bested that in 2021 with a career-high 21 goals and another six assists, which led to him being named one of three USL Championship Most Valuable Player finalists and to an All-League First Team honor.
Prior to his tenure with Tampa Bay, Guenzatti was a teammate of now Eleven Assistant Coach Ayoze from 2013-16 with the New York Cosmos, his adopted hometown team following his family’s move to Queens, N.Y., as a teenager. Guenzatti suited up on 90 occasions for the Cosmos…