Ilie Sánchez

Club

Austin FC

Position

Midfielder

Nationality

Spain

Date of birth

1990-11-21

Birthplace

Barcelona, Spain

Height

1.81 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in)

Weight

77 kg

Shirt number

6

lie Sánchez Farrés is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Major League Soccer club Austin FC.

Formed at Barcelona, where he was only a reserve, he spent five years of his career at Sporting Kansas City in Major League Soccer, winning the U.S. Open Cup in 2017.

Club career
Barcelona B
Born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Sánchez represented several clubs as a youth, including FC Barcelona from ages 7–9, returning to La Masia in 2007. In the 2009–10 season he made his professional debut in the Segunda División B, contributing 22 matches (one goal) as the B team returned to Segunda División after an 11-year absence.

Mainly a defensive midfielder, Sánchez was reconverted by manager Luis Enrique, a former Barcelona player, into right back. He was also called by Pep Guardiola for the first team's pre-season in 2010.

1860 Munich
On 11 June 2014, both Sánchez and teammate Edu Bedia signed for TSV 1860 Munich of the German 2. Bundesliga. He made his league debut in the season opener, a 3–2 away defeat to 1. FC Kaiserslautern, and scored his only goal on 26 September to help to a 2–0 home win against SpVgg Greuther Fürth.

Sánchez was deemed surplus to requirements by manager Torsten Fröhling at the start of the 2015–16 campaign, and on 31 August he was loaned to Elche CF in the Spanish second tier. He scored once, the penalty winner in a 2–1 home victory over CA Osasuna on 8 November. Shortly after his return to his parent club, his contract was mutually annulled.

Sporting Kansas City
On 13 January 2017, Sánchez moved to Major League Soccer side Sporting Kansas City on a two-year deal. He played on 20 September as the team won the U.S. Open Cup with a 2–1 final victory over the New York Red Bulls; days later, he earned a U.S. green card which qualified him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.

Sánchez was named to the All-Star team at the end of the 2018 season in recognition of his play, notably ranking in the top five in nearly every passing and midfield statistic or metric. In 2019, he figured in Kansas City's run to the CONCACAF Champions League semi-finals, scoring in knockout games against Deportivo Toluca F.C. and C.A. Independiente de La Chorrera. On 29 September that year, he was sent off while conceding a late penalty from which the Portland Timbers drew 2–2 at Children's Mercy Park.

In August 2021, Sánchez took an assistant coaching role with the under-14 side as part of his B License cou