Sounders working to acquire foward Obafemi Martins

The Sounders have made no secret of the fact that they are hoping to acquire another forward to play up front with Eddie Johnson, and that they are willing to spend big to do so.

And now it appears Seattle has identified that player, and that it could soon be adding forward Obafemi Martins to its roster. Martins, 28, currently plays for Levante, a club in Spain's top league, and the team's leading scorer (if you happen to get beIN Sports, you can watch him play for Levante at 2 p.m. PT today).

A team source has confirmed that a Sounders official is in Spain trying to get a deal done to bring Martins to Seattle, and said the team is "very interested" in the Nigerian striker. Reports first surfaced last week that Seattle was interested in Martins, and Sports Illustrated's Grant Wahl first reported that the Sounders had representation in Spain working on a transfer.

Signing Martins would mean freeing up a designated player slot, and there have been plenty of indications that Christian Tiffert is on his way out. Seattle opens its season on Saturday, and would have to buy Tiffert out before the opener. Getting a deal done with Martins, however, could happen after the season starts.

Martins, who has made 38 appearances with his national team, scoring 18 goals for Nigeria, has played in all four of Europe's top leagues, spending 2001-2006 in Italy (Inter Milan), 2006-2009 in England (Newcastle), 2009-2010 in Germany (VfL Wolfsburg) and this season in Spain with Levante.