You’ll want to keep these facts in mind whenever a new Lodeiro transfer rumor pops up.

The thing about signing good players is that someone else always wants them. It’s not always fun, but in a weird way it’s probably a good sign that guys like Nicolas Lodeiro always seem to be involved in various rumors.

But just because there are rumors doesn’t mean he’s going anywhere. The key to keeping your sanity is knowledge. These are the main things to keep in mind:

Lodeiro is signed through 2021

Lodeiro just signed an extension that puts him under contract through the 2021 season. That doesn’t guarantee he’ll be around that long, but it does give the Sounders a ton of leverage in negotiating any deal.

The Sounders are built around Lodeiro

Go back and read all the research the Sounders did when identifying Lodeiro as a key target in 2016. They didn’t sign him on a whim, and every significant signing they’ve made since then has been with the understanding that Lodeiro is their engine. They will not be inclined to let him go for cheap.

No other team is built around Lodeiro

There’s surely a number at which the Sounders will feel compelled to let Lodeiro go, but I’m not sure how many teams are out there who’d be willing make it worth the Sounders’ while to allow the midfielder to leave. The reality is Lodeiro is probably more important to the Sounders than he would be to almost anyone else.

More broadly, as good as Lodeiro has been for the Sounders the past three seasons, I’m not sure his transfer value has risen that much. Lodeiro is now 29, after all, and he has barely played on the international stage since leaving Boca Juniors. If the Sounders were the highest bidder in 2016 when they paid about $6 million, it’s hard to imagine anyone is suddenly willing to pay more than that this year. It’s especially hard to imagine Boca — the team most consistently linked to Lodeiro — paying that now.

Lodeiro doesn’t seem like a malcontent

There’s always a wildcard in any transfer, and that’s the player himself. If Lodeiro really wants to go, he could theoretically just make life very difficult for the Sounders. This was, supposedly, how Obafemi Martins forced his way out of Seattle.

The thing is, though, there’s nothing about Lodeiro’s past that suggests he’d force such a move. It’s just hard to imagine him forcing his way out, especially since much of why he came to Seattle — primarily to raise his family in the United States — hasn’t changed.

All of which is to say, I’ll remain skeptical of any Lodeiro rumor, at least until new information comes to light.