LUMEN FIELD – Wednesday night, the Sounders clinched a playoff berth with a last-kick victory against old rivals LA Galaxy. Cristian Roldan was the hero of the night, having returned from on-and-off a concussion in the previous months. Three days later, the Sounders could have clinched a top-four seed against Vancouver, but were held to a scoreless draw. Securing a top-four seed will have to wait until Decision Day, against first-place St. Louis City FC.
Sounders 1-0 LA Galaxy – 10/4/23
The Sounders had started the game strong, with a Jordan Morris header putting their noses in the lead. Following Morris’ goal celebration, he used the moment as a tribute to his newborn son, born earlier in the week. After the match, Jordan was very pleased from a very important week in his life: “It’s been incredible to see him in this world, and proud of my wife for everything she did to bring him into this world, and it’s been an amazing week. So it’s been an emotional one, when I scored that goal, it was a fun, fun celebration to celebrate him. But for the team, it’s a big win.”
After the match on Wednesday, Roldan described the closing minutes as “a high”. Shortly after the reset, Roldan had to cut the feeling short and focus on finishing the game, where he elaborated on the moment “I felt like we did enough to get the win at that point. You think you win the game, but all of a sudden they’re back in our half”. Roldan won the game at the 96th minute, through a long-throw play, he found the ball landing to his feet kindly, slotting it in with a one-touch finish.
Stefan Frei had a notable performance on Wednesday night, where Coach Schmetzer said, after the match, that Frei made “big saves in critical moments”. One area that Schmetzer wants the team to work on, defensively, is playing out from the back. Tactically, Schmetzer wants the team to cut the habit of playing negatively, where he commented “I think it’s one area where we need to do a little bit better”. Schmetzer added that he does not want to see the team put under unnecessary pressure over Frei, and rather help him more.
Head Coach Brian Schmetzer made his comments about the game, and about the overall squad, praising the team’s ability to stay competitive. Schmetzer cited his motto on the team’s determination multiple times throughout the season, that being “grit, determination never quit”. The message of the team, themselves, securing their own destiny was another major talking point Schmetzer was mentioning, saying the group deserves “every accolade, every positivity”. Responding to the criticism throughout the year, about the Sounders not having a good season, Schmetzer promptly reminded everyone of the team’s current position in the table: second-place.
Sounders 0-0 Whitecaps – 10/7/23
Seattle’s match against the Whitecaps was full of end-to-end momentum, with a large handful of dangerous opportunities from both sides, although, ended scoreless. Neither side could find the winning goal, where a Sounders winner could have clinched that top-four seed, and where a Whitecaps winner would have put them within touching-distance of Seattle. The point earned in this match is beneficial going into the final day, though, a full three points would have confirmed hosting rights for the first playoff game. The club’s position dropped to third-place, one point behind LAFC. However, with a favor from Vancouver, out of all teams, the Sounders will have one more chance to leapfrog the black-and-gold.
While the Sounders will be the most-disappointed side in the result, as the team did not allow the opposition a single shot on target, Vancouver’s distance on Seattle remains unchanged. Dominating possession, Seattle also led the Whitecaps on both total shots and expected-goals, with 17-4 and 1.07-0.50, respectively. A major talking-point about the season is the Sounders’ struggle on scoring goals, and this game was no exception from this trend.
In the 72nd minute, Albert Rusnák replaced Nico Lodeiro as a substitute. As Lodeiro was walking off, he was seen waving to the cheering supporters, who might have witnessed his final moments as a Sounder, in the regular season. Nico Lodeiro will be out-of-contract after the conclusion of the season, alongside other key players. Considering that Lodeiro’s future is currently unknown, it is feasible to say that 2023 may be his final season. When asked about Lodeiro’s emotions, Schmetzer emphasized “Nico has always worn his emotions on his sleeve … whatever emotions he had, he’s human … but come playoff-time, he’s going to be ready”.
Schmetzer was happy about the shutout, but when asked about the team’s struggle with scoring home-goals, he said not having Ruidíaz and Cristian Roldan “certainly hurts”. Execution is a primary point that Schmetzer said he wants to change, but he had to give props to Vancouver’s defensive efforts to preserve the clean sheet.
Cover Photo from Aimee Worthington / Area Sports Network