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Kickoff: What went wrong for the Seattle Sounders at Austin FC?
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The Seattle Sounders were just seconds away from a 1-1 draw at Q2 Stadium on Sunday Night Soccer, but a heartbreaking last-second concession sent the Rave Green to a second straight loss. We'll break down what went wrong on that fateful final goal, then talk about our broader takeaways on Seattle's recent struggles following their epic Leagues Cup title run.
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Lobbing Scorchers is a Seattle Sounders and MLS focused show brought to you by Sounder at Heart. Hosted by Major League Soccer's Ari Liljenwall and Producer Noah Riffe. Join us as we lob our scorching takes on the American soccer landscape, Seattle Sounders, Major League Soccer, USMNT and more.
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Transcript
Introduction and Episode Context
00:00:00
Speaker
This episode of Lobbing Scorchers was previously recorded and streamed live on YouTube.com slash at Lobbing Scorchers. If you want to listen or catch these episodes live, see the video, and see all the rest of our content, go to YouTube.com slash at Lobbing Scorchers or LobbingScorchers.com slash YouTube.
00:00:22
Speaker
Well sir, we got a scorcher today. Gonna be a real scorcher today. Why the scorcher today? Well it's gonna be scorcher.
00:00:44
Speaker
Good morning, everybody. Welcome to another episode of Lobbing Scorchers Kickoff. I'm Ari. That's Nico.
Sounders' Season Struggles
00:00:50
Speaker
We got a big show for you all here this morning. We're going to be talking about the Seattle Sounders and one of the toughest results of the season, a 2-1-L at Austin FC last night.
00:01:02
Speaker
96-minute concession. Absolute heartbreaker. Drop points. The drive for a top-four seed is drastically imperiled. ah We're going be breaking it down. talking about where things stand with this team right now as we are we're fully immersed in the stretch run of the season with another tough result ah later on we'll probably hit some ah some league-wide headlines maybe talk a little l lafc and vancouver whitecaps lafc obviously seattle's main competitor for a top four seed and they're looking pretty good so yeah a lot to get to
00:01:39
Speaker
Nico, what's up, man? How are ah how are you feeling after after what was a unfortunate ending? I think it's fair to characterize it last night at Q2 Stadium. Yeah, what's going on, Ari?
Banter and Birthday Greetings
00:01:52
Speaker
Loving's, gorgeous family. Happy to be here on yet another Monday. um It's ah kind of sunny. Feeling pretty good. Happy belated birthday, by the way, there, Ari. Appreciate Yep, yep, yep. Want make sure that ah people know to where to send the that the money and the super chats because it is Ari's birthday, of course.
00:02:14
Speaker
um And yeah, man, I mean, we could definitely vibe off of a game that was disappointing that i'm I'm dying to watch a second time. I haven't got a chance to go a little bit deeper into it, but that after just watching, watching it in one time and coming up with the conclusion that the Sounders continue to just
00:02:41
Speaker
Make their own life difficult. I mean, if we go back to the LA Galaxy game all the way down to this Austin game, it seems like his self-inflicted wounds is mistakes that could be avoidable, but that are part of soccer.
00:02:57
Speaker
um I think, and I mentioned this on Friday with Jeremiah and Tim, I said, This result on Sunday is going to depend a lot of if certain players are ready to go.
00:03:10
Speaker
And it looks like they weren't. I think that this offense misses Pedro Delvega in a way that we can't even calculate anymore. he he he just does so much for what this team wants to do off of the wing play that – you
Player Performance Review
00:03:31
Speaker
can't replicate it. And look, Georgie came on and was a spark plug and was great and loved the way he put that ball away.
00:03:39
Speaker
um but starting Burnell, although not bad, it also wasn't good, in my opinion. It was just okay. He was a guy that was serviceable there that, you know, obviously that's not his position. Obviously that doesn't,
00:03:57
Speaker
um I don't know amplify his attributes on the field. And I thought that you just needed, that there's a certain way that that position, regardless of whether you're going to have to come inside into those inside channels, there's an aggressiveness on off the ball movements and runs that needs to be made that just weren't there.
00:04:20
Speaker
And I think that's why when those pieces came on in the second half, it was a whole different ball game, but I'm not panicking yet. I don't think anyone should because, again, there is very clear cut,
00:04:37
Speaker
um you know, things to point at that will change, that obviously this team will have... Pedro back. They should have a Jesus back to a hundred percent.
00:04:51
Speaker
Um, I forgot what b Brian told me of the reason why he didn't start. He did say it and man, I wish I would have looked it up again this morning, and but there was reasons why Burnell started and that right-wing position, obviously. And, um,
00:05:09
Speaker
I just think that the system works, but it needs certain personnel. And when you are on the road against a very good home team and you don't necessarily have a full strength team and you can't finish because Seattle did create and they still have that ball offensively, yeah but you don't put the ball away.
00:05:32
Speaker
You give Austin a team that has found subtraction, that plays well at home, a result that they need it.
Technical Issues in Post-Game Presser
00:05:39
Speaker
I guess let's ah let's start with the lineup because you hit on it right there.
00:05:44
Speaker
And I actually haven't even seen the Schmetz presser yet. We were trying to watch it on the postgame show last night. the The Zoom tech wasn't exactly working. I couldn't understand what anyone was saying. So we just chalked it.
00:05:56
Speaker
And ah so I have not heard Schmetz's ah explanation of... of the lineup But i I will say when I saw Snyder be starting at right mid, I was surprised just because I didn't know that that was something that he did. I thought that he was more that center mid spot and maybe had played a more advanced role with Tacoma defiance. But if he was going to start an MLS game, I would have thought it's at the position that they've had him.
00:06:24
Speaker
playing and not a position that he hasn't played in MLS. I was happy to see him starting. I just didn't expect to see him starting there. And I think you're right. Like he did. He did. Okay. he definitely didn't do ah he didn't do bad. And I will say to in general, like the, the offense, I think, and just the chance generation and all that was not the problem.
00:06:43
Speaker
in this game they generated more than enough in attack to be able to at least take a result in this game and i i think to be able to to win this game uh it was it was shades of 2024 team i thought remember the xg merchanting you know generating a lot of chances and just being unable to uh to put them away but overall i think ah Performance wise, wasn't it wasn't that bad. It was an OK performance, a pretty good performance at times.
00:07:16
Speaker
But at the end of it, you have another situation where ah they were five seconds away, Nico, from ending that game in a way that it wouldn't have been like the greatest situation.
00:07:28
Speaker
result of all time, but a one, one draw away when you're in this tough stretch after leagues cup, where you're kind of struggling to find your top gear, you fall behind and the first half, despite outplaying Austin FC.
00:07:43
Speaker
And you're right there to to take a point that at least would have given you, would have felt a lot better, would have given you something to build on. Whereas now you have just another situation of which there have been many this year where you drop points that you pretty easily should have had. And the the result with LAFC winning their game big is that I don't think the drive for fourth place is like fully chalked, but on i mean, look, LAFC, they have their five points ahead now.
00:08:12
Speaker
And they have a game in hand.
Playoff Position Challenges
00:08:13
Speaker
Is that right? Yeah. So home field advantage in the playoffs is is not looking good. And I think it goes it goes beyond just what happened in this game. That exact scenario has played out a lot this year. we How many times have we been talking about stuff like this? Like dating all the way back to the very first game of the season. You have just so many more examples of this.
00:08:35
Speaker
You have the the Rapids game. You have the Galaxy game. You have this game. a couple other games. It's like five, six, seven games at this point where you're dropping points that you should have had, where if you did take them, you would you would be in the top four, no problem. So I think that's the frustrating thing for me is the level and the quality of footy that this team has played on the whole this year, I think has been of the quality to get home field advantage in the playoffs. And now it's looking like they're not going to get that.
00:09:03
Speaker
um just because of these ill-advised concessions, defensive lapses, individual errors, mental miscues, all that stuff. ah That could be what does in their chances of making an MLS Cup run this season. And, you know, if it comes to it, we'll see if we have to cope and rationalize by ah pointing to the League's Cup that they...
00:09:22
Speaker
that they did win. ah But for now, you know, they're, ah they're fighting for playoff positioning and it's looking like they're not going to get home field advantage, but ah the Snyder B thing, this night, I guess to circle it back, the Snyder B thing I thought was weird and unexpected, but I don't think that's what would led to what the result was.
00:09:44
Speaker
in this game I think what led to the what the result was in this game was not taking your chances when you had them. And then both of these concessions, man, like the first concession was just so frustrating because ah you had Austin FC. They were doing the Minnesota United.
00:09:59
Speaker
they were I think when you rewatched, you will see they were doing the Minnesota United. They're kind of ah they're kind of using tactics that I think ah a lot of teams are starting to use against Seattle, which is let Seattle have the ball.
00:10:15
Speaker
Kind of put numbers behind it, let them do their thing, make them try and break you down and then try and hit on ah a counter or break away on a, on a giveaway. They go the whole first 35 minutes of the game without making that giveaway that Austin FC is praying on.
00:10:29
Speaker
And Jackson Reagan makes the giveaway and they get the opener. And that is just, that is exactly playing into their, their hands and their plan.
Austin FC's Tactical Approach
00:10:37
Speaker
for the game. That's how they were going to get you. They were tired. They were coming off this U S open cup game.
00:10:42
Speaker
And their whole plan for the game in the first half was let Seattle have the ball, let them pass it to death. And we'll try and get a giveaway and hit them on the break, get them on a counter.
00:10:53
Speaker
And you basically, you just gave them exactly what they were looking for with that first concession. So that's why that was frustrating. And then of course the second one, when you have it one, one in the 96th minute, you have to see out that,
00:11:06
Speaker
That draw like that yeah no 100% and look Ari I don't know if You're willing to but if you want to Go find that little bit of of of Brian I think it'd be important If not you know I totally get it But but he does provide Contents and I was having issues myself with Audio on um On the zoom call I know that the Pressers is is good on on Once they they put it up um Yeah I see it I can pull it up Do you remember like kind of Roughly was it like at the beginning or it it was It was at the end. It was maybe beyond the midway point of the interview where we where I asked about um Burnell and the reason behind it.
00:11:47
Speaker
i didn't want to ask too many questions because Moss had already asked a whole bunch because I wanted to ask specifically about Pedro and Jesus and wanted to just ask her a couple of questions but I just rephrased the question in a way that he kind of provided a whole bunch of details on why Ferreira didn't start and why Obviously, Pedro could not get on the game.
00:12:09
Speaker
So I think it's definitely value added if you want to go find it. i got the pressure pulled up, but ah I'm not exactly sure where to where to start it, but I could just guess. yeah just Yeah, I mean, i don't know if you could hear it on the on your site, and then I could kind of fill in ah for the audience. Keep this is cooking, keep cooking. and all This is a good time to remind everybody to like the video, like share it Subscribe to the channel, rate five stars.
00:12:34
Speaker
I'm going to peep this presser, Nico Cook on something, and then I'll pull it up. Yeah, so i help us out with that, of course. Help us get those algorithms going to the the best, obviously, breakdown of ah the weekend for the Sounders. And yeah, look, it was, I wouldn't say that Burnell starting there was the reason why the Sounders lost. That's obviously no not it. It was without a doubt.
00:12:58
Speaker
Once again, mental lapses, mistakes that give away by ah Jackson Reagan. It's not just unfortunate, it's
00:13:08
Speaker
It's preventable and he should be simpler and and like, ah Ari said, this Austin team wasn't pressing you high. They were playing in a mid block. They were playing a lot deeper than that, even at times that were in mid block, but they were tired of after 120 minutes of ah us open cup minutes midweek. and they had, I think they made only three changes to that starting lineup.
00:13:34
Speaker
So, so this team was clearly exhausted and you giving up that sort of easy turnover and to a guy like Diego Rubio, and then he just gets in front. You're unable to catch him and put that first goal away. Just changes everything of what the Sounders were trying to do. We're hoping to accomplish.
00:13:53
Speaker
But without a doubt, if you just look at, and and again, this is not an indictment on Bernal. He's obviously a guy that was put into a situation that,
00:14:05
Speaker
he ah but He probably was more than willing to to be at and play at, but it just it doesn't fit him. and and And I just didn't think that he was occupying that space necessarily well. I didn't think that the overlaps were there. There there was just no danger there.
00:14:21
Speaker
He's definitely a guy that's smart enough to connect and do things. ah But Jesus Ferreira, man, when he came on, you know i thought that he was he was so good on point, man. He set up two perfect opportunities for Jordan Morris. That little back heel is so no good brilliant. right both so Both of those chances that he set up, I feel so bad for him that he doesn't get on the stat sheet for those because that was just...
00:14:47
Speaker
that That's honestly the thing I'm most frustrated about with this, Nico, is how well he played. And once again, he's just had so many times this season where it's like he sets up a perfect chance and it doesn't get finished. Happened twice in this game.
00:14:59
Speaker
ah He's been snake bit in front of goal, man. i guess in a way that's a positive from this game. If we're looking for positives is how good he looked after coming on. I thought Georgie looked great. So ah this game in this performance,
00:15:11
Speaker
wasn't devoid of, uh, positives, particularly offensively. I think the negatives came defensively as has been the case throughout this season at times. Uh, but yeah, I mean, Ferreira and Georgie looked awesome.
00:15:24
Speaker
Uh, Jordan Morris, unfortunately doesn't finish either of those chances that Jesus set them up for, but I guess it was good that he was getting in those spots. Like I trust I've seen enough from Jordan Morris throughout his career that if he gets in those spots consistently, the goals are going to come.
00:15:40
Speaker
So, I mean, all that is well and good. It just doesn't do you a lot of good as far as the table goes, having lost that game. i did I got the ah presser pulled up to your exchange with Schmetz. Should we watch this?
00:15:52
Speaker
Yep, let's do it. All right, I'm gonna pull it up right now.
00:15:56
Speaker
I'm pretty sure this is where you asked him your first question. So um this is from postgame last night, Nico and Schmetz. little back and forth, see what ah what he had to say.
00:16:08
Speaker
Let me know if this is the wrong spot.
00:16:14
Speaker
Thank you, coach. I do want to know what the thought process was into starting Schneider Bernal today the right wing position and comparison to other options that you have specifically there. Is there anything that you saw?
00:16:28
Speaker
that you thought he could provide today against Austin? Yeah, he could provide energy, possession, you know, against Miami in the heat, we didn't keep enough possession. We had more runners on the field.
00:16:40
Speaker
And look, Jesus didn't start because he had some tightness and that was just precautionary. He had played heavy minutes in the previous two games.
00:16:51
Speaker
So i wasn't gonna risk Jesus. He's too important to the team. And Snyder was a good choice out there. they look, I want to ask some questions like Moss, but i was wondering, in terms of what you at the winning position,
00:17:14
Speaker
you know after the game, did you feel like maybe there was somebody else that could have provided you something differently? Or are you OK with that decision that you made tonight? Did you put Snyder Burnett that decision?
00:17:26
Speaker
I'm totally fine with my decision there because who's going to replace him bit? Snyder's a natural fit. Danny Leyva's going to get consideration. i don't want to move Albert back a line.
00:17:39
Speaker
If you're specifically trying to figure out why Georgie didn't start, after a decent performance in miami that's fresh legs if you're wondering why pedro didn't see the field That was because again, the tendonitis and then the way the game unfolded, I wanted to get Pedro on the field.
00:17:56
Speaker
He might've been able to help us there win the game, but at one, one, you know, substitution patterns changed a little bit. Uh, and you know, he's obviously disappointed, but I've talked to him after the game.
00:18:09
Speaker
Snyder is a talented kid. And if you're going to look at the next three games, when it will be gone or possibly four, we need to find so one of the solutions was seeing ifnyer's ready
00:18:23
Speaker
There it is. right to leave it There it is. Definitely important information there, right? that The tightness is the reason why Ferrer didn't start. He's clearly the main option there.
00:18:34
Speaker
ah i think that in terms of possession, Burnell did do his job. and But I really appreciate Brian bringing up the reasons behind and kind of explaining.
00:18:45
Speaker
not Not like he needs to explain himself, but there's always a an importance to understanding what ah the coach is doing. You know, he obviously wasn't going to put Burnell out there just to fry. And, and you know, he always puts players in positions that can be successful.
Pedro Delvega's Health Concerns
00:19:00
Speaker
And I just think in this one, it was partially successful, but just it didn't have that end product. And then obviously Pedro not getting in. He's frustrated. sounds like, and obviously we all understand that he wants to be on the field.
00:19:15
Speaker
ah So whatever it is happening with that tendonitis, Man, he called it tricky during the week. I'm really concerned because there is this dire need to have a guy like Pedro Enfield.
00:19:31
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, the De La Vega thing is certainly concerning. He didn't play in either of these games, ah like the Miami game or this game. Sounds like a situation where it's like pain tolerance and they're they're trying to manage it. But I mean, they certainly, if they're going to make a serious run this year, they need him.
00:19:51
Speaker
But I guess as far as how it affected this game and the Snyder Brunel thing, I just didn't think the offense was the problem in in this game. De La Vega notwithstanding, Brunel unexpectedly starting at right mid notwithstanding.
00:20:06
Speaker
the yeah The chances were there. The XG was there. Like, everything was there for them to be able to score at least a couple goals in this game and be able to – at least tie it or maybe even win the game. They almost tied the game anyway, even only scoring the one goal.
00:20:24
Speaker
So I guess in a weird way, i kind of, I came out of this game feeling a little better about the team's level in a sense, at least in in attack, because i think for me, what I've been worried about, you know, we've been talking about this leagues cup hangover and you know, one of the things I worry about with the hangover know,
00:20:45
Speaker
your and ah inability, an inability maybe to find the level offensively that they had found in leagues cup. Now they did not look like they did in leagues cup in this game from the standpoint of they were, they were XG merchanting. They weren't finishing the chances that they, that they generated. But I thought, I mean, I thought there was a lot of genuinely good footy played ah on offense. For me, the, the concerning thing is more defensively and just, I guess the pattern of it, like,
00:21:13
Speaker
we We could go over every single point that this team has dropped this year, but needless to say, it's been a lot. And that's the kind of stuff that can can affect whether you're actually able to make ah run. Like, home field advantage, I think, is going to be crucial in the playoffs.
00:21:32
Speaker
this year if you don't get it it's it just makes the degree of difficulty on making an mls cup run way higher and you're also in a situation now where the team that you've been dogfighting with is ahead of you by five points with a game in hand uh and bought for 26 million dollars one of the best attacking players in the world of the last like 10 years who is i mean ah sun hyung min and denny buonga have combined to score 14 goals in lafc's last Five games.
00:22:03
Speaker
So, I mean, it's just, it's looking like an uphill battle at this point to, to be able to get that home field advantage. It's, I don't want to say it's like chalk if they don't get it. It's just looking like they're not going to get it and it's going to make the road a lot harder.
00:22:20
Speaker
ah But. well yeah and And that's the biggest problem already, right? I mean, that, that, that's the issue, right? Like I would be totally with you and I would feel positive about, know,
00:22:31
Speaker
Jordan's overall movement Him getting into space Ferreira's Participation when he came on Christian Roldan looking Christian Roldan again in this game Heat map is ridiculous Amount of touches and accurate Passes What he did The pass he had on Georgie's goal A hundred percent.
00:22:48
Speaker
All of that is great. Georgie's obviously a guy that's also you're going to need as a spark plug. And and that's amazing to have. But the reality is, is that because of that equalized game at home against the Galaxy, that loss at Fort Lauderdale in this one, you just put yourself in a really bad position. Because when you look at the schedule, Vancouver is a game that I had as an L in career.
00:23:14
Speaker
in my Equations, right? I had two more games losing for the Sounders New York City FC away And um That Vancouver game No Ovid Vargas, you're going against one of the best Midfield pairings in the league A great ah Western Conference team that seems to be Just hitting in all cylinders The Portland game, i always put a little Asterisk on top of it because although I Do think that the Seattle Sounders Are the better team and they're winning that game doesn't matter
00:23:44
Speaker
It's played different, right? it's just It's always played different. So you have to be ready to maybe drop points there. So things start to just slip down. And it's not just about home field advantage, but it's the way you carry yourself into the playoffs.
00:23:59
Speaker
And all of that is just going in the wrong direction. So yeah I honestly feel for Bryant because he clearly had some tough decisions to make.
00:24:10
Speaker
but health is gonna be important, right? This team is as deep as they get. We've talked about the depth of the team, but The talent is is limited compared. Look, look there's there's two, maybe three teams that are clearly more talented than you in the West, right? is l a f c It's it's San Diego, and you know the Vancouver one is there. I think Vancouver... They look pretty damn good right now. They look pretty damn good, but the collectiveness is kind of what I like that team. But they you could say, you could argue that they're more talented than the Sounders.
00:24:40
Speaker
So those three teams are going to be... ah There'll be a problem. And if you get stuck playing any of those three teams in the first round without home field advantage, it's just tough. Right. So those are the things that you're kind of going against. And and now.
00:24:57
Speaker
I said this and and I told people when the Sounders won Leaks Cup, I said, look, this is going to be the more likely tournament that the Sounders are going to win. So be okay if they don't win MLS Cup. And I don't mean be okay. said, oh man, you know, we're just going to be complacent, but it just wouldn't be weird. that The likelihood of winning,
00:25:19
Speaker
MLS Cup is a lot more difficult in a short tournament. Once the bracket comes off, you're like, oh, shoot. we We match up pretty well against B, and C. But when it comes to league play, depending on where you sit at, depending on injuries, depending on everything that happens from here all the way down to the last day ah and the last game of the season, anything can change. And right now, just Seattle's trending in the wrong direction.
00:25:45
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, just going through the schedule right there, it's pretty it's pretty unforgiving. I mean, you got a Vancouver team coming up that ah they look like the best team in the league to start the season, cool down a little bit.
00:25:57
Speaker
ah But they got Thomas Mueller, and they've also just been, in general, playing a lot better. They beat the Philly Union 7-0. I know it was rotated Philly, but Vancouver's stock is up.
00:26:09
Speaker
uh they're not playing them in the short term here but lafc that's who they're they're battling with right now for fourth their stock is up san diego uh of course like i think you got a lot of teams in the west right now that are that are trending in a more positive direction and then the uh the portland game that's the other one We all know that ah the Portland Timbers play like Real Madrid when they when they have to play the Seattle Sounders.
00:26:36
Speaker
It's the most important game of their season. That's just what they do. And then you got the decision day game ah where you got to go to New York City to play an NYCFC team that ah they they play on a baseball field. They play in in the New York Yankees outfield.
00:26:53
Speaker
And that gives them one of the biggest home field advantages. in the league. So that game, I mean, that game, I wasn't really, didn't have very high hopes for ah result just because that's one of those games where no matter how good or bad NYCFC is, that's just a weird field to play at. Like the dimensions of that field, they're used to it. No one else is.
00:27:14
Speaker
So anyway, it's just a lot of, it's just a lot of hard games where you like these drop points that you had against the galaxy. And now in Austin, you couldn't really afford that if you wanted to maintain your, your pace on the table.
00:27:25
Speaker
And New York's been playing well. They're peaking at the right time, right? They're barely entering the playoffs, but they're coming in with a lot of momentum, right? And, you know, they just took down Charlotte, a team that was about to get a 10-game winning streak.
00:27:39
Speaker
They stopped it. I think that Alonso Martinez is a guy that... when it comes to playing off of the counter and a guy that can just get transition in a hurry and can finish at that sort of speed, man, did they do it well? Max is playing well.
00:27:54
Speaker
Nico's playing well. There is a a real, you know, thing going on there with New York. So, You're going to go into that game with the New York team that is not just um in in in good form, but they're going to need wins. They're going to need, you know, those points. So, ah man, it's just it's difficult. Seattle ultimately is really depending on the health of their players, because look, goalkeeping controversy or not, the, you know, between Andrew and and Steph, you know, I'm, I'm, I'm good with both. Right.
00:28:28
Speaker
But, but when it comes to their forward, right, the ah Danny or Jordan, the, you know, Pedro, you know, is he going to be healthy? Like, those are the things that you're going to have to, man, just kind of figure out. And,
00:28:41
Speaker
how do you eliminate a lot of this, you know, mistakes? You know, i i had mentioned Kalani having a bad game against Inter-Miami, and I kind of talked about, you know, him being a young player that's got to learn, and, and you know, he's a player that I'm very high on, very high on Kalani, but he's got to learn. But Jackson Reagan, Jackson Reagan, in that in that moment with his experience, him being a guy that,
00:29:05
Speaker
The main reason why he is the the man in in in that three-man back line on the ball is because he can make breaking passes because he is good on the ball. And just turning it over like that is just ah so so difficult. And then the active defending and the in the second goal is just not there. So, man, it's just...
00:29:22
Speaker
It's difficult. It's difficult for Seattle to just move forward. This Vancouver game is huge. I mean, it is huge. Because it could almost have the adverse you know kind of ah take on the team, right? If if you're able to beat Vancouver and beat him playing well, I mean, you're catapulting yourself out of this funk in a pretty big way because Vancouver is a damn good team.
00:29:48
Speaker
yeah But if you don't and you fall and you fall hard, ah man, it just feels like he's going to be, he's going to take a lot to get you out of that quicksand that the Sounders are slowly just getting under, right?
00:30:02
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, the league season, it feels like it's teetering a little bit right now. Like you said, this Vancouver game, I think, is going to be not fully determinative, but it's really, it's it's a bit of a crossroads on, you know, if you're going to get this, get this back on the right track and feeling good about yourself going into the playoffs and whether you just start to feel like this, you know, there's a, there's 2022 vibes at play here. And this was, we've been talking, we've been talking about hangover watch. This was always going to be something that they were going to have to deal with. I don't think it's ah it's a, it's not like you have to make a choice between leagues cup and the playoffs, but that's almost like, it's almost what it feels like when, ah when you're,
00:30:49
Speaker
playing these tournaments during the regular season and you make a deep run this case, they want it, i going back to league play and maintaining your level.
00:31:00
Speaker
It's not easy. Like I will, uh, I will give them that, but right now it seems like they're kind of more on the side of, uh, it's the level has, has dropped since they've gotten back
Home-Field Advantage Struggles
00:31:12
Speaker
to the league season. And now,
00:31:15
Speaker
home field advantage is fully up in the air and they got this Vancouver game to correct it, but that's not going to be easy either. Like we just talked about there. They're really good team that just got a Thomas Mueller, uh,
00:31:29
Speaker
Do you know, like the like, have you heard anything on what's up with De La Vega? Or, like, are they going to get him back playing? Or is this just like he's limited for the rest of the year type thing? Like, do you know what's going on at all? I mean, it it all it all sounds like he can play with it. He can deal with it, right? Brian's being overly cautious for obvious reasons.
00:31:54
Speaker
but it is a pain tolerance thing. Otherwise he would not have been in the the bench, right? ah He'd been practicing in in full this week. So we were under the impression that he was full on, um but obviously just not quite ready just yet. So by him just having one full training because it was such a short week,
00:32:20
Speaker
they probably just didn't feel like they wanted to risk them out there. um And the way the game developed, right? ah Brian talked about that. the the The way the game kind of came about, the way that second half was – was looking like the Sounders were going to get that that goal, right, with with the grouping they had out there. So you're kind of thinking, well, let me just allow Lelavega to just have another game, and then against Vancouver, a huge game, I'll play him, right? So it's understandable, right? I get why you wouldn't play him.
00:32:51
Speaker
But, yes, I think he will be available for Vancouver. I would bet that he would start that game, and obviously you have – a lot of monitoring on him and making sure that he could come off at some point.
00:33:05
Speaker
But I do think that he starts that game against Vancouver. Someone brought it up in chat, but ah Brad Stuber really did go God mode in this game. I mean, you got he was phenomenal you got to give it to him. Some of those phenomena were crazy, especially, I mean, he had like three or four of them, but ah the, yeah, there's a header by Christian. He like yeah my po about that one. Yeah. That was off a corner kick where that, uh,
00:33:28
Speaker
The first half was just so frustrating because i thought I really felt like all of the good chances were Seattle's until ah like the most notably the Christian one that Stewart saved. But there were there was a couple others in there.
00:33:43
Speaker
And then, of course, Seattle gives up the one good chance that they give up. But ah the london and last one on ah on Georgie was just how did he save that? Yeah.
00:33:54
Speaker
Yeah. No, 100%. And you've got to give him credit, right? You've got to give him credit. could Could Georgie put that differently? No. More pace? i mean more pace He that thing. That's what I'm saying. I mean, what else could he have done, right? You've got to give credit to Stuber, a guy that has been phenomenal for Austin, a guy that's experienced that, you know, he was the reason why Seattle ended up frustrated at the end of the game because it felt like the goal was coming. it just He was all over. He was a wall back there.
00:34:24
Speaker
and And look, credit to Austin overall. I thought that their midfield was good. thought Elie was good in possession. ah thought Asuni had a really good game. I think he gave a lot of grief to that back line for the Sounders.
00:34:38
Speaker
I thought Wolf, who's been a revelation for Austin, has was very good in this game as well. He had Alex a lot of issues. So they really were able to do things. But Honestly, the the the Sounders in this game are just unable to pull the ball away. and and and And you have to give Jordan a little bit of grace. And I know that I'm going to get a lot of heat for this, but he's just getting in rhythm. You know, that that that one where...
00:35:03
Speaker
He potentially could have maybe dribbled past Stuber, and maybe he makes it a little bit easier with the one touch that he puts away. He puts it away. But again, he's a very good keeper.
00:35:14
Speaker
He's a very good keeper. And is it Jordan Morris is the still trying to get his game back? So... ah It was just unfortunate the way things played out in this one. i can I can live with the with the Jordan missed chances from the sense of, like you said, like he's just getting back in the swing of it It's not like super shocking that he would need a game or two to to get back in rhythm. And get more clinical in those situations. i Like I said earlier, i think if he gets in those spots enough, we've seen enough throughout his career to, I feel confident that he's going to finish those. If he keeps getting in those spots, it just doesn't really help you in the, in this situation.
00:35:58
Speaker
ah Bogna says, Ben needed to bury that shot after his 40 plus yard run. I mean, that was a sick run though. That was one of those ones where I was just like, you know, yeah, it was unfortunate that he missed the shot, but like, God, he's good like that. He mean, he was just dancing and weaving through everyone.
00:36:16
Speaker
So, I mean, again, that's, now that's the other frustrating thing. i I really felt like there was some genuinely good stuff in an attack, but when you only get, when you only get one goal off 2.85 XG, you're, xg that's kind of your, it makes getting a result on the road against a fellow Western conference playoff team, a lot more, lot more difficult. You know, if any single one of these chances that we're talking about go in, then the one that you give up at the end, ah it's, it would have sucked. It would have been two more drop points, but you at least would have taken ah point out of it, which taking the point in this game, honestly, I mean, it would put you in a little bit better of a position in the table. But for me, it's more about like,
00:36:56
Speaker
just morale and and vibes. Like, the vibes since League's Cup, they've not been able to to recapture it.
00:37:08
Speaker
So, I mean, whether or not they make a run this year is going to come down to whether whether they're able to do that and whether they're healthy or not. well Yeah. Yeah. But I mean, I mean, De La Vega's availability is going to factor in as well, but I, I feel like if they play, if they play like that on offense, they'll at least give themselves a chance to take results in any of these games.
00:37:32
Speaker
I'm more concerned about the defense right now, personally, just because, In an individual game, stuff happens, but that stuff has happened, like, a lot this year.
00:37:44
Speaker
This team's at, they're at 45 points with just slightly better game management and fewer individual errors. They could be at 55-plus, and, like, we're not even we not even fretting about home field. So, I get i mean, what do you...
00:38:01
Speaker
What do you make of that pattern this year on the whole, I guess? Because it's definitely happened a lot in the in league play. And then you put this team in a tournament, and then you don't see it at all.
00:38:13
Speaker
League's Cup, they rip right through it. Most fundamentally sound, disciplined, airtight defense you can imagine. They gave up two goals the whole tournament. One of them was that... ah the kid on Tijuana hit an insane shot.
00:38:27
Speaker
I don't even remember what the other one was, but like, do you just didn't see stuff like this. And then you get back to the league season and it happens how it was happening earlier in the season. Like, what's, uh, what's up with that? I guess is the question. what's up I just think it's circumstantial. I think that you're kind of living up to the moment of a, of a, of a short, uh,
00:38:48
Speaker
tournament, right? And you know that it's do or die every single game. And at times it's easier to just be mentally on for 90 minutes when you have that in the back of your head. and There's also the component of who the rival is, right? We talked about Club World Cup and the way that this team played against certain teams.
00:39:06
Speaker
Sometimes it's difficult to kind of come up to a game and not expect, you know, I don't know, certain certain teams to just beat you in a certain way.
00:39:20
Speaker
The Inter-Miami game had a lot of variables that that were into it that that caused that game to kind of go out of wax. The LA Galaxy game was a mental mistakes. And in this one, is is it's a little bit of both.
00:39:33
Speaker
um So there isn't really one factor other than you're shooting yourself in the foot and you're going to kind of bring it back. And I think a lot of that, as you mentioned, it's easier to eliminate in in a short tournament where you know this is the games that you're playing rather than in league play where there's so many things that are happening around you. There's so many, there's so much more rotation. There's so many more Things that you're kind of going off of, right? You were playing um midweek and then you were going to play in Austin.
00:40:08
Speaker
There's a short amount of time of training. Then you're traveling again. you know All those things are very difficult to do at times for you to just be on Now, does it sound like excuses? No, they're just circumstances of what it is to do.
00:40:25
Speaker
And that's why it's so difficult for... You know, as much as I don't think that the shield is anything else than a, you know, other trophy, you know, it's obviously about league play or nothing. In my opinion, you go for the league play, you go for the cup.
00:40:43
Speaker
And that said, you don't worry about the shield, but it's a lot harder to get a shield than it is at times to get a cup. Right. Cause you could get hot at the right time in the playoffs and, There you have it. You you get to it and and you win the tournament.
00:40:57
Speaker
But league play overall is just harder to do because of that consistency that you need overall. They suspend the mental health coach and we start dropping points. that Yeah. bring Bring Steve Lenhart back to the bench.
00:41:09
Speaker
Bring him back to the bench. The squad's mental health is not it's not good right now. Bring him back. Let's hit a couple others from chat. ah Why didn't Osaze make the bench?
00:41:23
Speaker
I just think you just had players that you needed to bring on Obviously, you needed Jordan to come on. ah You needed to have a replacement for Albert. Georgia was going to be on the bench. I just think there was no room for it.
00:41:37
Speaker
You had Masovsky. You knew that you were going to bring Jordan on because you need to give Jordan minutes. So Osase was just not going to get on. the The chances that you were going to play with two strikers were minimal.
00:41:49
Speaker
So, yeah, I just didn't think he fit for this particular game. Our sounders back to having issues with closing a game. Schmetzer did say he was not worried about the first 20, but more about the last 20 minutes of the game. ah Yeah, no, I mean, that's that was the issue in this game.
00:42:06
Speaker
That was the issue in the Galaxy game. That was the issue in the Rapids game. That was the issue in the Charlotte game. That was the issue in this game. That was the issue in that game. ah When you have it one one in the 96 on the road.
00:42:18
Speaker
on the road you yeah have you You just have to see out the point. You have to. like You cannot give up that goal at the very end. I don't think anyone on the coaching staff or anyone on the team would tell you any different.
00:42:30
Speaker
That's a pretty catastrophic goal to give up. And it does. Again, like ah the things like that are going to happen over the course of a 34-game season. That's just the reality. you're going to have all kinds of different outcomes.
00:42:43
Speaker
And you know you're playing other teams that are ah that are pretty good. A lot of the time you're playing other teams that pay their guys a lot of money to, ah to score goals in these games too.
00:42:55
Speaker
But I think the issue with this team this year specifically is the, is the pattern of it. The, how many times that that's happened there in fifth, right now there's no reason this team shouldn't be up in the top two to three in the west based on the quality of footy that they've played in the league this year there's it's just individual mistakes poor game management ill-timed concessions at the end of these games uh i mean god does it get more brutal than what we saw in the in the galaxy game and then uh and then this game the the miami game i just i don't care
00:43:31
Speaker
about that. That game was probably always chalked from the beginning. I think the way the League's Cup Final went distorted a lot of our views on how that game could go, myself included. like i felt I felt a lot better about the chances of getting a Rizzle in that game because of how good Seattle looked in the League's Cup Final and the depth that they had demonstrated.
00:43:54
Speaker
realistically going all the way to Fort Lauderdale in the middle of a bunch of fixture congestion, playing Messi and the Barca boys team that was going to be hell bent on revenge.
00:44:06
Speaker
Losing that game is whatever. Those are those games in MLS where you're pretty much chalked from the beginning. And if you can get a point, great. If not, You it's just on to the next ah but the galaxy game in the Austin game. Those are drop points that you you needed to have one point out of three games since the league's Cup final is It's not great. Nico.
00:44:29
Speaker
It's not no it's know it's it's bad. It's not exactly what This team should be focused on right? I mean from from now on it's almost a playoff game every single time you get on the field. I mean, you you have to see it that way. You have to go all in. and just play like it's League's Cup.
00:44:45
Speaker
Pretend it's League's Cup. Pretend it's League's Cup. Prepare and practice as if, all right, this is a League's Cup tournament game. We're going to approach it with that mentality. If we lose this game, we're out of League's Cup.
00:44:58
Speaker
It must be, it must be, you actually have to have that those stakes be on the line to ah play as such. Otherwise, yeah you you have to reflect on how you close the game, right? I mean, after the 90, everybody should be getting back, right? In the last ah sequence of goals, you know, there is a couple of guys, you know, Georgie and a couple of other guys that are on the wrong side of the ball.
00:45:22
Speaker
Then it's do or die inside the 18. I don't know what happens to Reed. It's a good move from... um Faudry, right? he He makes a good move on them, but Reed needs to do more to make it difficult for that guy to just head that ball back into ah you know the small box, right? I mean, into the six.
00:45:42
Speaker
yeah It's is do or die. And, I mean, obviously not something that Andrew could have prevented. i You know, when he comes to the goalkeeping controversy, I don't think that, you know, this... He made an amazing save right before.
00:45:55
Speaker
He made a bunch of big saves, yeah right? Yeah, when he goes down and low to the left, yeah, he he had a couple of good saves. But at the end of the day, it's just... Lack of understanding of tracking that runner.
00:46:07
Speaker
ah Yamar and Jackson have to do better communication there. Reid, again, does he just makes it too easy for the guy to just put the header back into the the six.
00:46:18
Speaker
So the all those small things, at that moment, at those minutes, Seattle has to be on in a different way. Just we're going to hold it in. We're going to.
00:46:29
Speaker
Yes, it wasn't the result that we wanted, but let's let's just focus on that. Let's don't worry about getting the win. Let's worry about just holding on to the points, because right now every point is huge. Every point is big.
00:46:40
Speaker
Now you're giving Austin an opportunity to. Go over you if if you don't get Results here coming up I mean just there's so many things on the line that Went wrong after just giving up That goal at the end Nico let's play a little like hypothetical For a second Like this nothing is determined right now. They could, they could turn this around. They could start, they could take a few results in these last few games.
00:47:07
Speaker
And I don't know if they're going to get home field advantage, but they could at least it's still possible for them to turn the vibes around and at least be feeling okay about themselves going into the playoffs. But let's just say, uh,
00:47:20
Speaker
Let's just say for the sake of argument that this hangover doesn't wear off and they kind of limp into the playoffs, get knocked out pretty early. And the situation is that they won League's Cup, but then got hung over and got knocked out of the playoffs right away.
00:47:39
Speaker
Where would that leave you mentally or in how you assess the season that this team had because on one hand that would be very people would not be happy about that
Season Reflection and Playoff Prospects
00:47:52
Speaker
rightfully this is a team that expects to be contending for mls cups every year on the other hand i mean like even if that happens i it should I don't think anything should that happens for the rest of this season should overshadow that they played one of the greatest games and got one of the greatest wins in the history of the club.
00:48:14
Speaker
Like, you can call that cope. You can call that rationalizing. You can call it whatever you want. It probably is an element of those things to say that. But it's also, i don't know.
00:48:25
Speaker
Like, I understand the vibes are bad right now. the team's not playing particularly, ah particularly well right now they're dropping points. It's not looking good for a home field advantage, but, uh, it's almost, it's almost like, it shouldn't have to be a trade like that. But if I had to choose between the game that they got to host against inter Miami and the trophy, they got to win the crash out in front of 70 K all that, uh,
00:48:54
Speaker
I probably trade that. I probably, i don't think, i i don't know if I trade that for like anything that they could do in the playoffs. Is that, is that crazy? Like, what do you think? No, that's fair. And that's what,
00:49:09
Speaker
Sometimes it's hard to digest is the fact that, look, anytime that you win a major tournament, you got to take the season as a win. And this was a major tournament. You ah didn't just win a title, but you won a spot in Concaf Cup.
00:49:24
Speaker
You got a bye week in Concaf Cup. You set yourself up for... yet another international tournament that's important. And I know, I know that a lot of the fan base hates Leaks Cup and would rather the team focus on domestic play. Not anymore. It's the most important trophy that anyone plays for.
00:49:43
Speaker
I've always said that. Hey, that's what I say. So quite honestly, i do think that even if Seattle was to flame out in the playoffs, this would be considered a a positive year.
00:49:56
Speaker
You cannot diminish the importance of Leaks Cup, the way he played out, the way you played. Everything about that, i think, just ah let lets you just put your hat on it and you just let it sit and you move on and next year you're hoping to get more players in that you continue to work with what you have.
00:50:18
Speaker
I think that there's going to be some interesting turnover this, this season. We talked to Craig this week, ah last week, I'm sorry. And he kind of mentioned that, you know, if there's any outbound players is probably going to be in transfers. ah So I think that there will be some turnover for this roster. So for me, getting a couple of wins in the playoffs is,
00:50:41
Speaker
is great but you're kind of playing with house money, in in my opinion, in my humble opinion, Chad. If you guys, obviously, you're always going to hold your team to the highest standard, and so do I. But I do understand that it is difficult this year specifically for Seattle to make it all happen between the injuries that the Sounders have, the top talent in the West, and the even tougher, more talented teams in the East because the East is just...
00:51:12
Speaker
a step above the West, in my opinion, right? I mean, you look at the way since it's playing, you look at the The attacking trio that Cincy has, I mean, there's just Philadelphia with their style of play. ah You got Inter-Miami in good form. I mean, the there's just, it's difficult in the East. so So for me, it'd be great for the Sounders to obviously do what the Sounders do and is be a contender and be a protagonist in the um and the domestic league.
00:51:39
Speaker
But at the same time, I would understand that you spent a lot of your effort into that game international tournament and you know now you're playing with house money yeah i i agree and uh i bring it up because i can already see from thousand miles away that if seattle gets knocked out of the playoffs early this year you're gonna have the uh the incessantly negative brigade the the victory lappers who are gonna try and and try and say see we were right about everything
00:52:10
Speaker
all along like and then they're gonna they're gonna they're gonna say that league's cup doesn't count that's gonna be a thing they're gonna league's cup doesn't count because it's not a real trophy the inter miami game does doesn't count for whatever reasons and then they're gonna be victory lapping on the team's failures as they uh have been known to do and uh you know that's fine i just i'm not on that page at all like i think i think i agree with everything that you uh that you just said like yeah house money is not a term that people might love but yeah people might love that term i don't necessarily love the uh term but i do think that uh there's an element of if you're going to go for broke in uh in leagues cup you don't want this like uh low in form when you get back to league play to happen you wish that it wouldn't happen but it but if it does
00:53:05
Speaker
There's there's an element of like the price you pay to it to an extent like and I think it could be what's going on. No, and I'm not talking about complacency. I'm just talking about understanding the moment. Unfortunately, Seattle has dropped three games that were massive for their home field advantage.
00:53:21
Speaker
You are set up in a way that in the last four games of the season. you could just win one and and you put yourself even lower. So you're going into the playoffs in it in ah in a bad trend with everything against you. So it's just more of a reality.
00:53:38
Speaker
You would want your team to play better, but look, this Pedro Delvega team didn't come out of nowhere, but it's something that he's been dealing with. Clearly a lot of minutes on Jesus created tightness.
00:53:50
Speaker
You were... You were not going to hold Ovid Vargas hostage away from going with the U-20s and neither for Reed. So you have to be able to understand that you're going to be missing a huge feature out of your offense, right? And as much as Brunel can come in and do a job, I have a hard time believing that he's going to play at Ovid's level because hes he's just starting to get going, right? he's He's 18 years old. You got to be able to be realistic on his expectations, right? So...
00:54:22
Speaker
I just see it differently. I just, I think that it's kind of written in the water and I would love for the Sounders to do Sounders stuff, be relentless and just surprise the world and that'd be great. But the likelihood that the Sounders are going to make a deep run in the playoffs, I just, at this particular time, I don't think is great.
00:54:44
Speaker
Yeah. No, it's definitely yeah not feeling like that. And I just think, you know, we might want to, uh, Prepare ourselves for that reality. How are you feeling about this Vancouver game?
00:54:56
Speaker
ah Because they obviously have been one of the better teams in the West all year. And they added Tommy Mueller. Tom Mule. And he's looked pretty good. they're They're playing ah Tom Mule. Tom Mule's playing at a high level right now. okay ah You can't sleep on Tom.
00:55:13
Speaker
It turns out that ah ah Sun Hyung-min and Thomas Mueller are both quite skilled at the sport of soccer. I knew that ah before that they they came to the league, but ah god watching them play week in, week out now, I'm ah starting to see starting to see it a little bit with those guys.
00:55:33
Speaker
ah But either way, like Vancouver just in general, Tom Mule notwithstanding, ah Um, they're, they're playing well, they're playing with confidence. Uh, they're kind of, they had, they had a team of destiny vibe in CONCACAF champions cup this year. The final didn't go very well for them, but it was still an insane run that they had. And they're just a, they're just a good team.
00:55:52
Speaker
But, uh, you know, I am looking forward to this game from the standpoint of, uh, I, I just, i want to see as bad as that ending of the Austin game was, if Seattle can play at that level,
00:56:06
Speaker
offensively in this game.
Vancouver Whitecaps Match Preview
00:56:07
Speaker
I feel good about their chances, even against this Vancouver team. The reason being this Vancouver team, they don't really play the, uh, the tactics that these teams have been using to positive effect against Seattle.
00:56:21
Speaker
Uh, what What teams have been doing against Seattle that's worked lately, even when they were in good form, was the ah was the Minnesota United bit. Minnesota United did it and became the only team to beat Seattle until Miami post-Club World Cup.
00:56:37
Speaker
ah Puebla did it in Leagues Cup and got Seattle all the way to penalties. And then Austin did that pretty much in the first half of this game, at least. It was kind of funny because the first half, Austin FC was doing the Minnesota United bit. I thought for the first 10 minutes of the second half, they were doing pretty much the same thing.
00:56:54
Speaker
And then from 60 to 70, it kind of felt like Seattle was doing the Minnesota United bit to Austin. It was like a role reversal. ah But either way, Vancouver, they they don't.
00:57:05
Speaker
play like that. Like they're going to, they're going to be going for it. They don't play like cowards. They, they're going to play it straight up. And if, if they do that, then I think Seattle should have their opportunities to run their stuff and hopefully, you know, generate chances at the same rate that they, uh,
00:57:23
Speaker
that they have been lately other other than the ah Miami game. I think the most frustrating thing about this Austin game was how good the chance generation was and they only got one goal out of it. But that that is the kind of thing where if you if you're generating that many high quality chances consistently, the goals are going to be there. And we've seen that with this team this season. Like when they play like that, they're usually, they they haven't really had that much trouble scoring goals this year.
00:57:51
Speaker
So it'll at least it should be a fun game to watch because I don't think Vancouver is not going to come in here and and try and do the Minnesota United. a bit They don't do that. So it'll be it'll be a good test and it's a chance to get the vibes back on track. But it's also a really good team that signed a ah really, really good player recently. So ah what do you how do you size this one up, Nico? What do you think?
00:58:15
Speaker
I don't think Seattle matches up well against Vancouver. I think that Jasper Soreson is a guy that would be willing to play a little bit against the the the run of play if necessary. I think he is a guy that does play very vertical. he I think that the biggest...
00:58:33
Speaker
um or the the most dangerous way the Vancouver attack is with speed. It's out wide. It's with a guy like Ocampo getting forward. It's with a guy like Sabi and his ability to just ah stretch out defenses. that You got a guy like Jaden Nelson coming in off the bench and being a sparkle. You could start him as well. He's a guy with a ton of pace.
00:58:53
Speaker
um I think obviously Mueller's a guy that's going to get this team going. ah But the midfield particularly, I think that they can really go back and forth with Christian Roldan and obviously now going to have to figure out how much up to the game a guy like Schneider is going to be in because Berhalter and Kubas are phenomenal right and they they can be difficult to break down when they decide to play a little bit deeper um whenever Ocampo does go Kubas is the guy that kind of comes in and it's kind of the middle part of the the three men build out at times depending on how they're they're working their set up
00:59:30
Speaker
I just think that there's a lot of things that Vancouver can do to make Seattle's life very difficult, specifically in transition. And that's something that Seattle has struggled with lately. They're also good on set pieces.
00:59:43
Speaker
So I don't know. For me, ah Seattle needs to control the tempo. They need to protect themselves with the ball, with possession.
00:59:53
Speaker
They need to be very patient on the ball and extend those possessions. But I feel like Vancouver just really does things well to overload the flanks.
01:00:06
Speaker
And I think that with the Sounders team that also likes to get forward with their wingbacks, it's going to be a difficult game. And the all be all for me is going to be just the quality of center midfield.
01:00:18
Speaker
And with that Obed, I just, I don't feel very good about it. it's going to be a It's going to be a tough game, and I think Mueller has definitely – it's not a surprise, but I think he has elevated their team pretty meaningfully. he It's one of those these guys, the these ah these big Euro superstars that come over here. like You obviously – have heard of them and watch their highlights and stuff, but none of these are guys like, uh, son and Mueller. These are not guys that I've personally like watch super closely throughout their careers, other than seeing the highlights and knowing that there are these big superstars, but it's, it's always interesting to like actually watch them play every week and see kind of what makes them what they are.
01:01:01
Speaker
he is a Tommy mule. He's way more, um, creative, I guess, than kind of expected or, or thought like he's very unselfish and, uh, he, he, he's got like this great vision and he hits these passes where I'm like, damn, like, I guess I kind of, i considered him more of a, uh,
01:01:24
Speaker
like a peer number nine i guess maybe i confused him with levandowski or something but he uh he really like he's a very well-rounded multi-faceted player he's not like a one-trick pony at all and they have uh they've benefited from that without a doubt yeah no and and i think that
01:01:46
Speaker
I don't want to put it all on on this, but it would be beneficial for the Sounders if Vancouver couldn't bring back Mueller, right? He was out in this particular game with an adductor injury.
01:01:59
Speaker
oh i didn't even know that. Yep. Blackman was out as well with a knee injury. i think Blackman's not going to play in this game. Yeah. So but my guess is that he's out for this one. um So, yeah. I mean, can you make that count? That'd be...
01:02:15
Speaker
Phenomenal. But we'll have to check. We'll have to wait and see what this week of training is like for Vancouver. ah But if those guys aren't in, maybe you give us yourself a chance. Jacob says this is simultaneously one of, if not the most entertaining Seattle teams to watch in terms of ball movement and goal scored that I've ever watched, but also so damn frustrating because of that.
01:02:34
Speaker
And it, yeah, like it's a, it's a great point. And it is, it is something I've been thinking about as far as ah we all, myself included, Noah included.
01:02:46
Speaker
we We spent a lot of time on this show last year complaining about how boring the the offense looked at times. It was like pulling teeth in attack.
01:02:58
Speaker
It felt like just this struggle to score even one goal in ah in some of these games. And we literally, i said this. I said this a lot of times, and it's easy to say at the time, but the reality of it ah can hit differently. But I said that I would take more concessions.
01:03:15
Speaker
I would take like, ah like I would, I would take the defense conceding more or game States where you're more prone to concede more. If you were playing more dynamic offensively and you were generating more chances and scoring more goals yourself ah there, there is a give and take with that.
01:03:34
Speaker
sometimes where uh when you're when you're playing all out in attack and you're busting it and you're going for it you leave yourself susceptible to situations in game states where you yourself are more prone to conceding so i do i try and check myself and realize like a team that plays like this is what i like asked for you know so i it's tough to sit here and say like oh man like You know, I obviously wish they weren't conceding goals at the times that ah that they were.
01:04:07
Speaker
But when when you play like they do on offense, it can lead to more goals like it has this year. And it's certainly been a lot more entertaining, a lot more fun team to watch. ah But they have, I think, on the flip side of that ended up conceding more goals this year, like just in general. Like, do you agree with that?
01:04:24
Speaker
Yeah, and all of that goes into whenever you're thinking about why was this year successful? It wasn't just League's Cup, right? It wasn't just that trophy. But I think overall, people should feel good about the type of soccer. The Seattle Sounders are playing. They've been wanting to really be a more attacking team, more on the front foot. They've been able to do that.
01:04:46
Speaker
They were exciting. They scored the most goals probably of any other team for the Sounders before. you I know that Jeremiah had mentioned something like that, or they've scored a lot of goals this year. They were at a rate.
01:04:59
Speaker
let Let's like's look at it. They have, uh, they have, uh, 52 goals in league play and then 16 in leagues cup.
01:05:10
Speaker
ah So 68 goals just between those two competitions. They're going to be up in the seventies. Like that's pretty damn good.
01:05:21
Speaker
Yeah, and then you look at the roster and you look at what you've seen out of Jesus Ferreira. You're seeing what you're getting out of Schneider coming in ah You're seeing what you have out of Obed. And even if he goes, that you're starting to kind of prep the floor for um maybe Schneider taking that spot.
01:05:36
Speaker
ah Georgie has been so much better. ah You know, what happens with Paul Arriola? I mean, there's theres theres there's a lot of things that this year, I think if you look at the overall sense of the roster and what they were able to put together, that should make you feel like this was a positive year.
01:05:53
Speaker
And now I don't want to be sitting here giving Seattle the goodbye already. No, we don't need to reflect yet. you need Yeah, not what what I'm saying about is that that there's a lot of things that were positive and that have been positive this year.
01:06:05
Speaker
And, you know, we'll see how this team handles the last five games. And that could shift that um optimism or not. But I do think that, you know, Seattle has been good this year. But I do have a hard out today at 9-10 there, Ross. was going to say, yeah, we can wrap it up on that.
01:06:23
Speaker
Any last takes that you want to do a cook on before you before we wrap it here? Or are we about set? No, I think we're good. You know, we're going to be... The team will be back on Wednesday to train. They're going to have a couple of days off. So ah we're obviously going to be...
01:06:42
Speaker
on the ball, on the spot, asking about all of these injuries. We're going to get a chance to talk to Brian much a little bit more. So just be on the lookout for that, obviously, between Pulse of Sports and on Twitter, and we'll we'll hand you guys down any information that ah kind of comes about this week. But other than that, man, I will see you on Saturday.
01:07:01
Speaker
and uh go durse sounds good uh thank you everyone for tuning in this morning another great episode of lobbing scorchers kickoff as always you have not yet please like the video subscribe to the channel follow us on all socials including instagram and tick tock and uh we will catch you with all our coverage this week i'll be at it uh under the lights on thursday maybe a podcast noah i don't know where he's at we'll see but we'll uh we'll catch you guys this week love you guys peace