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Seattle Sounders carelessly jump to victory!
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It was a big victory for the Seattle Sounders in Matchday 1, with Sunday night's comprehensive 2-0 victory over the Colorado Rapids. But it came at a cost, with Jordan Morris and Hassani Dotson each exiting with injuries. We'll discuss our biggest takeaways from the match, what we thought of the controversial officiating and more from the opening weekend in Major League Soccer.
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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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Sponsor Highlights
00:00:00
Speaker
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00:02:26
Speaker
Well, sir, we got a scorcher today. Gonna be a real scorcher today. What the scorcher today? Well, it's gonna be scorcher.
Sounders' Match Recap & Player Updates
00:02:48
Speaker
Good morning, everybody, and welcome to another episode of Lobbing Scorchers Kickoff. I'm Ari, that's Nico, and folks, we have a game to talk about. The Seattle Sounders just kicked off their 2026 MLS season at Lumen Field last night. It's a 2-0 victory.
00:03:06
Speaker
over the Colorado Rapids. A lot to get into about that. We're also going to be talking about some of the other results from around MLS. But yeah, I mean, we're going to get into Jordan Morris, Hassani, Dotson, injury updates. We got some ref discourse in all likelihood. And to be talking some standout performances. There are a few of them.
00:03:24
Speaker
Paul Rothrock, Osase DeRosario, Jesus Ferreira, the defense. We're going to talk about all of it. Nico, what's up, man? The season has started. There was a game played by the Seattle Sounders.
00:03:36
Speaker
There was games played all around Major League Soccer. How are you feeling coming off the first game of the season? Hey, man, I am feeling like ah like a brand new man. I mean, that that was ah a phenomenal first game. You know, it just... ah Supercharged the battery, man, from the the the atmosphere of the fans, the TIFO that was phenomenal to the game in general. So I'm feeling pretty good, man. All around MLS, great games. i mean, it was a fun weekend for for um MLS. Good goals, good good matches. But in terms of the Sounders, man, I mean, last night it was pretty epic, man. I mean, with obviously the the the tainted,
00:04:21
Speaker
Components of a a Jordan Morris injury and we'll talk about that. Um, I think it was a phenomenal night. Yeah, no, I mean a couple of caveats, obviously the, ah Jordan Morris and Hassani Dotson injuries are unfortunate. It is all, it was also the Colorado Rapids who did not look especially great, but I think there was a lot of encouraging stuff to get into. And, uh,
00:04:47
Speaker
let's get into Let's get into all that. Let's talk about this game. Before we do that, please sub to the channel, like the video, like, comment, subscribe, rate five stars, lobingscorchers.com slash sauce, lobingscorchers.com slash kit. Follow us on Insta, TikTok, all that good stuff. ah All right, Nico, let's let's start with how the match started. Okay, because I think everyone is ah i think everyone's feeling good about the result. But a lot of people I think are understandably myself included understandably bumped out about another Jordan Morris injury he goes down about eight minutes into
Jordan Morris: Legacy and Player Status
00:05:21
Speaker
the game. And you could see it right away from his body language and his facial expressions. He was, ah he was pissed.
00:05:28
Speaker
You could tell he knew that whatever he felt was likely going to keep him sidelined for, you know, we'll see what it it turns out to be, but I would imagine at least a couple weeks. So that's just, it doesn't get more unfortunate than that because we all know it's been well-documented. Jordan Morris struggled to stay on the field last year. He only played,
00:05:52
Speaker
He played like a thousand minutes maybe last year or something, but he couldn't, he couldn't stay on the field. I think it was more like 700. He couldn't stay on the field last year. He just gets ramped up. He just gets back and less than 10 minutes into his first game back first game of the season. He goes down again with What Nico, they said in the press box with a thigh injury. I've heard thigh and I've heard quad. So why don't we start there? ah Do you have any clarity on if it's thigh or a quad or does that mean the same thing? And is there any more information that we have on the Jordan Morris situation now that we didn't have last night?
00:06:26
Speaker
ah Yes, it was a quad per Brian Smetzer himself. Everything that I've been poking around says that that it is a quad. There really hasn't been an indication of how concerned or not concerned they are. Obviously, that injury has to be assessed further. ah The initial feel I get, reading it in between the lines, I don't think that – At this point, at least it feels like it's going to be a long-term injury. I thought that Jordan probably did right by just immediately sitting down, not forcing the the injury, right? A lot of times, especially someone like Jordan, who's had these sort of issues, might try to continue to play with that pain or or discomfort. And I think him sitting down, him being getting taken off, as far as I've been able to
00:07:25
Speaker
here, ah it sounds like at least that was a a positive, that it was immediately taken care of. ah This isn't an injury that he's had before, right? Every time he goes down, you're thinking, you know, knee, right? or ACL, or you're thinking hamstring, all those things. Calf, I mean, you know, just certain things that he's had in the past. It feels like this is something that could be, you know, part of I hate to say it, but an explosive player like him can start to develop some of these small injuries. Hopefully that's not the case. But but yeah, it it it was unfortunate. I think we were all gutted in the press box and around the stadium just to see a player that is so dedicated. And he's been so bit by injuries throughout his career.
00:08:23
Speaker
Yeah, it just sucks, man. It just sucks. ah here's I guess here's what I want to say about ah about Jordan Morris, because obviously, you know, the injury sucks.
00:08:35
Speaker
Him having to miss whatever time he misses is going to suck. But what's also going to suck is the discourse. We're about to go into a couple week... Span here where he gets trashed on a lot where people crash out about the fact that he got dp escalators and that he takes up a dp spot on the roster and that's going to that's going to come at the expensive people you know you already see the the comments out there to that effect. So I just hope everyone remembers what type of player this has been for the club. And not only that, but the amount of winning and the trophies that he's contributed to since he's been here. Okay.
00:09:17
Speaker
I was going through it my mind last night. Let me take you back to... 2016, the Seattle Sounders were playing the Colorado Rapids in the Western Conference Championship, and that Rapids team was pretty good that year. They came out in that series. two-leg series at the time. They came out in that series, and they punched Seattle in the mouth, and they got a road goal right away. And I believe Jordan Morris was one of the guys who scored a goal in in that game to put them up 2-1 on aggregate. But then,
00:09:42
Speaker
I don't know if people remember this in the second leg in Colorado. He was sick. I don't know if people realize how sick he was. He had the flu. He was throwing up everywhere. he had a fever and he went out there and he scored the goal that got this team to the Western Conference Championship. How about 2019 when they were playing FC Dallas in in the first round of the playoffs?
00:10:01
Speaker
They were about to lose that series, dude. they The defense was horrible that day. They were scoring goals on FC Dallas, but ah they they blew the lead, I think, twice, including right at the very end to get it to extra time. The only reason that they won that was because Jordan Morris scored a hat trick that got them through, and they went up and wound up winning MLS Cup to you that year. so you could go down the list of all the equity that i think he should have earned from this fan base but uh you know i think a lot of people still disagree with the escalators and that's fine but that shouldn't take away from everything he has given to this club he's the he's the leading goal scorer in the history of the club so i think it's just a bummer that we're gonna have to do this whole however long he's out talking about how he's injury prone and doesn't deserve to be a dp because you know what he did deserve to be a dp Those escalators were actually fair barometers of what DP production is. And he hit them and he earned that. And it's just unfortunate. It's unlucky that he has been this snake bit by injuries.
00:11:02
Speaker
But I just, again, i just hope that it doesn't overshadow ultimately what he's done for this team because there are trophies in this in this team's trophy case and there are banners hanging in that building. That wouldn't be if it wasn't for Jordan Morris. So I just hope people remember that.
00:11:18
Speaker
This is what I would add, and I totally agree with everything everything you just said. We have to remember how much Jordan Morris has grown as a player, and he has never been someone that's been content with where he's at. There was a point where everybody wanted him to have a better left foot.
00:11:38
Speaker
He worked on having a better left foot. He became a better player on the left side. I doubted whether or not he was going to be someone that could be a low nine and he ah didn't really have the ability to link up and hold up play and and be solid five striker. He proved that he was able to do that. He proved that he growed his game, that he ah endured some of the things that he had to endure when he came to injuries, came back stronger than ever. And he continued to work on his game, work on his first touch, work in having ah the the goal to his back, all of those things that he wasn't comfortable of doing. So regardless of
00:12:19
Speaker
the injuries and regardless of ah a lot of the scrutiny that follows him around, i do think that there is a level of unfairness that follows a player that continues to get better.
Emerging Players: De Rosario & Rothrock
00:12:31
Speaker
That is the the leading scorer of the franchise that has put this team in ah not just championship games, but has provided them titles I understand people that are unhappy and have been unhappy with the DP contract and all of these things, but the guy earned it.
00:12:50
Speaker
he He absolutely earned it. that that There was certain things that he certain metrics he needed to get to in order to get that sort of contract, and he got it. He got it on his merit. So I understand that this player, maybe we're starting to see that you might need to replace at some time at some point, but, but that happens to every player, whether it's through age, whether it's through injury, whether it's through change of systems. So,
00:13:22
Speaker
I just hate to see it go this way. I hate to see him have to, at the beginning of the season, especially, right? Because usually he has a run a game, six, seven games where he's able to be healthy and he ah is able to provide that, that, that intensity, that velocity stretch our defenses, being able to be a scorer. I was excited to see him next to was Sasa and work on that wing and and and cut inside and,
00:13:50
Speaker
It was just unfortunate that we didn't get to see it. Eight minutes we got to see him in yesterday's game. So I just i wish him the best. I hope that this is not a long-term injury.
00:14:02
Speaker
as of right now, I'm optimistic that that's not the case, that that's the case, that it's not a ah long-term injury. So we'll see what happens forward, but it it does suck, ah for lack of a better word, that now we're going to have to go back to those conversations about Jordan's injury prone. He's an awful DP. Move him on. It's time to buy him out. And to all those questions, I would say, i think that if Jordan ah was able and the Sounders were able to
00:14:35
Speaker
reconstruct his contract and stuff he'd be want to be like yeah let's try to work something out but at the end of the day right now with the way things are this is he set up to be ap for the remainder of of his contract and that's just what's going to happen buying him out is out of the question that's never been the sounders to buy out a player or release him or anything like that the people are putting out there i just i think that's ridiculous but you know, at some point you might be able to redo his contract. And and he he loves the city. he loves this club. And I don't think he'd mind getting maybe security on long term longevity of his contract compared to that salary.
00:15:19
Speaker
Limitations. Yeah, and you know, I'm not trying to downplay that it's it's not a great situation to be in when you can seemingly only ever have one designated player on the field at yeah at any given time. that That's not good. It's unfortunate. It's unlucky. And it's the situation just all around sucks. And I'm not looking forward to the discourse, but we're going have to do it. So let's just all buckle in, I guess. And that's the reality, Ari. and and you know I'm glad you bring that up. I mean, we we know the reality of it, right? It's Pedro De La Vega, huge potential. That was Craig Weibo's first big signing. Young DP immediately injured.
00:16:02
Speaker
ah first first First season, struggles to get back. He finally does. He shows you exactly why they brought him to Seattle. Phenomenal goals. X factor.
00:16:14
Speaker
Hurt again. So, yes, I i agree. a lot of people think it's the scouting. You know, there could be something to it. I just think that it definitely has been one of those situations where,
00:16:30
Speaker
sometimes Sometimes you get unlucky and and and that's what's happened to a couple of these players. Yeah. Hassani Dotson also comes off in the first half with a concussion after taking a shot to the head. Anything new with that? seemed It seemed like he was moving around all right, but did you i mean did you see him after the game or anything, or do you have any update there as far as severity or if there's any kind of notion of a timeline for how long he might be out yet?
00:17:01
Speaker
Well, I didn't hear... In any conversation or throughout the press conference, if he was going to go into the concussion protocol. So that's always a ah good thing. um It sounds like he was taking as a precaution as well. um He might have ah ah not gotten some of those questions that you're giving right off as they're assessing you correctly or something like that. But I didn't hear immediately from Brian that he was going to go into concussion protocol. ah But yeah, there is no no clarity right now. The impact in in the head was definitely big enough for for him to be forced out of the game. And so we'll we'll continue to keep an eye on that. ah
00:17:45
Speaker
But I haven't heard anything different from what everybody knows at this point. What did you think of Hassani before he had to come off? Because I think that was another and um unfortunate thing about that situation is I thought he was looking pretty damn good. He had a goal that isn't going to count in the history books or the record books, but it counts in our hearts because that should not have been disallowed. So he really, he should have had a goal on his club debut. And I thought the i thought the partnership and the chemistry with Christian looked great.
00:18:15
Speaker
significantly like they made a lot of progress from where it started in the preseason to now, which you what you would expect is their first time training and practicing together. But they looked a lot further along. They were running the midfield. He should have had a goal.
00:18:27
Speaker
What were your first impressions of seeing Hassani in an actual game with this team? I thought it was good. I mean, I was following his movement, his ability to ah not just take space, but but also ah be one of those one of the players that has that
Sounders' Defensive Strategies
00:18:45
Speaker
responsibility to come back and cover whenever Nuju's getting high on the left side, whenever Christian was able to get forward.
00:18:57
Speaker
I thought he was fine. I really did like that. as you mentioned chemistry, but ah particularly the way he was reading the game. Now we, and you've said this earlier in the show, Colorado, Colorado,
00:19:12
Speaker
I think had a lot of limitations, especially in the midfield. It felt like it was pretty easy for the Sounders to transit ah centrally. And I think that has to do a lot with a new team, a new system for Colorado. i talked to Josh Atensio after the game and he just looked like he did not want to talk about the game at all. I think he understood it it was a gappy and there wasn't a lot of, um,
00:19:40
Speaker
a team that was compact or that the lines were tight. it It was just a little bit disjointed. Um, you could tell even from the way they would build up that they're just still a work in progress. I mean, if that was a steak, you'd send it right back and say that it needs more cooking. Uh, that's what Colorado looked like. So, uh,
00:19:59
Speaker
I do think that you have to add at that, but in terms of overall play, overall understanding, his physicality, ability to cover space, I thought Hassani was good. And we'll have to obviously have a big a bigger ah data point and and more more of a sizable time for him for us to really assess where he's at, but but I thought it was good.
00:20:25
Speaker
what i did a What did Josh Atencio have to say? How's he doing? did he and did he give any Did he say anything that the people might want to hear? He's doing good. ah but when We're going to have that that ah short interview, I'll say, in Sounder on Heart for sure. But ah he was just...
00:20:44
Speaker
I think he understood that this is that everything was different ah when he came to this this group, right, after the the change of coaches. I did get to ask him about Obed, and I think you guys are going to like some of the things he said about Obed and Danny. Obviously, he's part of this group of players that that were all together at one point, teenagers, part of this Sounders organization and in in group of players that kind of play together. And then they moved on to bigger things outside of the organization. So I think that was, that was pretty cool. And obviously I try to keep it very short because everybody was trying to say hi to Josh Atencio. First, he went to see his family. Then he came back to the locker room, had a whole bunch of staff, tried to talk to him. And then as we were doing an interview, Jesus comes behind, he says, what's goes through. Then behind me is, uh,
00:21:33
Speaker
Jackson Reagan trying to, you know wait, waiting for him to to get off the interview. But it was good. He he he looks leaner. he looks taller. he looks like more more of a man.
Referee Decisions & Game Management
00:21:45
Speaker
it seems like he's definitely growing into his own person. And and it was just good to talk to him.
00:21:51
Speaker
Yeah, the Rapids look like they got a long way to go to get into any sort of contender conversation. But i still believe that Josh Atencio can be a building block for them. I think that was a good trade for them. And, you know, they got this new coach. So we'll see. We'll see if he can get them looking a little. I was a little i was a little rough last night. I was a little rough.
00:22:13
Speaker
And I think Josh was probably the one good player in the midfield. I really do. I think he was the only one that understood the assignment. I thought that he was the only one that, and he didn't have a great game, but that goes because of everything that's around you and and and the way that you play for players. But I think particularly he was one of the very few that, you know, he he didn't just play 90 minutes just because he would play 90 minutes because I thought he was holding the fort for this team.
00:22:41
Speaker
Nico, let's ah let's do a little bit of ref discourse. We don't need to spend a a whole lot of time on it, but it was one of the big storylines coming out of the game. ah You had 60-plus minute first half, which I guess that's that's the place to start, which...
00:22:58
Speaker
my main My main thought on the 60-plus minute first half is just like, if that happens, something has gone wrong. And honestly, that can't that can't happen.
00:23:09
Speaker
That can't happen. If that happens, that means whatever delays happened were just way, way, way, way way too long. Unless they're maybe there's special circumstances like emergencies and stuff, I'm sure, where a delay that long would be warranted. And then, yeah, you got to go into the 60s. But if we're talking about VAR reviews being the primary cause of the delays, and then the half goes into the sixty third minute,
00:23:35
Speaker
That can't happen. That can't happen. The clear and obvious threshold means that you need to be able to tell clearly and obviously that the call needs to get changed. And that's just just what drives me nuts about these situations, man. Like these situations where he's standing there for 45 minutes and we're all just twiddling our thumbs looking at our watches.
00:23:55
Speaker
If you have to do that, then it's not it then it's not clear and obvious. Clear and obvious means you should be able to tell within five, 10 seconds. So if you go, that's what I wish, that's just what I wish the criteria would be, man. I wish the criteria would be you you go over there. And if you can't tell, if you can't definitively tell that you are changing the call within 10 seconds, then you leave it.
00:24:16
Speaker
That's it. That's the end of the discussion. You don't stand there for 45 minutes. Watching the same replay over and over and over, then you got then you got another angle that you got to watch over and over, then you got to get another angle that you watch over and over, and then slow that down to the last frame per whatever, and then you make the call. Like, no, man. like' If you have to do that, if you have to stand there for that long and look at these calls for that long... then you have to leave leave the call. It's not hard.
00:24:45
Speaker
It's not a complicated concept or notion. And they need to, like, implement that, man. Like, he can't be standing there for that long looking at these calls. He can't. You can't, like...
00:24:58
Speaker
It's just, it it makes us all, like, I think, feel insane. At least that's how I felt, like, watching these sequences go down. And, you know, I don't know what his instructions he's been given. Maybe he's following the protocol that he thinks he should. But, like, if you end up in a situation where it's in the...
00:25:17
Speaker
It's past the hour mark in the first half. like that is just That is not something that can ever happen outside of ah really extreme circumstances. you know we we we lay We laugh about it, but that was that was ridiculous.
00:25:32
Speaker
He was a new coach and he felt like the training wheels were not off and VAR was on his ear chirping the entire time. I agree with you that it i mean, it kills the momentum for the Sounders. it It's not the way VAR should be used.
00:25:49
Speaker
And even when he reviewed the video for for several of the challenges that that he that he looked at, he was inconsistent with ah the way he explained it. and he he looked confused himself. I mean, that ah what this allowed the Hassani Dotson goal, I'm still trying to figure out what happened. He, he says, number nine, amazing he just, he meant no sauce. Yeah. He meant no sauce. Right. But, but that's what I mean. I mean, he just, even as he's trying to explain it, he he misses that one. And then when it comes to the, the, the red card or potential red card for um cobb
00:26:29
Speaker
he The way he phrases it It almost feels like he's about to give you a red And then he goes off And says yellow, right? Reckless funny guy was yellow You know what I mean? It just makes no sense That was a reckless challenge And after review The final decision is yellow card yeah no But it was the emphasis, a reckless challenge yeah And it's going to be a cautionary yell Everything about the the way he handled this game was not great And it it does talk a little bit about maybe he's inexperienced But it also says to everyone Hold on, make sure that you are ready for some more of those moments Hopefully not too many of them, but
00:27:17
Speaker
referee and in in mls you know needs needs to step up a little bit i really think that they could improve the situation so much if they just put a time limit on it like it's to me it's very it's very simple like when i see when i see a call that meets the threshold of clear and obvious i know right away i can tell you can and i think offside calls are usually pretty clear cut but it's when you're slowing down these like like that that foul that they're calling on osaze there i don't eat like He goes for a header, it looks like, but he makes contact with the guy's shoulder. Is that a foul?
00:27:55
Speaker
like I don't know. Maybe it is, but regardless, like you can't you cannot clearly and obviously tell that there was a foul that took place there that wasn't called on the field. And so if you don't call it on the field, you have to leave that. You have to leave that. The fact that that goal got taken off, it's just like...
00:28:14
Speaker
It's just mystifying, man. We got bad sequels. It's been a YouTube member for 12 months says MLS is an entertainment product. Wouldn't they want pro policies that favor more goals? Fans love goals. There's doubt the call should favor the goal. I agree with that, but I don't even think you need to, you don't even need to make that a requirement. I think you just need to kind of have a common sense statute on the clear and obvious threshold, which the amount of time that it takes to look at it, I think has a lot to do with it. Like in that situation, what what I would have liked to see is if they really want him to go over the monitor, you can go over to the monitor, look at it and be like, all right, you're telling me that there's a foul on 93 right there.
00:28:52
Speaker
All right. it looks like his head is kind of making contact with that guy, but I didn't call that on the field. And I can't really I i can't tell clearly and obviously that that's a call that needs to be overturned. So I'm just going to leave it. You could get that whole thing done in 10 seconds or less instead of 15 or 20 minutes. And then you end up in the 63rd minute of the first half of a match. So it was just, it was, it was a rough go for the guy. You know, they do these pro evaluations. I'm sure he's, there's going to be some notes for him because like in all seriousness, he also did like kind of lose, not even kind of, he lost control of the game. Like, so. Yeah. There were moments that, that, that he, he didn't lose control the bed. He allowed way too much physical play. I think that,
00:29:41
Speaker
if it wasn't for halftime out of the after the 60 minutes, that game would have gotten him way out of hand. I mean, it was tough challenge after tough challenge. I mean, he got he got really, really chippy there right as the that first half ended.
00:29:55
Speaker
Yeah, it did. I was glad that it didn't escalate into anything else. But anyway, that's enough ref discourse. We did a lot of it on the postgame show last night. so Yeah, no.
Team Tactics and Pressing Style
00:30:05
Speaker
And you know what? I love that Brian also – turned to page real quick on it he They almost they won the game. yeah no but but but i thought it was great that he didn't really worry too much about it he he made a joke you know he said that in the locker room you know they laughed about hasani getting his first sounders goal because he thought that it was a goal that there was nothing happening there. You know, he highlighted Alex Roldan's 250 games, passing Brad Evans, which is, you know, pretty amazing. He talked about the day. also laughed about Albert getting a header goal, which was second in his career. So all of these things, I, me and, and Brian don't see eye to eye about everything, but I really think that he did a phenomenal job at just, uh,
00:30:53
Speaker
pushing aside the the negatives, understanding that obviously the Jordan situation was tough, that the refereeing was awful, that they could have, at least in the scoreboard,
00:31:05
Speaker
won that game by more, but he focused on the fact that the team had an easy win, that the the movement works, that, ah you know, his pressing, which it looked pretty damn good ah to me. He's like, nah, it was okay. I mean, everything he was saying, I just thought that he's preparing these guys for a long season. And I just loved it. I thought that he he used the mic pretty well last night.
00:31:31
Speaker
Yeah, they won the game. So no harm, no foul from that perspective. But the only frustrating thing was the timing of the Dotson injury when he when he got hit. It came at a point in the first half where it's like they should they should not be out there.
00:31:45
Speaker
They should not be out there. They should have been in the locker room for halftime 10 minutes ago. We're all sitting here like idiots still watching this first half in the 63rd minute. This is stupid. Like, what? Guys are getting injured. like So that that was another unfortunate component of it. But, you know, as far as the final result, like they didn't let it affect that. So I guess that's a positive. Let's talk about more positives, Nico. I mean, they got they got a win, a nice, tight 2-0 win that, like you mentioned, it could have been more lopsided than that.
00:32:15
Speaker
Paul Rothrock, man. When Jordan Morris goes down, it's only eight minutes into the game. Paul Rothrock's not expecting to be in the game at that point. But was he ready? You bet your ass he was ready. He stays ready. He comes in there, and he's immediately wreaking havoc and making an impact on the game. And, Nico, that play that he made on the on that first goal by Rusnak,
00:32:39
Speaker
I think that was the sickest individual play of Paul Rothrock's career. And i think I think this might have been the sickest individual game of Paul Rothrock's career, which he's had a lot of incredible individual performances for this team, obviously most notably in the League's Cup final. But for him to come in the game cold less than 10 minutes into the game and then make a play like that where Jesus Ferreira is trying to hit him out wide and he hits the pass way past Paul Rothrock, that ball is going out of bounds.
00:33:09
Speaker
Any other player in MLS trying to run that down, that ball is going out of bounds. Just the dead sprint that he got on to track that ball down. But then, Nico, the the like ability to just stop that ball dead... Like that thing, that thing was kind of rolling at pace and he's able to just stop it on an absolute dime. And it just like time froze while it's there on the sideline. And then he bounces himself off the ad board, collects the recollects the ball, rips in across that Roosnack is able to easily head home while the defense is unbalanced and not expecting Paul Rothrock to track that ball down at all, let alone immediately. with that that kind of service and I mean that is just like an unbelievable individual play like the hustle and you know that's why that's why you run every single one of those down that's why you like every play matters that's why all the stuff that Schmetz preaches that's that that play in a nutshell
00:34:08
Speaker
So that was, that was incredible to watch. And then the, ah the goal he scores was one of the better Rothrock goals. I mean, top bins, like he goes, he goes top corner, like that thing, that thing was moving. And the ball from Ferreira was excellent. So that was just an all around great sequence of play. But what'd you make Pauly primetime? I mean, that was incredible.
00:34:32
Speaker
The most impressive part about Paul Rothrock's game overall beyond and and adding to what you just said is the mentality. And this is something that, you know, the SAH, Don, J.O. and I were talking ah after the game.
00:34:52
Speaker
And I think it takes a very mature, self-aware individual and someone that's a team first guy to go through the off season that he did look around and free agency. ah You can see that you're a fan favorite. You know that the team wants you back. You end up coming back, ah making less money as as he you know mentioned. and because you want to play for the team, ah you were ah heavy contributor last season. And all of a sudden Marbella, you aren't really playing with the first team or in the starting 11. You're kind of set up with the second group most of the times. You come in and it's not um the person taking your spot isn't necessarily Jordan.
00:35:48
Speaker
The person taking your spot is Osasada Rosario, who you know was brought up seven months prior and gets the job fairly for the nine. And then you push out Jordan Morris. And now I'm a bench player. Now all of a sudden i don't have a way into this team, but fine. I'm going to keep working.
00:36:10
Speaker
I'm going to make sure that I keep my head down, work hard. He worked hard all week. And then when his time and is it's his time and his number is called, he immediately shoots out like a bullet of a cannon he's,
00:36:24
Speaker
Makes ah an impact. and And he allows his play to be what I'm sure is going to keep him in this starting lineup for a long time. and And that's not easy to do. Not in soccer, not with the guy that's had such a hard time trying to get to the first. And he ah it feels like he's always swimming against the current all the time.
00:36:45
Speaker
Right? And at this point where he feels like he's made it, he once again needs to prove it. Man, ah you got to applaud it. You got to applaud poor Rothrock, put it in a phenomenal shift. I haven't watched the game a second time completely, ah but As soon as he comes on, he he's just a guy that understands the role. that If you look at his heat map, he's just pushing that line. He is someone that defensively is doing all of the work. He's earning ah ah free kicks. He's ah winning duels. He's colliding with people. He's getting in people's faces. I mean, he's not just the play, he's the attitude. And that that ball, that service for Rusnak, I mean, it's...
00:37:30
Speaker
Amazing. it is that It's right where it needs to be. um i don't think that the defender on that side... ever thought that Paul Rother was going to get to that ball. And I think that's why he has so much room to curl that ball in for Albert Rosnick, but that's on him. And now Ferreira needs to buy him a beer for that secondary assist because that ball is a little bit over and only Paul Rother gets to that ball prior to that goal. And then in the second is just understanding where he needs to be, how he needs to crash the ball, and then having the ability to put it in the back of the net. So, man,
00:38:09
Speaker
I cannot say enough good things about Paul Rothrock because of not just the game, but how he came about and everything that he's dealt with for the last three
Future Strategies for Key Players
00:38:18
Speaker
years with the team. So ah more power to Paul, man.
00:38:23
Speaker
That almost felt like a statement by Paul Rothrock. Oh, I'm a I'm a bench player now. Oh, you're going to bring me off the bench. Okay, i'll I'll show you what I think of that decision.
00:38:35
Speaker
I'm going to go out there. When I get my opportunity again, I'm going to go out there. I'm going to make an impact like I always do. And ah it was it was it was great to see Pauly Primetime back out there hustling, like you said, shot out of a cannon because he there was there was some questions after he got paid. People were like, is he is he' still going to be the same Paul Rothrock?
00:38:58
Speaker
Is he still going work his heart? Is he still going to run his heart? I mean, yeah, yeah, he is. He did definitely did last night. And it's, you know, less than 10 minutes into the season and we're already in a situation where Paul Rothrock is once again, one of the most important players on the team.
00:39:16
Speaker
So, I mean, it it felt like old times in that way, but mean, God, that was, that was fun to watch. It was pretty electric, honestly. Like that that was just a yeah energizer bunny out there. Kind of just really giving the team a jolt at a time where when you have Jordan Morris get injured, That was, that felt like deflating, you know, that's like, oh man, you came out, everyone was flying around looking good, feeling good. Looks like you're about to put it on this Rapids team. Then Jordan has to come out and it's a huge bummer and it can, that can take the wind out of your sails. And they didn't let that do that. So that was good to see. But I think Paul Rothrock was a big reason why Nico Osase De Rosario. Let's talk about him a little bit because like you mentioned, he wins the starting job in preseason, which,
00:40:03
Speaker
There was no way that they could have left him out of it. There just wasn't. Like, if you have a guy who plays like that in preseason and you don't start him, then like that's you're kind of going against a lot of the stuff that you preach about competition and people earning their spots. So I was ah like it was foregone conclusion, I think, that he was going to start. But, you know, that was one of the biggest things that I was watching going into the game last night. Like, how does this Osaze thing do?
00:40:28
Speaker
incredible preseason one of the best training camps i've seen a sounders player have in i don't even know how long but you know preseason is preseason the last time he did it was against louisville city sc so you know you got to do it against mls opposition how will this translate to the regular season and really more importantly how's the attack gonna look with osaze up there and jordan out wide which turned into rothrock out wide and i think the answer was encouraging honestly i i was hoping he was going to score i was i was thinking to myself man like i think the biggest thing that could happen tonight that would make me feel optimistic going into uh the season here would be osaze goal because that would be an indicator that what we saw in preseason is going to translate And really, he was showing such such crazy upside in preseason that if he makes good on that during the regular season, that could have a genuine effect on this team's ceiling. We don't know how good this guy can be. Like, he could be a star-level player in MLS for all we know. So that's why I was really hoping to see a goal to to get an indicator that that was what's going happen. And he didn't get the goal, but I found myself very encouraged
00:41:40
Speaker
regardless. And I'll tell you why it was because of his all around game and how he was combining with the rest of the attackers. But like, you could even see like, uh, there he's just so dynamic, like much more dynamic than, ah I think anybody that they've been running out at that position in the last few years from the standpoint of like,
00:42:02
Speaker
how multifaceted he was looking like on this on that play where on the play of the Rothrock goal he's dropping back so deep up like past midfield to take that ball and then that's he's the one who springs Jesus Ferreira and I just thought that was such a great looking sequence for Osase to have the awareness to drop back get the ball in that area and then he's immediately got his head up And he's the one who plays Jesus Ferreira in. And that creates the sequence that leads to Paul Rothrock's goal. So for me, like, even though he, that's a secondary assist for Osase, he doesn't get the primary, he didn't end up a scoring. But that is like a, that's an example of a sequence where he very meaningfully with his combination play and his holdup play and all that, he, he meaningfully contributed to a sequence that led to a goal. And then in general, I thought that he was just playing well in like the context of the rest of the team. So he didn't he didn't get on the score sheet, but he does get a secondary assist. And I definitely didn't come out of that thinking that ah that they should be doing anything else but continuing to start Osaze based on how I think just the whole offense looked, not just not just him individually. What did you what did you think of Osaze? But then also just how the attack was functioning as a whole with that with that set up.
00:43:21
Speaker
I thought it was good. um I didn't think it was great, but I know it's a work in progress. I think that he did a great job at occupying and making the life difficult for two young center backs in Colorado side.
00:43:34
Speaker
i think that he made some some good passes, but the accuracy level when you're that guy that's that everybody's pivoting off in that attacking part of the area and the hold-up play, it needs to be more precise. Yeah.
00:43:52
Speaker
Clearly, he didn't get a lot of opportunities in front of goal, but he was winning some aerial duels, which I thought was important. um I think that he takes good decisions. There's that mid range shot he takes on the top of the box that is just a little bit over, but I love the idea, right? You get, you pick up the ball, you take your space, you ah make, you make space in front of a defender, take that shot. I absolutely love that about him. The pass to Ferreira, I think is phenomenal, right? That's what you want to see out of that guy that that at your spear when you have,
00:44:32
Speaker
the quickness and the creative play out of the wingers that the Sounders have. And without him, that last goal doesn't happen. So ah credit to the awareness and the pace on the ball, right? You got to make sure that you put it where you're leading Ferreira, where he can just pick it up on the run and he has the advantage on the defenders. You don't allow them to get back. So I thought that was great as well. Set pieces, both defensively and offensively. i think he's going to help out Tremendously and I saw that here So Can he improve on some Accuracy in the passing yes I like the defensive effort as well Let's mention that I i like that Brian said that the press was okay I thought it was good i thought it was good great and yeah and And I think that obviously
00:45:23
Speaker
Colorado was inviting that pressure as they tried to build out of the bag very slowly, I may add. I don't know what they were doing with that. Like the really elongated sequences where they're pinging it around their own box, trying to play it out of the back while Seattle is just swarming them. Like that seemed like questionable strategy to me.
00:45:42
Speaker
Yeah, but but I love Osase. He's not rushing in. He's not overcommitting. He understands that he's got to break down a little bit and kill the angles. He's got to allow um either Albert or Jesus to push from that side and start to angle out it and take away, minimize and condense the field for Colorado as they're pressing. So I i thought he was good. I thought that he wasn't, again, great necessarily, but I thought he was good. I think it's a work in progress, and I know that it's going to work with Paul Rothrock.
00:46:12
Speaker
Now going have to build that report. Paul Rothrock is definitely more of an end line type of guy where Jordan is more comfortable coming inside ah with the Sounders adding one more player into the attack. Maybe Pauly can start to do that as well. But um overall, I think it works. um Overall, I would say that If this is his first game and that's the floor, that's the baseline, I think that that's a ah phenomenal result for for the Sounders from his type of play.
00:46:51
Speaker
Missed a super chat from ah Malcolm earlier. Malcolm, thank you for the five. Also, ah shout out Ryan Stapy on one of the last shows. He sent a super chat that I missed. My bad. That's only the second time in Lobbing Scorchers history that I've done that. So sorry about that, Ryan. We'll always, every super chat that we see, we'll always read it on the screen here.
00:47:12
Speaker
Nico, what did you think of the defense? Because that was another one of the big things that I was looking at, especially when they were in a situation where they got an early lead. I was like, okay. okay, this happened a lot last year.
00:47:23
Speaker
Played well at the start of the game. You got the early lead. and There's a lot of times where you blew the lead. So let's defense. Let's see. Let's see if these points of emphasis from training camp come to life in the first game of the season. Let's see if you guys can make it through this game without any unfortunate concessions or without blowing the lead. And they did that. And I think that Honestly, the whole back line deserves credit for that. And, you know, again, Colorado Rapids, caveat, their offense looked like kind of a mess, honestly.
00:47:55
Speaker
But what I was saying last night, Nico, is it's like, yeah, but how many times how many times were you watching this team last year where they were playing an inferior opposition and they didn't?
00:48:05
Speaker
do that. They didn't snuff him out when they had the chance and they let him hang around. And then at the end of the game, they're only up one goal. And then all it takes is one lapse, one moment, and you drop two points.
00:48:19
Speaker
That is a that people want to talk about the roster and want to talk about DP spots and ambition. The biggest reason they didn't finish in the top four last year was not because of any of those things. It was because they kept blowing leads against teams that they should not be blowing leads against like they're in there that they shouldn't be based on their personnel. Like we all know that these guys know how to play defense and know how to play with leads and hold leads. And And they were blowing a lot of leads last year and they dropped a lot of points off that. So that I think it was, even though it was the Rapids, it was a good first test to see like, all right, you've got a team that's pretty overmatched at Lumen.
00:48:56
Speaker
Take care of business. Don't let there be anything left to funny business. Don't concede any unfortunate goals that you don't need to be conceding to drop these points. Let's just be professional about this. Get this thing over the line without any drama or theatrics.
00:49:11
Speaker
Get the three points, get the clean sheet. And it was refreshing to see them do that, even though, ah you know, it is just one game against the Colorado Rapids, but there was last thing about the home opener last year when they were playing Charlotte FC they're in a pretty much the exact same situation, and they end up blowing the lead and dropping the points so nice to see them not do that but. Let's talk about it we give credit for that because i thought both center backs were fantastic.
00:49:37
Speaker
ah You could take your pick over which one you think was better. I you know i think, honestly, Yaimar had the best game out of anybody on the back line, but Jackson was phenomenal too. He had a couple of great slide tackles, but he also was just crushing his headers in the box. Nothing was getting by him. I thought both center backs were fantastic. And shout out the fullbacks too. knew who was really good. Alex was really good. So ah that was nice to see, especially, like I said, in the context of how many times we saw them be in that situation last year and not do what they did last night, which was hold the lead, take the two Oh, and get all three points in the bag.
Upcoming Match Preview: Real Salt Lake
00:50:19
Speaker
Nico, what did, what did you think of the defense?
00:50:22
Speaker
I thought it was a phenomenal collective effort, right? Um, Paxton Aronson had an awful night. I think he got 34 touches the the entire time he was on the field. And a lot of that had to do with how...
00:50:41
Speaker
how much ah the both center backs were willing to step up, right? don't want to call that a gamble. That's what I was trying to figure out, the correct word. But, you know, you you're aggressive. That aggressiveness from both of the center backs, I think, had a lot to do with the fact that Navarro did not have many balls in a prime scoring positions, why Paxton Aaronson was disconnected from the entirety of the game.
00:51:08
Speaker
I think that when there was emergency defense moments where whether it was a transition moment, I'm trying to remember what is it that happens, but at the end of the 60-minute half, there is a little bit of a breakdown and transition, and you're able to correct that and and not allow that to become a a goal. So that emergency-type defense, a couple of nice, perfectly timed tackles from Jackson Reagan just putting his body on the line and and and and blocking shots, set pieces.
00:51:42
Speaker
i didn't really see one where – Colorado got what they wanted or got a guy where they wanted it. And I think that's huge.
00:51:54
Speaker
With Andrew Thomas still trying to ah better himself in distribution. that There is a ball where it's a compromising ball right down the middle ah to, I believe it's Christian. It almost gets picked up. Those moments where the defense just has to, but by emergency ah ah of a of a bad turnover, I thought that they were great. I knew who had a very good game. knew who had a a very good game, both sides of the ball, but defensively, you know, he's frustrating ah completely. um
00:52:29
Speaker
In the way he points, right? he He's telling the the winger, go here, go here. And he he's making him play negative. It's so funny when he does that. I know where you're going to go. I already know what you're going to do.
00:52:41
Speaker
And i'm gonna you're not going to do that on me. Yeah, Sealy came off the field visually frustrated. yeah And a lot of it had to do with... new and and just his one-on-one ability. And whenever ah the Sounders were playing so aggressively and and and their back line was so high up, when when a ball would get through, it was always you know Jackson and and and New helping out or whatever, but I think New, just his ability to just get there. Christian as well, obviously, he's part of that defensive effort, right? I mean, he put in a big shift.
00:53:17
Speaker
You won't see it in the stat sheet because he wasn't on the ball. It wasn't maybe as precise higher up the field. But when it comes to where he was at, when he was able to slow down a play, right, because that's job number one for a defensive effort, right, is just slow it down, make sure that they play negative. I think that Christian Roldan did a phenomenal job at that as well. So overall, great.
00:53:40
Speaker
I don't want to dismiss that. how good they were defensively because of the opposition. But I do want to, you know, obviously put it there as a little caveat that they're not not necessarily there. Right. ah But Navarro is still a very good, very good attacker. Right. And i think we all expected,
00:53:59
Speaker
more from Aronson. And I think we expected more from Yappie and neither of them had a really, really good game. And they tried to mix it up and they tried to go a little bit more vertical. And, you know, Andrew Thomas there at the end, he he gets big on a play where he gets hit in the face, probably his best save of of the day. And that that happens out of a couple of moments where maybe Colorado was able to break through. But overall, I thought Seattle had a ah very good performance when he came to defense.
00:54:32
Speaker
Yeah, we shouted out Osaze on the Rothrock goal, but shout out Yemar as well. He was the one who bullied Paxton Aronson off the ball there, I'm pretty sure, to to create that whole that great opportunity. So that that whole goal was just a really good team goal from the back line to Osaze, where he picked the ball up, the feed to Ferreira, and then obviously Ferreira with the diamond cross to Rothrock, who goes top ends, weak foot, just a great goal. Yeah, and we and we and we haven't talked enough about Jesus. I mean, I went thought Jesus was very good. I was just segwaying right into that. That i was the next guy I wanted to talk about because, yeah, I mean, he had a he obviously had a really good game last night. He gets on the stat sheet on both of the goals. The haters are going to say that the secondary assist ah doesn't count because – well, because it's a secondary assist. But also, i mean, that was not a great pass to – That first goal was all Paul Rothrock. Like, that's does Paul Rothrock just in a nutshell.
00:55:34
Speaker
But I thought Jesus looked very good and very dangerous for most of the rest of the game. And then he does get rewarded with the primary assist on the Rothrock goal.
00:55:45
Speaker
which I was pleased that they actually gave that to him. When I saw that it took like a little deflection, I was like, oh, they're going to use that as basis to take his assist away, aren't they? They're definitely not going to give him that because of the deflection. But they did.
00:55:57
Speaker
They did. Jesus Ferreira comes out of the game last night with ah with two assists. So that's just great to see. But, man, like I thought he was he was impressive, man. The way he was just...
00:56:09
Speaker
Tearing around, tearing through guys and diamond people up. How he how he gets the break started in transition. Just, I mean, a lot of a lot of great stuff. We've been talking a lot in preseason about how well or how good he's looked in these preseason games and how hopeful we are that he can take a bit of a step forward this year from last year, at least as far as the stat sheet goes. Off to a good start. He gets on the stat sheet twice in the first game. What did you see from Jesus, Nico?
00:56:36
Speaker
He's ah pivotal for Sounders transition. He always seems to find the right pockets to get the ball and then put the ball in the right pockets to get guys moving in transition. He he could be one of the best quick passers that team has. I mean, he just finds feet all the time. he He, he's putting the ball where he needs to put it. Right. I think that the stat was, ah he had 23 out of 28 passes, 82%. And he's doing winner it from all places in the field. I also think he's so important when he comes to switching the point of attack, he constantly, his vision is,
00:57:16
Speaker
just impressive, right? I mean, he's, he's not just looking here. He's just looking at the entirety of the field. So consistently he's putting the ball on the other side. Now, if you were to ask him, he probably be like, I could have been a lot sharper. I could have been a little bit better that pass to Paul Rothrock. I'm sure that's not what he wanted to put it right on that, that first goal, right? Because Paul has to make that crazy run to go get it. But it's the intent to put the ball on that side that kind of creates that space for Albert to get in and, and get on that header. Right? So,
00:57:47
Speaker
And did that I'll say this too. It was actually 40 chess because the fact that Paul Rothrock had to run it down and the Rapids didn't think that he was going to be able to get there. That's what lulled them into a false sense of security. chair And arguably what, so was actually a smart, a high IQ play by miss that pass.
00:58:06
Speaker
Yeah. So, so it was great. He was also finding himself crashing the box at the right times. He gets a header. He probably could have done more with, I forgot who's the one that crosses the ball in, but it was a good opportunity.
00:58:19
Speaker
i just think he sees the field so well. And he is one of the players that without Obed Vargas, he might need to do a lot more. You saw where he was picking up the ball, very deep down in lines and and getting it going. Uh,
00:58:34
Speaker
One thing he does so well is never turning into pressure, plays great with defenders at his hip. So overall, man, I just I love the way he plays the game, not to mention his press, the way he is helping to designate traffic on on when the team is pushing forward.
00:58:57
Speaker
There's a a ball that he puts into Albert Rusnak in that first half, I believe it was. Yeah, it was the first half. Oh, no, at the start of the second half. ah He ah cuts inside, and with his left, he sees Albert making a run into the box, puts it perfectly in front of goal, and Albert shanks it completely. And you can see Albert just, oh, man, I can't believe I just missed that. But that ball, that vision to thread that needle with your left foot,
00:59:25
Speaker
Oh, my. I just – I'm impressed by Jesus Ferreira. The more he plays, the more he finds his game, the more he finds his spot with this team. I think that him and Albert coexist. We went from figuring out if they could coexist from them just – moving so freely and understanding each other so well. So ah I want Ferreira to build more of a rapport with Osase. And I think that's the next step now, knowing that with Jordan Morris's injury is going to be Osase at the nine. But aside from that, man, I just think Ferreira was incredible. He was without a doubt second best right behind ah Paul Rothrock in yesterday's game.
01:00:10
Speaker
Yeah, it's been interesting watching him find his role on this team. I think we all expected that his primary source of value would be his goal scoring. And it's really not. It's his playmaking. Like, I feel like his value to this team is ultimately going to be defined by his assist total more than his goal total, which is not what I expected, but the more I watch him play, the more I just feel like this is such a smart player and a guy that i think he could... I think we could be talking about like at least 10, 15 plus assists. I think he ended up at like...
01:00:47
Speaker
13 all comps last year it was maybe like 11 if your secondary assists don't count or whatever but i think i mean i think he could end up 15 plus dimes this year and then we'll see where the goal scoring toward ah total ends up like maybe part of his kind of ascent as a playmaker for this team comes at the expense of his goal total but i still think that he i mean ability wise we i know that he is capable of scoring double digit goals in mls so let's see what type of year he can have it really feels like he's solidified he knows what his role is he's a lot more comfortable on like where he fits in and how he plays with everybody this year so uh i think that i felt nothing but encouraged at the notion of uh all of the all the talk we've had in pre-season just really hoping that this is going to be the year where he steps forward and becomes
01:01:38
Speaker
one of the four most important players on this team. he He looked like he's ready to make good on that. So, again, again, you got to the one-game caveat, the Colorado Rapids caveat, all acknowledged in all of this. But it was still it was nice to see him look that good nonetheless. And I think the goals will come. I think the goals will come. I mean, not just from the opportunities he had. was saying that last year, too, and they kind of didn't. But I think, no, I agree. They will. They will this year. they will Yeah, I think that not just because of the opportunities he had and he created inside the 18, but also the way he plays that that pocket winger. And when the team is getting ready to go in transition, he's usually one of the guys that's behind the defense pretty quickly. He's constantly there was a couple of times in yesterday's game where I'm watching him and he's kind of giving eyes to Jackson Reagan to just play him through the back and
01:02:32
Speaker
Ferreira might not be a speed monster, but but he's got some explosiveness. He can get in front. He can definitely get behind defenses. and And I don't see why not in many opportunities. He could be a guy that on a counter is in front, puts the ball away. So I think the goals are coming.
01:02:48
Speaker
God, he had one play that was so sick that I just remembered where he was, they were out, they were out on the counter and he actually had Alex Roldan running on the, on the overlap where it looks like if he had just played him in Alex was going to have a bunch of space. And I was thinking, I was like, in my head, I was like, play Alex, play Alex, play Alex. But he didn't. He kept the ball and then he cuts inside. And I was kind of like, oh man, like, what are you doing? But then he picks his head up and he just hits Albert Rusnak, just streaking into the box on goal. And Rusnak really could have finished that. Like, that could have been a goal. And that was all Jesus Ferreira making stuff happen, ah cutting in from the inside and then just hitting an absolutely perfectly weighted through ball like Rusnak.
01:03:32
Speaker
And I just want him to keep doing stuff like that. If he keeps doing stuff like that, he's going to get on the stat sheet a lot this year. He's going to be just fine. Nico, anything else from this Rapids game that you wanted to hit that ah we missed? We can talk about RSL a little bit after that, but well, it's not a burnout loud or anything about the performance in general.
01:03:51
Speaker
Yeah, it' not a Bernal. Just a good, solid performance. ah Obviously, he, depending on this injury, might get a lot of time right off the bat. I just i thought that he was cool collected. I think that he understands...
01:04:08
Speaker
how important it is for him to get onto the attacking end. And i think he sees the, the, the field very well and he doesn't attack the same space that maybe Albert or, or, or any of the other players might. I think he understands that well, defensively. I think he has to be a little bit more cautious. And um I think on his distribution with the ball, maybe a little bit quicker, but I thought that he looked the part and, and he, I don't know, he looks bigger to me. He looks stronger. He, I asked him after the game, he said, no, not really. I mean, I gained two pounds, but you know, yeah he he definitely, he looks like he just got broader, just stronger. And he, he he just fits the bill for what the the Sounders want out of that, that pivot next to Christian Roldan.
01:04:58
Speaker
I love Snyder B man. I'm so excited to watch him play more this year. And, Like his performance last night when he had to come in the game did not dissuade me of that. It was unfortunate circumstances under which he and Rothrock both had to enter that game. Like I wanted to see Hassani Dotson more, but I think it was nice to see that when Snyder went in there, not only did the level not drop off, but he looked like he looked also like he was ready to build on what he put on film. last year which was excellent so yeah no great shout uh i i can't believe i missed snyder b but he uh he held it down when he had to come in when he was called into duty he held it down uh nico real salt lake coming up next america first field seattle sounders are heading down there and this is going to be a good test good time of the year for it because they're going the road for a while here and real salt lake
01:05:56
Speaker
Their roster, I mean, they signed they signed one new DP, right? But they honestly kind of remind me of the Rapids a little bit. I think there's some parallels there. so ah But like that being said, it has never, shout out Caleb, it has never mattered in the past.
01:06:14
Speaker
what quality of team ah RSL is Seattle can't win there. They always get bammed on. They always look tired. doesn't matter how good they are. doesn't matter how bad RSL is. I pretty much I'm at the point with it where I write off these games. Like I don't take into account what the roster looks like or what quality the team is.
01:06:36
Speaker
When they're going to RSL, they have not shown, they haven't won there since 2011 or whatever. So until they show that they can do this, there's really no reason to think that they're going to do this. Like they have, like, i go we all have our theories on why that is, but for whatever reason, this is the hard, this is the number one hardest road trip for this team in the entire league. They cannot win in this building. So with that being said, you know, there's no better time to change history than right now. You know, you're going down there. You got an RSL team that is not looking particularly good. Maybe they're better than I'm giving them credit for. But for now, they seem like a team that's kind of in transition. They're integrating new DPs. They have the same coach, which that's a difference from the Rapids. The Rapids are integrating a new coach, which I think had more of an impact on their kind of ability to
01:07:31
Speaker
hit their top level as fast as they ah could. Maybe under like ah RSL under Pablo, most of those players know him a little better. Theoretically, they should have more continuity in that way. But they are integrating a new DP, and they are you know hosting a game at a venue that Seattle hasn't won at in over a decade. So what do you think, Nico? what Do you think you fancy Seattle's chances of ah snapping this skid and taking a seldom seen away win at ah RSL? And what's going to need to happen for them to do that?
01:08:04
Speaker
I do. And yes, shout out Caleb, because i know that he's ah been waiting for this a long time. And i that yeah i know how important it is for him, for the Sanders to win at RSL. And I think it could be this game. I really do. Yeah.
01:08:21
Speaker
I will say that clearly Pablo is going to have the team ready to go. He's going to make the game uncomfortable. i think they're going to be even deeper than they were playing against ah Vancouver. But there was a, you know, they were a three man back line, but it looked more like a five, the majority of the game. i think that they don't have a lot of dynamism in the midfield and they struggle to get on the attack. I think Puyol is it's,
01:08:46
Speaker
He can definitely create some some problems. He's so so fast, so quick. He gets into good opportunities. Katrin is this the probably that the the quickest outlet that they have. He gives them the the most the most width out of that formation. And I thought he was good against Vancouver. But look, I thought Vancouver, if not unlucky, maybe they just weren't sharp enough to win this game by more. um Cabral, a couple of big saves as well. So credit to the the Brazilian goalkeeper there as well for for our sell. But if I put into...
01:09:28
Speaker
the, I don't know, graphic, the way that the Sounders attack, the way that ah RSL defense, some of the gaps that I saw yesterday from that team in transition. Look, I think that Seattle matches up very well. I think that there's going to be space to be exploited Hayden Katrinas. I think that Goso, for...
01:09:53
Speaker
As good as he is, he's very aggressive, and at times he gets hung up a bit on the attacking end. So, look, I think Seattle, I think if Paul Rothrock starts, he's going to have plenty of room to work with. i think he's going to make it difficult for Gossett get forward, pin him back a little bit. um yeah Justin Glad is ah is a very good defender, but he's one that's trying to – you can tell that he's trying to – get comfortable with the new system, get comfortable with his his new partnerships. He's trying to get comfortable with the the pivots for this team that I don't know if they don't check in enough, but there's just a couple of things that I could definitely see Seattle exploiting. So look right now with this team, as deep as they are, as hungry as they are, if Snyder B gets a start and he's just motivated,
01:10:45
Speaker
At that level And Paul Rothrock gets another start He's motivated at that level And Jesus continues to play as well This isn't a mid mid-week game, which is a win for the
Inter-Miami vs LAFC Analysis
01:10:58
Speaker
Sounders because it feels like they always play in mid-week. I just i just try think that this this could be it. That is like that is a good point. is like A lot of the times, at least in the last couple years that they played there, it's been those situations where it's like mid-week, the lineup's rotated, you already have 15 injuries, and you would be kind of up against it no matter what road game it is. This is not really that situation. I mean, obviously you had two injuries in the first game, but the guys who filled in for the guys who came out looked great. So theoretically, your level shouldn't drop all that much from what it was against Colorado in this game, although you are on the road and you are at elevation. But like,
01:11:35
Speaker
But Colorado, ah Colorado stadiums at elevation to in Seattle's one there a bunch of times like so I've never that's one of the theories people always come up with is that it's like elevation so it's hard to play at but that why would that affect them more in the state of Utah than it does in the state of Colorado it doesn't make sense to me. Wade's been a member for nine months. He says, watched cap the Caps versus RSL game. Was not impressed with ah RSL. Yeah, I don't think they're that good. Is this the weekend to win in Sandy, Utah? Hopefully.
01:12:07
Speaker
Hopefully. Taking an L at America First Field, that's always that's always tough to take. So hopefully we don't have to ah to deal with that. Would you ah say say it turns into kind of like a more grinded out 0-0-1-1 type of game and they get a draw do you think that would be an acceptable result because quite frankly for me like as much as I agree with everything you said based on the recent track record if they just get out of there with a point and I can never think about this game again i don't think I would be that mad about that what what do what do you think about that
01:12:40
Speaker
Look, anytime you get a result on the road, it's a win. And especially when you have had a bad track record, I'm totally with you. I do think that RSL, especially to start the game in the first 15 minutes, I think that they pushed the the envelope a little bit and they wanted to get forward. And I think that there will be moments where they try to get... um And especially with the way the Sounders are currently pressing, maybe they will try to get a couple of balls over the top, but I just see a better Sounder team than RSL.
01:13:17
Speaker
I think set pieces is going to be the way that RSL could try to... change this game. So if the Sounders could stay as disciplined as they were against Colorado, I think they'll be okay. But yeah, I mean, a result is a result and and I would absolutely take the points, but I do think that the Sounders have everything to potentially win this game.
01:13:40
Speaker
Someone's asking if Diego Luna is injured. Not that I i know of, but do you know anything about that? Oh, I can't. I know he didn't play or did he or did he come in late?
01:13:51
Speaker
um i i i don't i don't remember him in we'll have to look into that that is there that that is the one guy that can really hurt you he's very very good Yeah.
01:14:03
Speaker
Nico, we got a few minutes left here for this episode of Lobbing Scorchers Kickoff. ah Everyone, if you've not done so yet, please ah like the video, get us in that algorithm and sub to the channel. We're we're getting close to 3K, guys. We're getting close to 3K. Nico, let's ah let's talk some other other results from around MLS and match day one to close it out here. Mainly, maybe i want to talk about... ah a one Inter-Miami CF in their matchup against l LAFC because this was pretty interesting how this one panned out. You know, the schedule makers, they put Inter-Miami and LAFC against each other in the first match day of the season to, you know, start the hype. It's the two...
01:14:44
Speaker
Highest profile teams with all the stars, the teams that everyone's watching, the teams that everyone's picking to win this, that, and the other. And I think the thought was that it was going to be this kind of like clash of titans where it's this super back and forth, electric, entertaining, competitive type game. And you got Lionel Messi on one side and Xianghamin on the other. You got Denny Bawanga. You got Herman Bertramé. You got all this star power. Everyone was going to be watching. It was supposed to be this big spectacle.
01:15:13
Speaker
That's not what happened, man. LAFC absolutely rolled Inter-Miami. It wasn't even close. It was non-competitive. LAFC Inter-Miami so badly that...
01:15:26
Speaker
The Inter-Miami, they did one of their crash outs. Messi was like going after the refs in the tunnel. they He's not getting suspended because they're saying that he didn't actually go into the referee's locker room. He tried to. I saw the video. He was going after them. And ironically enough, Luis Suarez had to hold him back and and pull Lionel Messi out of the referee's locker room. You know how bad you got to be crashing out for Luis Suarez to come in as the voice of reason?
01:15:54
Speaker
That is not good. That is not good. And it was really just kind of pretty shocking way to see Inter-Miami start off the season, Nico. Like, it wasn't just that they got beat. It wasn't even just that they got beat badly.
01:16:09
Speaker
They looked kind of, like, a boring. Like, there just wasn't... I don't know. I was disappointed. I was like, what am I? Why do you got Bertram? You got literal, you got messy.
01:16:22
Speaker
You got this guy. You got that guy. You've got every guy. Every single guy on your team is basically a DP. You just got the best striker in CONCACAF to replace your 48-year-old malcontent striker who spit on Gene.
01:16:37
Speaker
And you get rolled 3-0. I don't care that you're on the road. like That is... that is Like what the, what happened? Like, i'm I'm not going to sit here and say that this is the demise of inner Miami and that the, this means that they're going to be terrible this year and they're not going to win any trophies. I know better than that. And I think ultimately,
01:16:59
Speaker
That result was probably more about how good LAFC is than it is a commentary on anything about Inter-Miami. And I'm sure they're going to put up 60 plus points this year. i'm sure they're going be in there for the shield. They're probably still going to win the shield. One of those two teams is probably going to still win the shield. But even so, man, even so, for them to come out and put out a performance like that, that was one of the worst performances anyone put up all weekend.
01:17:21
Speaker
And like, yeah, you had to go cross country. Yeah, you had to play an LAFC team. That's also a juggernaut. But you're supposed to be the juggernaut. You're supposed to be the juggernaut. And you're getting played off the field by another Western Conference opponent.
01:17:36
Speaker
And then you're having your goat is crashing out and going after the refs in the referee locker room. Nico, what's going what what happened? What's going on with that?
01:17:47
Speaker
I'd like to start by giving credit to Mark Dos Santos, and I hope that the doubters are writing him sorry letters because he, I think, dialed up a perfect flaer game plan to ah expose the deficiencies that Miami has as a whole.
01:18:09
Speaker
I think that having Andy Rose as part of their coaching staff helped in replicating some of the things that the Sounders did in that Leagues Cup final where they just completely eliminated Messi. They took him out of the equation. They overpopulated the midfield. They ah played and executed as they should off a transition moment. They had a lot of speed on the left side, and they once again attacked Ian Frey all game long.
01:18:40
Speaker
He was put on skates. Anytime you have Danny Buanga, I mean, i think that most defenders have a hard time with Danny Buanga. But I just... think that where they were putting the ball, how quickly they were switching the play, the point of attack. So many of the things that the Sounders did, uh, to frustrate, uh, Roger good to Paul, that he's the one that is culpable for that first goal. He holds the ball too long. It's dispossessed is a quick pass. ah son, uh, sees, uh, La Perla Martinez making that right run. And then, uh, Martinez puts the ball away. ah
01:19:12
Speaker
I think that this game could have been 2-3-0 in the first half, but St. Clair came out big a couple of times. Yes, he had that boo-boo, that mistake. I thought he looked bad, man. I thought he looked No, I thought in the first half he looked fine. Then in the second, once he makes that mistake where I don't know why he is in no man's land, why he's so aggressively forward, and it's such an easy chip for Denny Bunga. And maybe easy is... It's unfair because it's not easy to do that. But but but getting getting past him, it was so easy. And then just putting in the ball away. After that, I think he started doubting himself a bit more. But in that first half, man, I mean...
01:19:55
Speaker
LAFC created a lot of opportunities, most out of just exposing some of those ah pockets that they clearly have. ah Segovia and Silvetti, they weren't defending much. Ian Frey was caught up in an island that he could not protect. I thought that Eunice Bright was trying to do as much as he could to allocate his time to cover these holes, but it was just too too easy for...
01:20:24
Speaker
LAFC to go from possessing to transition and anytime that you have quality and speed of the likes of Sun and Buonga, I mean, it's going to be a tough day at the office, especially when you're not able to get those guys off their space, possess better because look,
01:20:44
Speaker
Inter-Miami had the majority of the ball, but it was without purposeness. I thought that they struggled with the ball at times. It was just a little bit disjointed. ah And obviously that that that first half was a little bit more um competent, but as the game went along, it just clearly went farther and farther out of band for Inter-Miami. So,
01:21:11
Speaker
new New center back ah and still same issues. um ah Mora came in at the end of the game, and he gets shook off his socks by Danny Buonga for that third goal ah by Ordaz. So same in there, Miami. They're going to depend on what Bartirama does, what Messi does. I expect them to get that figure out. They're going to be a good offensive team. But on defense, man, they're going to struggle same as they did last season.
01:21:41
Speaker
Inter-Miami, just, you know, get it get it together, man, all right? You guys spent way too much time camped out in our comment section over the offseason to come out looking like that on match day one, all right? That was tough.
Season Enthusiasm & Community Support
01:21:53
Speaker
That was tough to watch. You're going to need to turn that around. All right.
01:21:57
Speaker
I got to run. So we're going call it for this episode of Lobbing Scorchers kickoff. Thank you all, as always, for tuning in. We really appreciate all the support. Great to have the season back. Great to have games back. We're looking forward to getting back at it. ah RSL coming up this weekend. We're going have we're going to content this week like we always do. We'll have a podcast on Thursday. Might rip another live show between now and then. Nico, anything you want to plug or show before we get out here?
01:22:23
Speaker
Yeah, look, before we go, I just wanted to give my eternal thanks to everybody that came out to the Sound of Our Heart magazine release event at Project Nine. on Such a great time. Everybody, all of the supporters that were there that that greeted us, that thanked us for you know giving them something to listen to in the mornings. Everybody who enjoyed our content, that they were so gracious to my wife, my daughter. There was just so much community, so much love for us in this effort that we do to provide content. It filled me inside. i really appreciate every single one of you that I say hello to, that i shook hands with, that I talked to you for the slightest moment.
01:23:08
Speaker
Thank you, everyone. And we'll continue to do this this year. Cosign, entirely echo everything that Nico just said. All right, we're going to get out of here on that. Love y'all. Peace.