Sounders vs Chivas Guadalajara, as it happened: Highlights from Seattle’s 1-0 win

FINAL: It wasn’t quite the dream result they had hoped for, but the Seattle Sounders put themselves in solid position to potentially advance by beating C.D. Guadalajara 1-0 on Wednesday. The Sounders goal came from Clint Dempsey in the 78th minute off an assist from Henry Wingo. Just a minute or two later, Dempsey had a golden opportunity to make it 2-0 but he skied a close-range attempt off a feed from Lamar Neagle.

The win was the Sounders fourth all-time against a Liga MX opponent, this one played in front of their largest ever crowd for a CCL match.

SOUNDERS 1, CHIVAS 0: After several close chances, Clint Dempsey finally got the Sounders a massive goal. Dempsey finished off Henry Wingo’s cross for his third CONCACAF Champions League goal, all of them against Mexican opponents.

He followed it up with a nice celebration with Wingo.

HALFTIME UPDATE: It would be a stretch to say the Seattle Sounders deserved better than the 0-0 halftime score, but they probably had the overall edge. Their best one came when Clint Dempsey latched onto a bouncing ball near the top of the box that forced Rodolfo Cota into a diving save.

The biggest play of the first half, though, belonged to Stefan Frei. The Sounders goalkeeper came up with a massive save in the 33rd minute when he came well off his line to stop Alan Pulido, who was in all alone after Roman Torres misplayed a bouncing ball.

LINEUP NOTES: The Sounders are going with about as close to a first-choice lineup as they can at this point, with the most notable omission being Magnus Wolff Eikrem. The Norwegian apparently suffered a left knee contusion and was left off the gameday roster. It is believed that he will be ready to return in time for the second leg in Guadalajara next week.

Chivas, perhaps bowing a little to schedule congestion, have a bit more of a mixed lineup. The most notably inexperienced player is Alejandro Mayorga, who has just a single league start this year and he was pulled around halftime.

C.D. Guadalajara last played the Seattle Sounders in 2010 in a friendly. Suffice it to say, there’s quite a bit more on the line when they face off tonight.

Chivas are in the midst of a five-week stretch in which they are playing twice a week and suffered through several delays on their way to Seattle. Their coach says they’re not at peak fitness.

The Sounders are coming off a loss to Los Angeles FC in their MLS home opener, but were able to rest several of their starters. They’ll be looking to score early and ideally head to Guadalajara with at least a two-goal lead.

In the 2010 friendly Seattle won 3-1. A repeat in this leg would be immense.

Absences: Injury, international duty and suspension

Seattle: Osvaldo Alonso, Kelvin Leerdam and Jordan Morris are listed as out. Victor Rodriguez is still questionable. Leerdam and Rodriguez could be back for leg two.

Chivas: Jesus Sanchez is out.

Discipline: Jordy Delem, Clint Dempsey, Gustav Svensson, Alan Pulido, and Jesus Godinez are all a caution away from being suspended for leg two.

Officials

Referee: Mario Escobar (Guatemala); Assistants: Osvaldo Luna (Costa Rica), Alejandro Camarena (Panama); Fourth Official: Jose Kellys (Panama)

nos audietis in somniis | nos audietis in alto

you will hear us in your sleep | you will hear us from the deep

this is our Sound

Keys to the Game:

• They will hear us. There’s a pretty good chance that Chivas will have a significant number of fans in the stands. It’s imperative the Sounders make this feel like a home game and the best way to do that is to start strong.
• Act like the favorite. The Sounders are the only U.S.-based MLS team to eliminate a Liga MX team from CCL. But this version of the Sounders is considerably more talented, and this Chivas team is struggling. Score goals and don’t let up. They’ll need as big of a lead as possible to feel comfortable in Mexico.
• Herd the goats. Their struggles aside, Chivas is a talented team, especially on the flanks. It’s imperative the Sounders fullbacks are left with a bunch of 1v1 battles.
• Make them work. Chivas is coming off a hard-fought rivalry game over the weekend and endured a nine-hour trip to Seattle. They’ve also played eight games in the past 25 days. Even Liga MX teams get tired if you make them run around enough. Be ready to strike once their legs look heavy.

North America will hear us

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How to Watch

Match date/time: 7 p.m., March 7, 2018

Venue: CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington, Cascadia

Online Streaming: go90, UDN, FuboTV

National TV: UDN

Local Radio: 950 KJR-AM Seattle (Johnson, Keller, Zakuani)

Local Spanish Radio: El Rey 1360 AM (Rodriguez, Maqueda)

Lineups

Seattle Sounders FC - Stefan Frei, Jordan McCrary, Roman Torres, Chad Marshall, Waylon Francis, Gustav Svensson, Cristian Roldan, Nicolas Lodeiro - captain, Clint Dempsey, Handwalla Bwana, Will Bruin

Substitutes - Bryan Meredith, Nouhou, Alex Roldan, Harry Shipp, Jordy Delem, Henry Wingo, Lamar Neagle

CD Guadalajara - Rodolfo Cota, Oswaldo Alanis, Carlos Salcido - captain, Alejandro Mayorga, Orbelin Pineda, Alan Pulido, Eduardo Lopez, Isaac Brizuela, Carlos Cisneros, Michael Perez, Jesus Godinez

Substitutes - Anontio Rodriguez, Edwin Hernandez, Gael Sandoval, Jose Macias, Rodolfo Pizarro, Oscar Macias, Miguel Basulto

This post will update with highlights as they happen.

This is Seattle Sounders vs. Chivas de Guadalajara, watch with us