Out, but not down: Sounders fall to PSG

SEATTLE – The Seattle Sounders closed out their run at the Club World Cup by hosting the European Champions, Paris Saint-Germain. Although the Sounders made a good account of themselves, they were once again on the losing side as PSG claimed a 2-0 win to secure advancement from the group. Goals from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in the 35th minute and Achraf Hakimi in the 67th proved enough to see PSG past Seattle and through to the next round.

The opening 10 minutes were actually played almost entirely in PSG’s half as the Sounders dictated play through a rather relentless press. Paul Rothrock, in particular, did a lot of work to keep PSG penned in on Seattle’s left side. The Sounders even took the game’s first two shots, with Obed Vargas taking a rip from outside the area in the 3rd minute and Jackson Ragen getting a good look in the 10th minute. Albert Rusnák sent in a free kick from midfield that he put right on Ragen’s head, but the attempt at goal went wide of the near post, which seemed to be well covered by goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma had the shot been on frame.

Seattle managed one more look at goal, their best of the game, in the 19th minute. Rothrock applied pressure as PSG attempted to play out of the back and forced Donnarumma into a loose pass that went right to Jesús Ferreira. Ferreira rushed his shot as he tried to capitalize on Donnarumma having left his net open, and instead of finding the game’s opener Ferreira smashed his shot into the crowd.

PSG very nearly found their opener in the 30th minute when Désiré Doué, having already drawn a quality save on a shot in the 12th minute, beat Nouhou on the dribble as he worked his way inside from the left wing, then played a little give-and-go at the top of the box before hitting a left-footed shot destined for the bottom corner, but Stefan Frei dove to his left and was able to catch and hold onto the ball to keep the game scoreless at that point. That 0-0 scoreline was not long for this world, however.

Kvaratskhelia gets credited with the opening goal for PSG, as he was the last player to touch the ball before it hit the back of the net in the 35th minute. But it was Vitinha who took the shot that turned into the opener, running onto a loose ball after Jackson Ragen got a touch on a corner to send it out of the box but clearly not out of danger. Nouhou ran out to ostensibly challenge, but made himself small as he approached Vitinha, and the Portuguese midfielder smashed his shot into the crowd where it struck off of the back of Kvaraskhelia to deflect it into the goal to make it 1-0.

The second goal wouldn’t come for nearly half an hour of game time. Around the 65th minute Obed Vargas was played in behind the PSG defense by a great pass from Cristian Roldan and Vargas did well to get beyond one defender in the box, but his touch took the ball too far from him and Donnarumma was able to collect and get his side going the other direction. In the matter of a few heartbeats the ball had gone from PSG’s box to the foot of Bradley Barcola on the edge of Seattle’s own area. The Sounders attempted to collapse on the winger, including Nouhou coming across goal to take up a spot at the near post, leaving the backside completely open for Achraf Hakimi to receive a fairly simple pass from Barcola and beat Frei in the 66th minute to make it 2-0 to PSG’s advantage.

Nouhou did well to keep the scoreline from getting any worse with a goal line clearance in the 85th minute, but Seattle couldn’t find a goal of their own. Jordan Morris came on in the 87th minute, making his first appearance in a game in nearly two months (he last played on April 26 against the Colorado Rapids) and helped to win a corner almost immediately with a strong run into the box, but his ultimate attempt on goal was blocked out. Cristian Roldan nearly capped another fantastic game from him in a series of such games with a beauty of a goal in the 89th minute as he curled in a shot from distance that bent just around a pair of defenders but ultimately went wide of the post.

The Sounders exit the tournament empty-handed, but with their heads held high after showing well as they went toe-to-toe against some of the best teams in the world, including what was arguably the best team in the world in today’s game. They now turn their attentions back to MLS with Austin FC coming to town on Saturday, June 28 for the Sounders’ Pride Match.

Key moments

10 - Header! Albert Rusnák sends in a free kick from midfield that Jackson Ragen is able to get on the end of, but his headed attempt goes wide of the near post.

12 - Save! Désiré Doué smashes a shot from inside the box that Frei is able to parry up and over the bar for a corner.

16 - Save! Kvaratskhelia cuts in from the left and takes a right-footed shot from the top of the box, but Frei is able to collect it easily.

19 - Chance! Rothrock forces a turnover from Donnarumma as the GK passes directly to Ferreira, but Ferreira smashes his attempt over the goal.

30 - Save! Doué beats Nouhou on the dribble as he drives inside from the right, plays a quick 1-2 at the top of the box before shooting across goal with his left foot, but Frei dives to make the catch and keep the game scoreless.

35 - Goal, PSG. Seattle can’t fully clear a corner kick and Vitinha runs onto a loose ball and hits a shot that’s deflected off of Kvaraskhelia’s back and into the bottom corner. 1-0 PSG

57 - Subs. Jesús Ferreira and Ryan Kent exit the game, replaced by Kalani Kossa-Rienzi and Danny Musovski for Seattle.

64 - Subs. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and João Neves come off as PSG bring on Bradley Barcola and Warren Zaire-Emery.

66 - Goal, PSG. Barcola finds Hakimi in space inside the area as PSG counter, and Hakimi finishes easily to beat Frei. 2-0 PSG.

71 - Subs. Jon Bell and Albert Rusnák leave the game and Danny Leyva and Georgi Minoungou come in for Seattle.

77 - Sub. PSG swap out Senny Mayulu for Gonçalo Ramos.

83 - Sub. PSG’s last substitution is Désiré Doué making way for Ibrahim Mbaye.

85 - Clearance! Nouhou blocks a shot off the line, and Paul Rothrock clears it out!

87 - Sub. Seattle’s fifth and final sub sees Jordan Morris make his tournament debut, coming on for Obed Vargas.

88 - Corner. Morris wins a corner with his first involvement, playing a give-and-go at the top of the box, then having his attempted shot blocked away for the corner.

89 - Shot! Cristian Roldan hits a curling shot from distance that bends around a pair of defenders, but goes just wide of goal.

Quick thoughts

Valuable lessons, not moral victories: There’s no Miss Congeniality award at the Club World Cup, and the Sounders aren’t exactly Sandra Bullock anyway. There are no moral victories, and the fact remains that the Sounders were outscored 7-2 across three games as they collected zero points. The worries about the team’s offensive production haven’t been wiped away – although the return of Jordan Morris should hopefully be a step in that direction – but coming off of two very frustrating losses for Seattle going into the tournament the Sounders can feel pretty good about the fact that they’re better than those results. They may have lost their three group stage games, but they made Botafogo RJ, Atlético Madrid and PSG fight for their wins and walked away from a group of death feeling like they made a good account of themselves. The drop in competition level may carry with it a drop in energy, but the Sounders should be encouraged as they head into the second half of the season. If they can hold their own against these teams, they can do a whole lot more against the rest of MLS.

The return of Jordan Morris: It’s easy to forget just how little time Jordan Morris has been able to spend on the field this season. After starting the season with 3 goals from his first 3 MLS games, Morris has only managed to play a total of 72 minutes in league play, first missing over a month after picking up an injury during the second leg against Cruz Azul in the Concacaf Champions Cup, then picking up another injury against the Rapids after having made a pair of substitute appearances against Nashville SC and Colorado. Morris’ appearance today doesn’t mean he’s all the way back and ready to start this weekend, but it’s hopefully a step in that direction. Three minutes plus stoppage time isn’t a lot, but it’s something, and if Morris can get back and stay healthy and reach anything like the form he was in before his injury, the Sounders will be much closer to solving their attacking troubles.

Building on this tournament: The Club World Cup in Seattle has been pretty, pretty good. From the games themselves, to the crowds and atmosphere inside and around the stadium. It’s been a FIFA production, so take that all with a grain of salt, but it’s been a clear reminder of what games at Lumen Field can be like. The Sounders obviously aren’t going to replicate the exact experience – for all its faults the CWC is An Event, it’s A Spectacle, and for all that the Sounders helped to amplify that there’s just more muscle behind any individual CWC game than a Sounders MLS home game – but the genuinely massive turnouts against PSG and Atléti clearly weren’t just because of the European opponents. The concerts put on in Occidental Park and the treatment of the whole game day experience as an experience were a reminder that this used to be what it felt like to go to a Sounders game, and with some effort from the club it could be like that again. I hope that as we move away from the CWC the organization doesn’t leave that part completely behind.

Notable quote

Player spotlight

Cristian Roldan has been one of the standout players of the tournament, not just for Seattle. He was all action against PSG, completing 38 of 43 passes including going 5/9 on long passes, had 2 successful dribbles on 4 attempts, won 3/5 tackles, and 9/17 duels against a midfield that won the UEFA Champions League just over 3 weeks ago.