The Seattle Sounders, like a sturdy ship navigating a treacherous squall, can play well enough to win, yet somehow find ways to not do so. Last Saturday’s match at Atlanta United ended 2-2, and maybe we should be happy to go across the country and return with a point. But this one felt like two points lost. Atlanta is a very beatable team, so this draw was a missed opportunity, as every dropped point in a tight conference race can prove decisive. The match itself was again a tale of two halves. After a slow start that saw Seattle score a disheartening own goal, the team appeared disjointed, lacking cohesion and intensity. However, the Sounders came out in the second half reinvigorated, finding their wind, dominating long stretches of play, and limiting Atlanta to almost nothing on frame. Their once leaky defense managed to solidify, and the midfield took over, dictating the tempo and creating chances. With an in-form Designated Player scoring a crucial goal, the captain expertly steering the course with leadership and grit, and a late, inspired header from a bench player, Seattle appeared to have earned all three points. But a momentary lapse in concentration meant a late goal against, splitting the points, and heading back to Seattle with a disappointing draw. Conceding late goals that turn wins into draws is an area of concern that must be addressed for the Sounders to solidify their position in the playoff picture.
Smooth Sailing: The unbeaten run since the Club World Cup continues. That’s 12 points without a loss in six matches, a quality record and much improved overall results.
Rocky Seas: Draws that feel like losses are frustrating. It’s easy to look back at this match and others in this unbeaten run and see missed opportunities. It should be 16/18 points, but this team is dropping winnable points late in matches due to small errors.
Goalkeeper
Andrew Thomas – 6 | Community – 5.8
Thomas continues to start with Stefan Frei out, and continues to show his athleticism. All the small things that Frei does, and we take for granted, are noticeable, but also apparent is Andrew’s elite shot-stopping. His anticipation is exemplary.
Smooth Sailing: An own goal and a miracle last-second strike is all that made it past Thomas in Georgia. With first choice centerbacks in front of him, things looked better as Seattle relied on Thomas’ athleticism and the positioning of the middle defense to do the heavy lifting.
Rocky Seas: Nine goals in four games is a lot to concede. Sure, that includes an own goal and (a lot of) penalties, but that is too many goals. He must get his defense and positioning sorted. There is something that Frei was cooking that Thomas is still missing.
Defense
Reed Baker-Whiting – 5 | Community – 4.4 (off 76’ for Nouhou)
Reed earned another chance to start and to grab the left back role for himself, but he underwhelmed. Consistently turned and struggling to add the physicality and positioning needed, Reed was part of a rough first half. Like the rest of the team, he played better in the second half, before picking up a yellow card and subbing out for Nouhou shortly thereafter.
Smooth Sailing: The second half was improved, and the hope is that Reed just needs more time to learn the position under fire.
Rocky Seas: RBW doesn’t take good angles on defense, and he’s consistently out of position as a result. The athleticism is there, but his spacing and connection to teammates is sometimes dreadful, and he was consistently exposed in the first half.
Jackson Ragen – 7 | Community – 6.4
Returning from yellow card suspension was Ragen, who slotted in next to Yeimar and had some key interventions. He made nine passes into the final third and a tremendous 14 defensive actions as Seattle was under siege in the first half with Ragen standing tall.
Smooth Sailing: Ninety-five percent passing on a team-high 92 attempts was exactly what Seattle was missing from previous matches, and Ragen’s distribution rarely disappoints.
Rocky Seas: Seattle was constantly on the back foot against a struggling team in the first half. The number of desperation clearances by Ragen was too high, yet necessary.
Yeimar – 6 | Community – 6.0
Yeimar is returning to full fitness and showed increased range and physicality against Atlanta, which was needed. He is still a step slow at times, and slowly returning to form communication-wise with his teammates, as evidenced by a few mistakes in the first half. He had eight defensive actions and won all five aerials, repeatedly denying Atlanta’s cross attempts.
Smooth Sailing: Sometimes you just clear the ball in the direction of a buddy and they go earn you an assist. That’s what happened in the 53rd minute as Pedro de la Vega made Yeimar’s desperate clearance into a positive stat item.
Rocky Seas: Slow rotation and a disjointed defense in the first half meant Yeimar was charging across to block a cross and the deflection went into his own goal. This was a mess from just about everyone, starting on the left side.
Alex Roldan – 6 | Community – 5.9
Alex was, as usual, very clean on the ball, helping possession move forward and not forcing poor passes. His 94 percent completion rate and a key pass were steady and smooth.
Smooth Sailing: Still able to place a beautiful ball, he found Osaze De Rosario with a perfect cross in the 90th that should have been the game-winning assist.
Rocky Seas: With opportunity to get more into the attack, Alex wasn’t a factor. He rarely got forward, especially in a first half under defensive siege, and Seattle needed him to attack those wide areas to punish Atlanta’s numbers forward.
Defensive Midfield
Cristian Roldan – 7 | Community – 6.5
Cristian was slow to start, and took a while to grow into the match. By the end he’d completed 87 percent of his passes, added nine defensive actions and nine recoveries, and did his job defensively. For good measure he had nine passes into the final third, as especially in the second half, gaps opened up for him to push vertical balls into the attack.
Smooth Sailing: Another day, another 90 minutes of Cristian bossing the middle of the field. His nine recoveries were essential for a defense that struggled early to deal with Atlanta’s pressure. He also won 75 percent of his duels, being the enforcer that limited the opponents to predictable chances.
Rocky Seas: He didn’t have as much luck finding vertical passes, and he clearly missed the immediate transition opportunities that Jordan Morris offered.
Obed Vargas – 6 | Community – 6.3
Obed had an up-and-down performance, highlighted by excellent on-ball control and connection but also struggling to defend directly down the middle at times. On the deflected own goal, Vargas stopped following his man, which added to the domino effect and forced Yeimar to come over late to help.
Smooth Sailing: Obed, as usual, was incredibly accurate, going 44/48 passing and adding in two key passes in a controlled effort in the middle of the field. He added eight defensive actions.
Rocky Seas: For Seattle to succeed, Vargas needs to add offensive thrust, with runs or vertical passing, and those were mostly missing in Atlanta. He had zero successful dribbles and zero touches in Atlanta’s penalty area, illustrating how Obed failed to help the team get forward.
Attacking Midfield
Pedro de la Vega – 7 (MOTM) | Community – 7.3 (MOTM) (off 81’ for Kent)
A second MOTM in a row for Pedro, who was not great against Atlanta but did enough. What he did well was find that moment of brilliance and punish the opponent for it, showing his speed and confidence to bring Seattle level. His decision making at full charge is elite, and he is starting to grow into the expectations heaped upon him.
Smooth Sailing: The resurgence of Left Side Pedro is real. Like last week, he surged into the attack and finished cleanly, this time a pretty near-post shot in the 54th that put Seattle on the board after their rough start. Pedro continues to impress, now scoring for the second match in a row.
Rocky Seas: With only two shots and a single successful dribble or cross, PDLV was missing the consistent attack force that was necessary against a very beatable team.
Albert Rusnák – 6 | Community – 6.2 (off 89’ for Leyva)
This was a muted match for Albert, who struggled to connect the pieces around him and, especially in the first half, seemed as lethargic as the rest of the offense.
Smooth Sailing: Albert looked fantastic sprinting next to Pedro on the goal, offering an easy assist had he chosen it. That burst speed and understanding of where to be made opposing keeper Brad Guzan’s head spin.
Rocky Seas: Without Rusnák putting up big offensive numbers, Seattle can struggle.
Jesús Ferreira – 6 | Community – 5.5 (off 89’ for De Rosario)
Jesús looks to be the incumbent starter at right wing, and he was great at connecting, but he struggled to find offensive push. The second half was better from Ferreira, who was active defensively but didn’t combine to create the big chances he’s had lately.
Smooth Sailing: Jesús did a bit of everything, from defending down his wing to clean 86 percent passing and connecting in the middle to support Seattle after a rough start.
Rocky Seas: The Sounders needed creativity and connection from Jesús and he was unable to provide it, missing on his cross attempts and not creating the forward push or adding key passes as a creator in the right channel.
Forward
Danny Musovski – 5 | Community – 5.3 (off 76’ for Kossa-Rienzi)
Musovski struggled all night to find the ball and get close to the Atlanta goal. These two things rarely converged, and although he was a game runner, the Sounders couldn’t get him the ball in dangerous areas. Danny was eventually subbed after a relatively ineffective shift.
Smooth Sailing: His burst speed was perfectly used in the 54th and again in the 68th minute as he kept up with the charging Pedro, offering a perfect triangle of Musovski, Pedro, and Rusnák who all had clean looks at the net.
Rocky Seas: His 0/4 on aerial duels meant that Danny wasn’t a factor in the offense, as these were his best chances to score. Seattle eventually scored on a header.
Substitutes
Nouhou – 6 | Community – 6.1 (on 76’ for RBW)
Returning from suspension was Nouhou, and he came up big late. Outside of a couple of defensive flubs, he looked strong and confident, ultimately adding a great assist.
Smooth Sailing: Nouhou deserves credit for improving his crossing, and his pinpoint delivery in the 95th minute should have won the game for Seattle.
Rocky Seas: It shouldn’t take a suspension for him to play well, and one quality play doesn’t erase the ridiculous moments that he has sprinkled into his season so far.
Kalani Kossa-Rienzi – 5 | Community – 5.6 (on 76’ for Musovski)
Kalani came in to be a winger, an interesting choice given the winger depth on the team. A more cultured defender, the game state likely dictated the desire for more two-way play as Seattle was on the front foot looking for a win, but also cognizant of the point in hand.
Smooth Sailing: Playing as a wide option, Kalani drifted middle and found a shot.
Rocky Seas: The thought to bring Kalani in to play aggressive and go for a win made sense, but he didn’t deliver much push. That hand injury to Paul Rothrock was looming.
Ryan Kent – 5 | Community – 5.2 (on 81’ for de la Vega)
Forgotten option Ryan Kent came in late to try to add some fresh legs on the left and he did that, turning in a nice shift to create some pressure that wasn’t always great, but showed his high end abilities.
Smooth Sailing: Kent’s ability to get to the end line is fantastic, and when he pulled back in the 95th minute to Nouhou, he had created rifts in the defense that earned himself an assist and gave Seattle a (brief) lead.
Rocky Seas: Getting more from this clearly talented player has to be a goal. It appears he can create big chances for the Sounders, but he doesn’t connect with the team, and so is a big tool being wasted.
Osaze De Rosario – 6 | Community – 6.4 (on 89’ for Ferreira)
Osaze came in late and immediately had an impact, earning two great headers and scoring one, for what was nearly the late game winner. Able to find dangerous areas and hold them due to his great size and strength, he planted himself in the box and scored a header amid opponents.
Smooth Sailing: In limited minutes this season ODR has shown a nose for the goal, something Seattle desperately needs with Morris out.
Rocky Seas: His slow defense on Aleksei Miranchuk was a minor mistake, but one that could have helped deny that final shot.
Danny Leyva – 5 | Community – 5.0 (on 89’ for Rusnák)
Leyva came on late, potentially as a set piece delivery expert looking for bigger bodies in the box. He wasn’t able to get that chance.
Smooth Sailing: His passing vision is excellent; he went 3/3 connecting in his short time on the field.
Rocky Seas: Hesitation at the end instead of aggressively closing down Miranchuk meant that the Atlanta star got his last second shot off and earned his team a point. After the last few matches, the hesitation to overcommit and give up a set piece is likely a factor, but Leyva has to be more impactful in that game state on the defensive end.
Referee
Ramy Touchan – 6 | Community – 5.3 (off 76’ for Alexis Da Silva)
Touchan wasn’t the story of the match, which was a refreshing change. There were a few times that cards should have been shown, and especially late, the reciprocal call needed to be applied to both teams. Otherwise, this was a solid, evenly refereed match with few big issues.
Smooth Sailing: Even fouls, even cards for an even match. Until he subbed, Touchan controlled the match well and importantly wasn’t the focus.
Rocky Seas: Unfortunately, late in the match, he started limping and was forced to sub out. It was an inglorious exit for a solid performance, and also added to injury time.
Atlanta United MOTM
Miranchuk reminds me a lot of Damir Kreilach. They’re both center midfielder shaped, but spend their time higher up the pitch, sometimes acting like 10s, and sometimes more like 9s. Prior to scoring the goal of his life in the 99th minute, Miranchuk had a plethora of shot creating actions, especially after the Sounders had drawn level, and Atlanta began their next surge. He had a calm layoff in the 64th, another cutback ten minutes later, and then, of course, the goal.
Upcoming: Something called “Leagues Cup,” which is a weird way to spell “cash grab.” Oh well, let’s win?
