Returning to MLS play after their undefeated run in Leagues Cup phase one, the Seattle Sounders picked up where they left off, delivering a dominant performance against fellow LC quarterfinalists, the Los Angeles Galaxy. The final score of 4-0 in favor of Seattle was a testament to their superiority, and honestly, the margin could have been even wider given the game flow. The Sounders were again forced into significant lineup rotation, a familiar issue this season due to a string of injuries and a demanding schedule. However, those challenges did not hinder their performance in the slightest. From the opening whistle, Seattle applied relentless pressure, forcing an early mistake from the Galaxy defense that set the tone for the match. They continued to create numerous chances and maintain a high level of intensity throughout the first half, ultimately heading into the break with a comfortable 2-0 lead. The second half saw no let-up from the Sounders. They quickly added another goal, effectively putting the match out of reach for the struggling Galaxy. As the game wound down, a cameo appearance from a promising young talent was rewarded as he notched his first-ever MLS goal. This late strike put a perfect exclamation point on a dominant road performance, signalling the Sounders’ confident return to MLS play and reinforcing their status as a formidable force in the league.
They see me rollin’: With four goals in a match that could have seen the Sounders score twice that many, Seattle is cooking. They are finding goals from repeatable movements, set pieces, and run of play connection – and just about everyone on the roster is contributing. The Sounders’ depth is showing immense payoff.
They hatin’: It took a while for Seattle to start connecting. An own goal followed by a lucky bounce gave a 2-0 halftime lead, but that was the Sounders forcing issues. That won’t be so easy against a more competent defense.
Goalkeeper
Andrew Thomas – 7 | Community – 7.0
Thomas had three saves against LAG, keeping the sheet clean. Shutouts are starting to happen for Thomas, as he is showing that he can play within the system, make the big saves needed to keep the team in the match, and manage the game from the back. His distribution is the biggest improvement needed.
They see me rollin’: Andrew’s biggest save came in the 48th minute, denying Matheus Nascimento from close range for a chance to pull the Galaxy back into the match.
They hatin’: Don’t look now, but that was the legendary Stefan Frei on the bench, cleared from concussion protocol and snapping at Andrew’s heels to get his starting position back. With Thomas given Leagues Cup duties, could Frei be back in between the sticks soon?
Defense
Nouhou – 7 | Community – 7.0
Continuing his recent solid play, Nouhou played within himself and mostly concentrated on his defense. He added 92 percent passing to his seven recoveries and constantly shut down his side of the field, forcing play central into the heart of the defense.
They see me rollin’: Gabriel Pec got so frustrated at getting denied by Nouhou that he switched sides at halftime, and Joseph Paintsil had the same struggle to get anything going. This was vintage Nouhou, as he repeatedly rebuffed the in-form duo.
They hatin’: Early on and later, Nouhou got overzealous and too far forward. With Pedro de la Vega in front of him, there was no need to invade his space and cede defensive counters early in the game. Later, with the game wrapped up, charging forward into the attack was unnecessary.
Kim Kee-hee – 8 | Community – 6.9
Kim stepped into the starting role for Jackson Ragen and looked the part. His 94 percent passing wasn’t quite as direct as the beast he replaced, but numerous times he got into the right spots and supported the center. This ability to step up was key to giving Seattle forward momentum.
They see me rollin’: Kim hardly put a foot wrong the entire match, doing his best Ragen impression by excelling at center left defense. His decision making was perfect, stepping forward aggressively when necessary to support, and cleanly distributing from back to front.
They hatin’: While Kim was excellent, there was still a bit of a gap between his range of distribution and Ragen’s, and Seattle missed Jackson at times.
Yeimar – 7 | Community – 7.6
A stout defensive performance from Yeimar was bolstered by winning 10/12 duels, constantly winning his individual battles while still being able to roam around and support teammates. He was accurate in his passing and added three won aerials and eight defensive contributions.
They see me rollin’: As usual, Yeimar was huge. A 9th minute step to deny Pec a chance was a statement. He consistently came across when the left side pushed forward.
They hatin’: Yeimar played his defense on the edge, usually getting it right, but a few times being on the wrong side of legal challenges. He was lucky not to be carded in the 42nd after a hard tackle.
Alex Roldan – 8 (MOTM) | Community – 7.3
Alex was excellent in this match, filling up the statsheet. He had the second-most touches (75) and turned them into excellent defense, quality movement, and creative play. He was aggressive (six touches in the opponent box) but balanced that with five defensive contributions and wasn’t dispossessed a single time. He was combining up the wing all night.
They see me rollin’: Seattle found new ways to dominate opponents, and one was the Alex Roldan awakening. He was fantastic against LAG. In the 12th minute, he nearly found a through ball into the box, followed this up with a perfect 74th minute ball to put Paul Rothrock in (that he missed), before assisting newcomer Snyder Brunell with a gorgeous play after smart movement in the 85th. All this added up to a massive five key passes and two shots of his own while playing shutout defense.
They hatin’: His 58th minute shot didn’t go in, and Seattle’s defense had their hands full in the second half with overloads on Alex’s side that bent, but didn’t break.
Defensive Midfield
Cristian Roldan – 6 | Community – 7.5
Another game, another 90 for Cristian. He was solid against LA, and one of the main focal points to push the ball forward quickly. His 13 passes into the final third were a beautiful mix of quick distribution, turns out of danger, and aware through balls. He added seven recoveries, but he struggled at times to win physical battles as he tired.
They see me rollin’: Even in a muted effort, everything hung around the movement and connection of Roldan, who was everywhere. That meant 87 percent passing on a team-high 90 touches and plenty of work rate defensively across the middle.
They hatin’: Even playing his 243rd match this season and a healthy lead wasn’t enough to get Cristian a break, who continues to show a few signs of fatigue. Most evident was an uncharacteristically poor pass (and subsequent turnover) in the 48th minute that led to a Galaxy opportunity.
Obed Vargas – 6 | Community – 6.9 (off 63’ for Leyva)
Obed and Cristian did their usual solid job centrally, but with Jesús Ferreira being a different option in front of him, Obed saw his role limited. This meant zero touches in the Galaxy area, as he concentrated on defensive and distribution work. He had 90 percent pass completion and added a key pass on a quiet, yet effective evening that was cut short with a rest.
They see me rollin’: Beautiful defense in the 10th minute was nice to see. Even better was the confidence Obed has gained lately, like when he immediately charged forward after this play and turned the solid defense into a fantastic offensive transition moment.
They hatin’: Unfortunately, Obed struggled to find a few key connections, likely due to the rotated personnel. When he ran forward in the 10th minute, he missed a gorgeous Ferreira run, instead going away from the open teammate and wasting a big chance.
Attacking Midfield
Pedro de la Vega – 7 | Community – 7.5 (off 63’ for Kossa-Rienzi)
Left-side Pedro was still solid, showing increased understanding of the needs on the wing, and impacting the match from minute one. With only one shot and 33 touches, he was limited in his time on the ball, but he contributed an impressive three key passes and created big chances with his movement and connection.
They see me rollin’: After a solid cross to Danny Musovski signaled his intentions in the first minute, Pedro nearly found Jesús in the 19th. Although that didn’t score, in the 25th minute de la Vega dialed up a perfect back post cross that was forced into the net via an own goal. His ability to pass and create for others has been impressive in this left side winger position.
They hatin’: Pedro pressed in the 33rd minute, finding a huge opportunity and attempting to hit it first-time. It was fine to see the heat check attempt, but he had time there to find a higher percentage effort.
Jesús Ferreira – 8 | Community – 7.0 (off 73’ for Brunell)
Jesús moved to the middle and was brilliant, constantly moving, prodding, creating, and connecting across the field. His ability to find the ball and create chances for teammates or himself was excellent. This meant he earned five key passes and found four shots of his own, and he put each on goal. He was excellent at serving dead balls as well, with his corners creating chances each time.
They see me rollin’: Jesús was cooking from the central playmaking position for Seattle. His intricate movement was spectacular all night, connecting with teammates, creating chances and mismatches and shots for himself and teammates. His Rusnák-esque run in the 54th minute combined with a quick trigger forced a big save and a deflection right to a hungry Moose.
They hatin’: For all that offensive creation, Ferreira wasn’t credited with a goal contribution.
Paul Rothrock – 8 | Community – 7.6 (off 83’ for Minoungou)
It was another Paul Rothrock match where he appears to be struggling, yet finds a way to directly impact the scoreboard in creative ways. Whether that was crashing the box or distributing to teammates, Paul was a relentless force forward who harassed the opponents all match.
They see me rollin’: Although only credited with one shot, it was Paul who charged into the box in the 25th minute and created an own goal after a beautiful PDLV cross. His pass in the 37th was a perfect ball forward to put Musovski in on goal, and it eventually scored as well. In the 54th minute, he was again part of the buildup as Seattle put it away.
They hatin’: Similar to Jesús, Paul was involved in two important goals, yet wasn’t credited with any contributions, as one was ruled an own goal and the other was scored off a deflection.
Forward
Danny Musovski – 8 | Community – 7.9 (MOTM) (off 73’ for De Rosario)
In typical Musovski fashion, he wasn’t ball-dominant, but he was goal-dominant. He turned 27 touches into an impressive statline: a half dozen shots, two goals, a key pass, and once again, a Sounders win because he put the ball behind the goalkeeper. Musovski is relentless up front, and is repaying his teammates’ distribution with goals, although it’s not always clinical or clean.
They see me rollin’: Credited with six shots, Musovski consistently made great runs deep into the box and finished plays. This meant when Rothrock put him in in the 37th, he shot on goal and cleaned up the rebound. In the 54th, he was perfectly placed to clean up another rebound after Ferreira was denied. The Moose has a nose for the goal.
They hatin’: One of Danny’s struggles on the night was in holdup play, and trying to act as a release valve for Seattle. On a number of occasions (50th and 73rd minutes), he fumbled away moments to control possession and help the Sounders get out of their own half.
Substitutes
Danny Leyva – 5 | Community – 6.4 (on 63’ for Vargas)
Leyva got an extended run out that both gave Obed a rest and Danny an opportunity to work in the central areas. He responded with solid but unspectacular play. His clean, 92 percent passing was a key element as Seattle controlled play, and Leyva helped the Sounders finish the last half hour in cruise control.
They see me rollin’: Immediately after subbing in, Leyva was showing off his passing vision, finding a 67th minute through ball that was a beaut.
They hatin’: As usual, the biggest knock on Danny was his defending. It wasn’t bad, but especially with the game state, could have been more efficient.
Kalani Kossa-Rienzi – 5 | Community – 6.2 (on 63’ for PDLV )
Kossa-Rienzi came into the match with the score 3-0 and was a solid contributor as Seattle finished out a businesslike rout. This meant strong defense on the width and clean passing were necessary, and Kalani responded with five defensive actions and 100 percent pass completion. Mission accomplished.
They see me rollin’: It was Kalani’s excellent vision that saw the Roldan run on his right, and he responded by pushing the ball in behind to kickstart a goalscoring sequence for Brunell.
They hatin’: An unnecessary defensive error by KKR meant the Galaxy got an extra corner kick.
Osaze De Rosario – 5 | Community – 6.0 (on 73’ for Musovski)
Osaze came on after Seattle gave Moose an extra 10 minutes to try for a hat-trick. ODR had very little to do in his 17 minutes plus stoppage, earning only seven touches but getting two shots.
They see me rollin’: A nice attempt from outside the box in the 93rd minute was yet another tool that Osaze showed off, and his willingness to fire from anywhere is something to watch.
They hatin’: Coming off some exciting efforts, this was a muted appearance from De Rosario, who was unable to cook up much on goal.
Snyder Brunell – 6 | Community – 6.7 (on 73’ for Ferreira)
Snyder got into the match for Jesús and immediately showed energy and drive forward. He had 100 percent passing and scored an important goal to make sure that LA couldn’t tie with a field goal.
They see me rollin’: Playing in his first MLS match, Brunell scored his first MLS goal. In the 85th minute he ghosted into the box, received a beautiful Alex Roldan pass, and finished cleanly from eight yards out. This was a training ground goal, and he executed it perfectly.
They hatin’: Moments before he scored, the impetuous Snyder attempted a shot that may still be in orbit.
Georgi Minoungou – 5 | Community – 5.9 (on 83’ for Rothrock)
Minoungou earned some more time and managed to not get a red card. He connected perfectly with teammates (100 percent) and earned a shot in a short stint.
They see me rollin’: In the 83rd minute, Georgi showed off his passing ability, finding ODR in a piece of smart soccer movement. He had two key passes in under 10 minutes, an excellent creation outing.
They hatin’: A looping shot in the 88th minute went over the bar, showing Georgi’s over- eagerness to get involved.
Referee
Allen Chapman – 8 | Community – 6.5
Due to the one-sided nature of the match, Chapman didn’t have a lot to do, and he was nice enough to not take that as a challenge. He used his whistle sparingly, and while he missed a few calls, he was generally a non factor, which is a breath of fresh air.
They see me rollin’: This was a pretty clean game, with even fouls split between the teams and only 17 total. Most impressive: no cards were shown all match, because they weren’t needed. Chapman even ignored both Paintsil and Nouhou trying to sell fouls.
They hatin’: A few missed calls drew the ire of players like Yeimar. There were some complaints from both sides, but this was mostly a clean match where one team spanked the other.
LA Galaxy MOTM
To choose an opposing MOTM from this one was an unenviable task, and perhaps Paintsil is as good a choice as any. He did have one of the Galaxy’s three shots on target, after all! When he wasn’t getting shut down by Nouhou on one side, he was failing to track back effectively, allowing Seattle’s own MOTM to unlock the match for the Sounders on the other. Go, Joe.
Upcoming: Six-pointer on the road in Minnesota is big, and then four days later a Leagues Cup quarterfinal looms large.
