With little left to play for in the regular-season finale, the Seattle Sounders' main objectives were to maintain their momentum and avoid injury. They accomplished half of their goal.
On the positive side, they got goals from Jordan Morris and Jackson Ragen to beat New York City FC 2-1 on Saturday. It was the third straight win – the first time they've managed to do that in league play this year – and also allowed them to jump four teams in the Supporters' Shield standings, giving them at least some hope of hosting a potential MLS Cup.
But it came at a cost. Pedro de la Vega went down with a right knee injury early in the first half and seems likely to miss the rest of the season. It's a particularly frustrating blow as de la Vega had been playing his most productive soccer of his career and seemed to be the type of game-breaking talent that could change the Sounders' fortunes.
Aside from de la Vega's injury in the 18th minute, the first half was relatively low action. The biggest moment came when Morris appeared to draw a penalty only for VAR to intervene after replays showed that there was, at most, minimal contact.
The Sounders started the second half with a bit more energy and had a few good looks at goal before Morris finally broke through in the 61st minute. After a good spell of possession and some quality back-pressing, the Sounders won a free kick from a dangerous spot. Albert Rusnák whipped in a nasty ball that Morris directed inside the far post. The goal snapped a seven-game goal-less drought for Morris and gave Rusnák his 11th assist of the season.
As they have frustratingly often this year, though, the Sounders surrendered the lead when Nico Fernandez scored off a deflected shot following a turnover in their own end. It would have been the fifth time they had allowed a result-changing goal after the 80th minute.
Only this time, the Sounders came right back and scored their own go-ahead goal when Ragen fought off a defender to power a header off a Danny Levyva corner kick into the net. The 87th minute strike was their latest game-winner of the season.
The Sounders will now await the results of the Western Conference games to see who they face in the first round of the playoffs.
Lineups
The Sounders didn't quite put out their ideal starting XI – opting to give Obed Vargas and Cristian Roldan days off after heavy international duty – but it's still a strong lineup, especially in the front four. For just the second time this year, Jordan Morris, Pedro de la Vega, Jesús Ferreira and Albert Rusnák start in the front four together. It's also just the fourth time this year that all three DPs have started together.
Key moments
7 – Shot! Danny Leyva sets up Jesús Ferreira for a shot following a long passing sequence and it's blocked for the Sounders' first corner of the game.
18 – Pedro de la Vega goes down after trying to control a ball and immediately grabs his knee. After about five minutes, he's removed from the field on a cart with what appears to be a serious injury.
25 – No penalty! Jordan Morris appears to be taken down in the box after receiving a nice pass from Kalani Kossa-Rienzi and referee Chris Penso points to the spot. But after review, Penso agrees to overturn his call.
45+1 – SAVE! Justin Haak rips a shot from the top of the box, but Stefan Frei is able to make a diving save to his left to keep it out.
55 – Subs. Snyder Brunell and Jon Bell replace João Paulo and Alex Roldan, respectively.
58 – Chance! The Sounders get out on the break with Jesús Ferreira setting up Kalani Kossa-Rienzi for an open shot from about 16 yards out but it's a relatively easy save.
61 – GOAL!!! Jordan Morris rises up to score a header off an Albert Rusnák free kick. It's Morris' first goal since July and comes after some good sustained pressure by the Sounders. 1-0, Sounders.
JMOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ‼️ Jordan heads it home to give us the lead!
— Sounders FC (@soundersfc.com) 2025-10-18T23:47:10.014Z
65 – Chance! Jesús Ferreira picks up a stray pass in the New York City end. Albert Rusnák eventually gets a shot from near the top of the box, but it's blocked out for a corner.
70 – Chance! Rusnák plays Ferreira into space on the break but the shot is right at Matt Freese and saved rather easily.
82 – Goal. Danny Leyva makes a poor pass in the defensive end that allows NYCFC to create some pressure. The ball eventually falls to Nico Fernandez, whose deflected shot beats Frei. 1-1.
87 – GOAL!!! Jackson Ragen throws aside his defender and powers a header into the net off a Danny Leyva corner kick. Sounders, 2-1.
BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG 💥 Jackson rises up to give us the lead!
— Sounders FC (@soundersfc.com) 2025-10-19T00:07:52.105Z
Quick thoughts
Godspeed, Pedro: Given the relatively low stakes of the game, there was always an element of risk to using starters in this game. Regardless of how worthy that risk was, it blew up spectacularly when de la Vega went down in the 18th minute after being fouled while trying to control a ball on the temporary grass over the infield. While we still don't know exactly how serious the injury is, he was taken off the field in a cart and seemed very upset. It certainly doesn't look good and if he's out for the playoffs, that's going to be a serious blow to the Sounders' hopes. If it's as bad as it looks, the Sounders will have some big decisions to make in the offseason. For now, though, we'll cross our fingers and hope for the best.
Finally, JMo: On the flipside, one of the reasons to start the starters was to get them clicking and that's exactly what Jordan Morris did. After being denied a penalty early in the match, Morris got his first goal since July when he headed in a free kick from Rusnák. This was Morris' third consecutive start, the first time he's managed that since starting the season's first five games and he looked consistently sharp. If he can ride this momentum into the playoffs, that would be a huge boost.
Resiliency: One of the frustrating narratives around the Sounders this year has been their penchant for allowing late result-changing goals. For a few minutes, it looked like they had done it again. This time, though, they didn't let that get them down and re-took the lead just five minutes after surrendering it. That it came against an opponent who was desperate for a result can't be overlooked, nor can the fact that it was just their fifth road win of the season. The Sounders have been better than their road record had suggested all year and finally they got a result to prove it.
Notable quote
Albert Rusnak on Pedro de la Vega’s injury: “It was dead quiet when we came into the locker room. It’s really sad. You could see something serious had happened. Everyone is gutted for him. It’s a sad moment for him, for us, he’s one of the nicest guys on the team.”
— Sounder at Heart (@sounderatheart.com) 2025-10-19T00:37:50.935Z
Player spotlight
Danny Leyva has been biding his time, seemingly forever. His exact role still isn't entirely clear, but this is now two straight games where he did a good job holding it down in the double-pivot. He was maybe a little unlucky on the turnover that led to NYCFC's goal, but he made up for it with a perfectly delivered corner on Ragen's winner. If Leyva can be relied upon to be an option off the bench or even a starter, that's great news.
