Won, not done: Sounders explode at home against Loons

SEATTLE – The Seattle Sounders stormed out to a 3-0 lead, but had to dig in to see out their 4-2 win over Minnesota United. With a brace from Obed Vargas (8’, 86’) and goals from Jordan Morris (21’) and Danny Musovski (41’), the Sounders force a Game 3 to be played back in St. Paul, Minn. on Saturday. Minnesota’s two goals both came in first half stoppage time, making full use of the eight minutes added on as Nectarios Triantis (45+1’) and Robin Lod (45+6’) capitalized on transition opportunities.

Seattle were on the front foot early. Alex Roldan had a good look from the top of the box when no one really stepped to him, but his left-footed shot never troubled goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair. Then in the 8th minute Albert Rusnàk sent in a corner that was cleared, but Vargas was the first to the clearance and after taking a touch to control it he hit a low shot that St. Clair got a hand to but couldn’t stop as Vargas gave the hosts a 1-0 lead.

Just a few minutes later, the Sounders were struggling to deal with the ball in their own box and Joseph Rosales had a dangerous shot that Stefan Frei was able to block without giving up too much of a second chance from a rebound. Then in the 21st minute Seattle were on the board again, this time with Morris providing the final touch. Cristian Roldan won a ball in the air in Minnesota’s half, and immediately ran it down to start an attack, sending in a low cross that Jesus Ferreira got low to get his head to and setting up Morris to put it away. Just like that the Sounders seemed to be off and running with a 2-0 lead.

The wait was a little longer for the next goal, but in the 41st minute Danny Musovski was at the end of a spectacular sequence that started with Vargas playing a through ball for Morris, a centering pass to Ferreira and a touch that dropped the ball perfectly for Musovski to tap in and make it 3-0. From there it would have been fair to think the Sounders were done and dusted, but as the sign went up showing eight minutes of stoppage time after a lengthy injury stoppage for Minnesota and plenty of stop-start action, the Loons almost immediately jumped on a turnover in midfield.

The Sounders were trying to get out in transition after dealing with a Minnesota throw, but Vargas under-hit a pass to Morris, forcing him to stop his run and turnaround rather than receiving it in stride, and when Morris tried to play out of pressure he lost the ball. Minnesota were instantly going the other way, and less than a minute into stoppage time Nectarios Triantis had the ball in the back of the net to make it 3-1. Then in the 5th minute of stoppage time Yeimar made an ill-advised attempt to dribble through midfield and easily lost the ball when two players put pressure on him. Just a pass later and it was Robin Lod’s turn to put the ball past Frei as the GK attempted to get low and make himself big, but he couldn’t stop the shot and all of a sudden it was 3-2.

Both sides exchanged dangerous looks in the final moments of the half. Another bad turnover in midfield set Minnesota up for a chance in the 45+7’, and then in the 45+9’ Vargas made a great play and beat St. Clair with a curling shot but his effort struck the front of the post and was cleared.

The second half was a bit of a slog, with perhaps the most exciting moment coming just after the hour mark when Musovski was in on goal and went down under a challenge from defender Jefferson Diaz. No foul was called in the moment, and at a stoppage in play the incident was reviewed for a possible denial of a goalscoring opportunity, but ultimately it was determined that no red card was warranted.

Paul Rothrock entered the game as a substitute in the 66th minute, replacing Musovski, and made his impact felt. His pressure, energy, and willingness to chase plays clearly gave Minnesota’s defense trouble, and in the 83rd minute he nearly found Morris with a chipped ball but Dayne St. Clair was able to pick it out of the air. Then in the 86th minute Rothrock ran onto a sublime through ball from Danny Leyva, fought off a defender and found Vargas at the top of the box. Vargas ran onto it and put his right foot through it, received a little bit of luck on a deflection, and beat St. Clair for a second time on the night to put the game out of reach.

The Sounders tied the best of 3 series 1-1 with the result, and now turn their attention to game 3 in St. Paul on Saturday, November 8 at 1 PM.

Lineups

Sounders make one change to the lineup from Game 1, dropping Paul Rothrock to the bench and bringing in Danny Musovski as Seattle moves to a 4-4-2 diamond.

Key moments

2 - Shot! Alex Roldan cuts in from the right side after no one closes him down and hits a left-footed shot that he sends high.

8 - GOAL! Obed Vargas gets picks up a cleared corner and smashes a shot along the ground through traffic. St. Clair gets a hand to it, but can’t keep the ball out! 1-0, Sounders

14 - Save! Sounders struggle to get control of the ball and clear their area, but when Rosales gets a dangerous shot from a tight angle Frei is able to stay big and keep Minnesota off the board.

21 - GOAL! Cristian Roldan wins a header and drives towards the end line before smashing a cross into the box. Ferreira makes a diving header that Morris gets a touch on to push it beyond St. Clair to double the lead! 2-0, Sounders

34 - Field goal! Musovski forces St. Clair into a headed clearance at the edge of the box that Nouhou is able to win but he rushes his shot and blasts it into the stands.

41 - GOAL! A true team goal as Morris receives a slipped ball from Vargas before finding Cristian Roldan. Roldan plays the ball central to Ferreira whose touch moves it along to Musovski at the doorstep for a tap-in! 3-0, Sounders

45+1 - Goal, Minnesota. Morris loses the ball in midfield and Minnesota immediately drive at Seattle’s back line. Morris tries to break it up, but Triantis still ends up with a clear look and puts it just inside the near post. 3-1, Sounders

45+5 - Goal, Minnesota. A terrible turnover from Yeimar means Minnesota only needs one pass to give Lod a look and a goal. 3-2, Sounders

45+7 - Shot! Another dangerous look for Minnesota as the Sounders turn the ball over in midfield again and then scramble comically to stop the counter, but this time the shot misses the mark.

45+9 - Post! Vargas makes a fantastic move to set up a shot from the top of the box, but he hits the face of the far post after beating St. Clair.

HT - Subs. Seattle swap Alex Roldan for Kalani Kossa-Rienzi, and Minnesota bring on Morris Duggan in place of Nicolas Romero.

49 - Shot! Kossa-Rienzi and Ferreira work off of each other to carry the ball down the field, setting up a shot from the edge of the box that’s right at St. Clair.

62 - No call! Musovski is taken down from behind by Diaz, but no foul is called. After checking for a possible DOGSO red card, it’s determined that no red is warranted.

65 - Sub. Minnesota takes off Will Trapp, replacing him with Kelvin Yeboah.

66 - Sub. Paul Rothrock comes into the game for Seattle as Danny Musovski comes off.

79 - Subs. Minnesota make a triple-change. Julian Gressel, Carlos Harvey and Hassani Dotson come in, replacing Jefferson Diaz, Joseph Rosales and Robin Lod.

82 - Sub. Seattle swap in Danny Leyva for Jesus Ferreira.

83 - Chance! Rothrock tries to chip a ball into the area for Morris, but St. Clair is able to high-point the cross and claim it out of the air.

86 - GOAL! Vargas bags a brace! Leyva plays a great through ball for Rothrock, who does great work to win it, cut into the box and find Vargas at the top of the box for a shot that takes a deflection and beats St. Clair. 4-2, Sounders

89 - Sub. Seattle makes their final change, taking off Albert Rusnàk and bringing on Osaze De Rosario.

90+3 - Corner! Cristian Roldan dribbles more than half the field, and is ultimately unable to get a shot off but does win a corner.

Quick thoughts

Not quite never in doubt: The Sounders took a 3-0 lead, but never quite felt truly in control. Almost as soon as the third goal was in the back of the net, Minnesota came to life and forced a pair of midfield turnovers that they punished Seattle on. It was almost like the Sounders expected Minnesota to roll over, and were unprepared for them to try to play. A late goal to close things out made things look more secure in the end, but if this team wants to keep their season alive beyond game 3 they’ll need to find a way to control games, especially when they’re leading 3-0 (or even 3-1).

Obed Stargas: Obed Vargas will get heaps of praise for his two goals, but his performance was much more than that. He completed 56/64 passes, had a successful dribble, won 6/6 ground duels and 1/1 aerial duels. It was exactly the kind of high-level performance that has made him a stalwart in the middle of the field for Seattle and coveted by teams around the world. And then he added a pair of goals on top of that. It should be noted, his brace makes him the four Sounder to have a multi-goal game in the MLS playoffs, joining Clint Dempsey, Jordan Morris and Raul Ruidiaz (twice).

Not dead yet: The best-of-3 series in the first round of the playoffs is weird. It’s unique in the world of soccer/football, and it creates the potential for some truly meaningless games, at least for one team involved. Especially if the home team wins in the opening game, a loss in the second game just means they get a chance to win in front of their home fans to advance. For a team like the Sounders, who likely feel hard done by the result in the opener after playing well enough to get a result and falling in the shootout, the second game can be a breath of life. It’s an opportunity to remind themselves, the fans, and the opponent of what they’re capable of. Putting up four on Minnesota feels good, especially after three losses to them this season. Seattle will take confidence into Game 3, knowing that if they can put in another performance like this they could extend their season well beyond that one match. This team’s not dead yet, and they could still have a lot more life left in them.

Notable quote

Player spotlight

Jesus Ferreira’s two assists were a glimmer of the talent Seattle thought they were adding to the team, but he consistently gave Minnesota something to think about with his passing and movement.