SEATTLE — Sitting on a hat trick, Cristian Roldan was presented with a rare opportunity. With the Seattle Sounders already up 2-0 early in the second half — courtesy of two Roldan goals — Paul Rothrock had drawn a penalty.
Although Roldan has never taken a penalty during his 12-season professional career, it was exactly this type of situation that so many players almost demand an opportunity to take the shot. For all of his achievements, Roldan had also never scored three goals in a game.
Understanding this, Albert Rusnák made sure to give Roldan the chance.
“Albert asked me if I wanted to take it,” Roldan recalled. “I said I wanted to win.
“I said ‘bang it’ and, look, we need Albert to score goals, too. Hat tricks are nice and all, but we need our attacking players to have the most confidence possible. For me, it was a no-brainer to get Albert his goal and really solidify the game.”
Roldan didn’t get his hat trick, but Rusnák did convert to help seal what was eventually a 4-1 victory over St. Louis City that extended the Sounders’ home unbeaten streak to a franchise-record 19 games across all competitions. The win pushes their league record to 5-1-1, the second most points they’ve ever had through the first seven games of a season.
Dating to last year’s Club World Cup, the Sounders are 22-5-9 with a +37 goal-difference across all competitions. That’s a pace of 2.08 points per game, which would equate to a 71-point season over 34 matches.
The selflessness of players like Roldan is a key part of what is driving the Sounders during what could have otherwise been a rough patch. Not only was this the Sounders’ first league home game in nearly two months, but they’ve been playing most of that time with significant pieces missing due to injury while also traveling the continent.
The Sounders were so short-handed in this game, for instance, that they only had two natural centerbacks in the gameday roster, neither of whom were expected to play significant roles when the season started. When Alex Roldan left in the 60th minute, it was Cristian Roldan who deputized in his spot.
Roldan barely put a foot wrong during his 30-minute cameo at a position he’s rarely been asked to play.
“We have a lot of centerbacks out right now, so I’m just helping in any way possible,” Roldan said.
Aside from his team-first attitude, it should be said that Roldan seems to be rounding into form, as well. The central midfielder had not necessarily been one of the Sounders’ standout performers during much of this hot start, but he now has two goals and two assists in his past two games. That comes as the United States men’s national team coaching staff is weighing final decisions for the World Cup roster.
Biased as he may be, Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer pointed out that it’s the whole package that makes Roldan so attractive.
“There’s a lot of people that are down on Cristian because there’s a loose pass here, something that doesn’t go right,” Schmetzer said. “That’s the easiest thing in soccer to see. When somebody makes a bad pass, everybody in the world can see that.
“What you have to look for when you’re talking about the complete player, is all the intangibles. The little things, the effort, the athleticism and all that stuff that Cristian possesses that gets taken for granted sometimes.”
Schmetzer said he talked to Roldan about further bolstering his case, suggesting that his midfielder set a goal like not making a single errant pass. Roldan responded by completing 75 of 79 passes, while scoring those two goals and being credited with a game-high 10 defensive contributions. His heat map shows a sea of activity that stretches box to box.
“I thought he was excellent,” Schmetzer said. “All the work, the leadership, all the stuff he does, I thought he had a great performance.”
The only misstep Roldan made came during his first goal celebration. Having recently learned that he and his wife are expecting a second child, Roldan had wanted to use the traditional “baby bump” celebration if he scored. Perhaps not necessarily expecting that to happen, Roldan said he didn’t think about it until it was too late.
“I thought to myself, I need to get a second one,” he said, noting that the child is due in August. “Luckily it came. We’re really excited. Life is going to change very, very fast.”
