SEATTLE – Maybe there were too many streaks on the line… Heading into Saturday's match against the LA Galaxy, the Sounders had been riding a home unbeaten streak of 22 games that stretched back to the Club World Cup, a regular-season unbeaten run of nine games and a home unbeaten streak of 11 against the Galaxy. All of that is now over.
The Sounders weren’t necessarily awful, but they didn’t do nearly enough to cause the Galaxy much concern in a 2–0 loss.
The Sounders started well enough and found the first real chance when Jordan Morris played in Danny Musovski. But JT Marcinkowski was quick off his line, cut down the angle and was able to make a save. Just a few moments later, Musovski was knocked out of the game when he collided with left back John Nelson. Musovski was eventually replaced by Albert Rusnák.
The Galaxy struck first, grabbing a goal in the 23rd minute when Marco Reus hit a perfect ball to Gabriel Pec to put him in on goal. The Brazilian coolly finished inside the near post.
Kalani Kossa-Rienzi replaced Peter Kingston at halftime, and the Sounders showed a bit more life.
Probably their best chance at an equalizer came in the 59th minute when Jesús Ferreira found Paul Arriola at the back post for a header, but Marcinkowski again made a good play to swat it away.
The Galaxy eventually put the game away when Edwin Cerrillo picked off an errant Jackson Ragen pass and pushed it ahead to Pec, who was in a foot race with Hassani Dotson. After winning the ball, Pec beat Dotson on the dribble and set up Matheus Nacamiento for a tap-in.
The Sounders will play one more game before the World Cup break when they visit LAFC on May 23.
Lineups
The Sounders made five changes to the starting lineup, perhaps most notably Peter Kingston getting his second career MLS start and first at right back. Also entering the lineup were Tino Lopez, Paul Arriola, Jordan Morris and Hassani Dotson.
Key moments
5 – Chance! Jordan Morris plays in Danny Musovski but JT Marcinkowski comes off his line well to cut down the angle and make the save.
5 – Musovski goes up for a header in the box and collides with left back John Nelson. Musovski takes the worst of it and is forced out of the match with what appears to be a broken tooth. He’s eventually replaced by Albert Rusnák.
23 – Goal. Marco Reus is able to pick up the ball around 40 yards out with any real pressure and threads a beautiful ball through several defenders to put Gabriel Pec in alone on goal. Pec beats Andrew Thomas to the near post. It’s the third straight game in which the Sounders have surrendered the first goal. 1–0, Galaxy.
HT – Kalani Kossa-Rienzi replaces Peter Kingston, who was on a yellow.
47 – Tino Lopez hits a header toward goal that finds Paul Arriola, but he’s not able to react quickly enough and it goes wide.
56 – Chance. Arriola plays a cross to Kossa-Rienzi at back post and he chests it back to Jesús Ferreira near the penalty spot. The ball bounces around and falls to Rusnák, whose shot floats wide.
59 – Save! Ferreira finds Arriola crashing the far post, but JT Marcinkowski is able to make a quick reaction save from near point-blank range.
60 – Reus is able to get around Thomas, but is forced wide enough that his shot hits the side netting.
62 – Subs. Cristian Roldan, Osaze De Rosario and Paul Rothrock replace Tino Lopez, Ferreira and Arriola.
64 – Post! Gabriel Pec gets on the bal near the goal and surprises everyone with a backheel that nearly sneaks in, but it hits the post and Sounders clear the danger.
74 – Save! Rusnák lines up a free kick from about 35 yards and forces a diving save from Marcinkowski.
76 – Sub. Sebastian Gomez makes his MLS debut, replacing Brunell.
89 – De Rosario makes a nice turn to send it out to Rothrock who cross to Morris in front of goal, but he can’t make good contact while double-teamed.
90+2 – Goal. Pec wins a footrace on the wing, then gets past Dotson before setting up Matheus Nacimiento for a tap-in. 2–0, Galaxy.
Quick thoughts
Streaks are made to be broken, but…: The Sounders’ home unbeaten streak obviously wasn’t going to go on forever, but there was no reason it should have ended tonight. Not only had the Sounders dominated the Galaxy at home over the years, but this was not even a particularly good Galaxy team. They were also coming into this game at the end of a week-long road trip in which they’d traveled back and forth across the country. An early goal probably would have sunk them. Instead, the Sounders didn’t put away their early chance and then found themselves playing from behind.
No rhythm: Over the previous five games, the Sounders have done a remarkable job of at least creating chances and putting their opponents under pressure. They weren’t exactly punchless in this one – their xG was still a respectable 1.45 – but there just didn’t seem to be any real rhythm or cohesion in the attack. Jesús Ferreira and Jordan Morris, in particular, struggled to find chances and Albert Rusnák was not nearly as effective as he has been after coming off the bench. For those worried that the Sounders lack that singular player who is capable of seizing control of the game, this was pretty damning evidence in their favor.
Help elsewhere: The good news is that despite claiming just five points in their last four games, the Sounders are still pretty much in the thick of the Supporters’ Shield race. The latest batch of helpful results included a Vancouver Whitecaps loss to the Houston Dynamo and the San Jose Earthquakes falling at home to FC Dallas. Of course, that also means the Sounders missed an opportunity to close the gap, but it means that they can help themselves a ton by beating LAFC next week.
Notable quote
Cristian Roldan: "The standard needs to be high. The standard needs to be there every single game and today wasn’t up to standard. I think everybody will say that in our locker room, and we have to regroup and be ready for another game."
Player spotlight
Sebastian Gomez: With the Sounders awarded an extra sub due to Danny Musovski's concussion, that gave Schmetzer and opportunity to give Homegrown Player Sebastian Gomez his MLS debut. He had one chance to make it magical when a ball fell to his feet near the edge of the area, but he floated his shot wide. It was an otherwise fine, but largely forgettable debut.
