SEATTLE – The Seattle Sounders marked the return from the World Cup break with what may have been the club’s worst performance in the MLS era, and certainly their worst game in Lumen Field as they fell 5–1 against the Portland Timbers. It was the first time the Sounders have allowed five goals at home across competitions during their 17 MLS seasons and their most lop-sided loss to the Timbers during the entire 50 years of the rivalry's history.
Kevin Kelsy got things rolling with a 19th minute header before capping off his brace in the 63rd, Kamal Miller scored in the 56th, followed by a 60th-minute goal from Cole Bassett and a night cap from Alex Aravena in the 8th minute of second-half stoppage time. Hassani Dotson provided the lone Sounders goal in the 87th minute off a header from a corner kick.
The Sounders had the first real threatening moment of the game when Kalani Kossa-Rienzi had a good look from the top of the box in the 2nd minute that was blocked, but things turned pretty quickly after that. Kelsy had a chance from a tight angle in the 11th minute that forced Jackson Ragen into a fantastic sliding block, then just a few minutes later he put the Timbers ahead with a fantastic header. Portland were moving the ball around and Kelsy had dropped deep into his own half to help keep possession alive, then recognized that his side were moving into attack and started making a run up the middle. He passed Dotson who seemed to notice but couldn’t communicate to a teammate to pick up the runner and Kelsy ended up running between Ragen and Nouhou with neither player picking him up as he rose up to connect with a cross from left back Jimer Fory. His header flew over Andrew Thomas and in just under the bar to give Portland the lead in the 19th minute.
Seattle had a couple of good looks in a flurry of chances in the 29th minute but couldn’t find pay dirt, and that one sequence was bracketed by a number of opportunities for the Timbers to add to their lead. The two sides went into halftime with the 1–0 scoreline still intact, but with Portland looking like the much more dangerous of the two.
Jordan Morris was forced to leave the game at halftime, walking out of the tunnel with ice on his right quad as the teams came out to start the second half with Danny Musovski replacing him in the lineup. Things did not improve from there.
Starting in the 56th minute the Timbers buried Seattle with an avalanche of goals as they scored three in the span of seven minutes. First Ariel Lassiter sent in a free kick towards Brandon Bye at the back post who appeared to be marked by Paul Rothrock but Musovski attempted to make a play on the ball and instead missed and also blocked Rothrock. Bye got the ball to Miller who had gotten away from Ragen and Snyder Brunell, allowing him to make it 0-2.
In the 60th minute Portland was able to play straight up the middle of the field as David Da Costa backed Ragen down before cutting the ball across to Bassett who beat Nouhou and Thomas with his shot to add to the lead. Three minutes later, Antony beat Antino Lopez on the right side of Seattle’s area before hitting a shot that Thomas got a hand to but the rebound fell for Kelsy who tapped it in to secure his brace and make it 4–0.
Seattle started putting together chances as the game wore down, with Musovski getting a 1-on-1 with goalkeeper James Pantemis that he couldn’t finish in the 71st. Then in the 80th minute Paul Rothrock won the ball off of Antony near the end line and drove towards the box forcing Antony into a challenge that was initially called as a penalty. After review it was determined that the contact happened outside of the box, but nothing came of the free kick.
The Sounders did get a goal in the 87th minute off of an Albert Rusnák corner, as Dotson put a fantastic header into the back of the net despite all of his momentum taking him away from goal. Unfortunately that may have just pissed Portland off, and in the 8th minute of second half stoppage time Ragen once again got backed down by Da Costa and substitute Alexander Aravena found himself completely open for a tap-in as Nouhou dropped to the goal line and Stuart Hawkins got caught floating in between Da Costa and Aravena unable to make a real play to intercept the pass as Aravena made it 1-5.
Seattle will have just under a week to regroup, as they hit the road to face Austin FC on Wednesday.
Lineups
With injuries around the roster, Antino Lopez starts at centerback beside Jackson Ragen with Kalani Kossa-Rienzi at right back. Snyder Brunell and Hassani Dotson make up the double-pivot, and Jordan Morris starts up top with Albert Rusnák as the 10 and Paul Rothrock and Jesus Ferreira on either wing.
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Key moments
2 - Chance. Kalani Kossa-Rienzi rips a shot from the top of the box, but it’s blocked and Portland clear the danger.
11 - Block. Kelsy gets a look at goal, but as Thomas moves to close the space Ragen slides in and blocks the shot out for a corner.
19 — Goal, Portland. Kelsy drops into his own half to cycle possession then starts making a run as the play develops, never being picked up as he goes past Dotson then splits Nouhou and Ragen to get a header on a cross from Fory that goes over Thomas and just under the bar. 1–0, Timbers
22 - Save. Antony battles with Kossa-Rienzi and gets into the box to hit a shot, but Thomas is able to block the shot and Rothrock eventually clears it to Morris.
23 - Save! Kelsy cuts inside at the top of the box and rips a shot headed for the same place as his header on the opening goal, but Thomas gets up and pushes it over the bar for a corner.
29 — Chances! Rothrock beats Surman around the corner and finds Ferreira with a great ball, which Ferreira then slips out wide for Kossa-Rienzi. Kossa-Rienzi’s shot is blocked by Pantemis, but the rebound falls to Brunell who gets a good shot that’s cleared off the line!
43 - Post! Lassiter takes a free kick following a Ragen foul that drew a yellow card. Lassiter curls his shot around the wall, but strikes the post with Thomas covering the goal well. The rebound is smashed into the stands for a goal kick.
HT - Sub. Danny Musovski enters the game, replacing Jordan Morris.
53 - Corner. Ferreira sends in a cross that neither Musovski or Rothrock gets a good look at, but a defender puts it out for a corner.
56 — Goal, Portland. Lassiter sends a free kick towards the back post and the service clears both Musovski and Rothrock to reach Bye who heads it on to Miller to knock home. 2–0, Timbers
60 — Goal, Portland. The Timbers play straight up the gut and Da Costa takes on Ragen before finding Bassett who never gets marked and hits a shot that beats both Nouhou and Thomas. 3–0, Timbers
63 — Goal, Portland. Another one, this time it’s Kelsy with a tap-in after Antony beats Lopez then puts a ball into the box that Thomas gets to but gives up a rebound. 4–0, Timbers
64 - Subs. Snyder Brunell, Kalani Kossa-Rienzi and Jesus Ferreira leave the game, replaced by Paul Arriola, Peter Kingston and Osaze De Rosario.
71 - Chance. Musovski gets a 1-on-1 chance against Pantemis but has his shot blocked.
72 - Subs. Portland takes off Cole Bassett and Ariel Lassiter, bringing on Alexander Aravena and Jose Caicedo.
78 - Chance. Rusnak sends in a free kick that comes off of a Sounder and nearly beats Pantemis with the ricochet but the goalkeeper keeps it out and Portland clears the danger.
84 - VAR. Rothrock initially draws a penalty, but after review the foul happened just outside the area.
84 - Sub. Antino Lopez is replaced by Stuart Hawkins for Seattle’s last change.
86 - Shot. Kingston puts a move on a defender as he works his way into the box and rips a great shot that Pantemis knocks away for a corner.
86 - Subs. Felipe Mora and Joao Ortiz come on to replace Diego Chara and Kevin Kelsy for Portland.
87 — Goal! Hassani Dotson pulls one back with a great header off of a corner for Seattle! 4–1, Timbers
90+1 - Sub. Ian Smith replaces Anton for Portland.
90+8 — Goal, Portland. Da Costa backs Ragen down to the end line then cuts it back for Aravena to knock it in with Hawkins caught in no-man’s land. 5–1, Timbers
Quick thoughts
Historically bad: The Sounders have never had a result this bad in a home game at Lumen Field. The margin is the same as the notorious “Refund Game” when they lost 4–0 to the LA Galaxy on May 8, 2010, but given the nature of the derby the result is arguably worse than that previous low-water mark. There’s not even the balm of a game that was closer than it looked, as the Sounders arguably weren’t in this one past the 20th minute. No player looked particularly good, the team looked like they were never ready for the intensity with which the Timbers approached the game, and whether the injury that forced him to be subbed off at halftime was a factor earlier on or not Jordan Morris put in one of his poorest performances in the first half. Maybe this loss will be a catalyst for change, but the players that were on the field will have to be the ones who make that change in the coming weeks.
Taking stock ahead of summer shopping: Craig Waibel said in the lead up to this game that they’d be assessing players to determine the team’s needs during the summer window. Given the need to get any deals done relatively quickly, it seemed a little silly as any performances in a few games would hardly outweigh the totality of training information and previous experience the Sounders have with the squad, but maybe this game proves the flaw in that thinking. All three strikers got on the field, and none of them really seemed particularly likely to put the ball in the back of the net to say nothing of Morris’ injury. It lends some credence to the need to add a No. 9 this window, but the performance also showed that the team could use reinforcements in more areas than just striker. With Cristian Roldan unavailable, the midfield was particularly lightweight, and Alex Roldan’s absence, paired with the ongoing injury issues with the team’s more experienced centerbacks forced Seattle to rely too much on inexperienced — albeit promising — players on the right side of the backline who struggled under the pressure of the game. The needs are pretty clear, now the task remains to find reinforcements and to potentially spend to bring them in.
What’s the deal with Portland games: I don’t know that there’s a real answer here, or even a more serious question to ask. Brian Schmetzer in the past had expressed some frustration that the attitudes among players and staff had become overly friendly, with players laughing or smiling together following these rivalry games. Those days seem to be over, but that change hasn’t come with any sustained improvement to the team’s performances at home in these games. It almost feels like too much importance has been placed on changing the team’s fortunes against their biggest rivals at home, because as soon as things broke against them the weight of the task seemed to crush the players. I don’t have a solution, maybe they can seek out spiritual healers, a hypnotist, or get the Power Team in to show how believing hard enough in God could make them strong enough to rip phonebooks in half, break baseball bats, bend metal bars, and even consistently beat the Timbers in Seattle. Just something to think about.
Notable quote
“Not good enough. Not even close to the standard that we set at the club. On a night where you’re gonna celebrate three legends ... 50-year celebration, the grass is perfect, zero excuses for that performance.” - Brian Schmetzer on the performance.
Player spotlight
Kalani Kossa-Rienzi – Kossa-Rienzi was maybe one of the least bad performers on the evening, taking a few dangerous shots, being active in the final third and putting in an energetic defensive performance.
