Big name absences leave Sounders with a lackluster lost
by Anna Ferkingstad

When Leo Gonzalez is the Sigi Schmid’s go-to substitute for attacking midfield, you know something is up. Gonzalez is a veteran outside defender, and he thinks like one to, not an attacking midfielder.

But when the 77th minute rolled around and Leo Gonzalez entered the pitch for Christian Roldan, coach Sigi Schmid found something in Gonzalez that the rest of his bench could not offer. Experience. Certinly over any desire to go out and capture all three points. A familiar calming presence.

In a bench consisting of S2 call ups and the new Brazilian acquisition Thomas, Gonzalez represented ‘calm and composed’ for a second half Seattle team that craved it.

When the 90 minutes of Saturday’s game between the Seattle Sounders and Sporting Kansas City came to a close, it was clear that both sides could have used the presence of their normal starters. The Sounders four game unbeaten streak was snapped when they conceded a penalty kick in the 84th minute, to give Sporting the 1-0 win.

Without the likes of Clint Dempsey, Obafemi Martins, Osvaldo Alonso, Chad Barrett or Brad Evans the Sounders demonstrated an impressive resilience but lacked the lethal finishing abilities the team has demonstrated in previous games. The loss against Kansas City was a testament to the flexibility and breadth of talent on Seattle’s roster but on Saturday the Sounders greatly lacked ambition in the attacking third. When they did create chances, Lamar Neagle’s finishing proved rusty.

First half chances

Entering the match in a 4-2-3-1, the Sounders made it clear from the opening minutes that they were going to apply high pressure to Sporting’s back line.

The rotating efforts of Marco Pappa, Andy Rose and Christian Roldan as the three attacking midfielders and Neagle as the lone striker made it difficult for Kansas City’s defensive line to think fast nor connect with the midfield. As Pappa, Rose, Roldan and Neagle alternated stepping and supporting, Sporting was forced to just continually switch the point of attack.

As the minutes progressed, Seattle’s high defensive line was increasingly rewarded with turnovers and intercepted passes. The first two dangers attacking opportunities of the match belong to the Sounders and more specifically, the feet of Lamar Neagle. Neagle has ten starts and two goals for Seattle this season.

When the half drew to a close, however, neither team lacked advantage. Sporting Kansas City held nine shots to the Seattle Sounders four and Seattle only held possession 40% of the time. Goalkeeper Stefan Frei came up with a couple big saves to allow Seattle to remain level with Sporting but overall, the first 45 minutes saw uninspired and a rather tame attack from either side. Many of the brightest moments originated in sloppy giveaways and lethargic transitions through the center.

Depth but no pizzazz

In the absence of the attacking duo Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins, Neagle had big shoes to fill as the lone striker. Among a rather diverse list of reason, Dempsey and Martins were just two of Seattle’s absent players Saturday at Kansas City.

Dempsey was out due to personal reasons (his wife having just given birth to their fourth child). Martins was still recovering from a nasal surgery he has received mid week. Alonso was serving a one game suspension while Brad Evans was with the US Men’s National team. 3rd choice forward Chad Barrett was absent due to a hamstring injury. While not quite of the same length as Sporting’s season long injury list, Sounders’ absences fell disproportionately at forward.

As much as Seattle’s starting line up against Sporting stepped up to the challenge, they simply lacked the character of the normally very creative and imaginative Sounder’s midfield and attack. With Chad Marshall and Tyrone Mears, Seattle’s defense on the other hand, did not waiver as much as the play in the attacking third.

Seattle’s most potent offensive opportunities of the first half came only from dead balls or when Sporting was caught on their heels from long balls. No fancy passing sequences out of the defense and through the feet of Alonso. No jaw dropping backheel, bicycle kick or quick combinations between Dempsey and Martins.

There was a gridlock in the midfield, and dead balls seemed to be Seattle’s only answer. That said, these were far better than they have previously been, and Pappa has clearly been working on them.

Pappa the star in Sounders’ payer ratings

Neagle, perhaps, was the standout attacking player Saturday for the Sounders  in open play. He alternated runs and dropped into the midfield when necessary to provide an outlet for Seattle but he does not have the ability to hold the ball and wait for support like Martins. Dead balls offered so many opportunities for Seattle because they were not consistently finding the same connecting passes in the final third that were so effective for them against the Colorado Rapids or the New York Red Bulls.

When Pappa or Roldan tucked centrally to provide defensive support, Seattle was too slow to get another option out wide. Whether it be Rose, an outside defender or one of the defensive midfielders (Michael Azira and Gonzalo Pineda) to step to the line, the Sounders did not capitalize on the space on the wing.

The gap between the outside attacking midfielders in the 4-2-3-1 and the outside defenders, is where Sporting Kansas City found their own attacking success. Frei has seven clean sheets so far this season for Seattle and continually performs in the net including, a huge save in a 1 v 1 situation against Marcel de Jong in the 71st minute.

Just a bunch of excuses?

As the minutes began to wind down, fitness and the heat began to take a toll on either side. Neither team played badly during the 90 minutes, but neither team played extremely well. A controversial penalty call against Frei stands as the final difference between Seattle and Kansas City.

Benny Feilhaber scored from the penalty spot to give Kansas City the 1-0 lead after referee Ismail Eifath made a contentious call on an attempted punch save from Frei and the eventual collision between him and Sporting’s Dom Dwyer. Scott was also in the mix for Seattle, with it difficult to distinguish if the foul was called against Frei’s save or Scott’s pressure on Dwyer. The referee confirmed it was on Frei later.

The penalty kick coupled with an earlier goal from Neagle that was called back (due to a very contestable offsides call), left Sounders fans reveling in the lack of officiating luck for Seattle on Saturday. Excuses aside, Seattle was not in any different position with their personnel than Sporting.

In fact, Sporting Kansas City had a far longer list of injuries than Seattle. Several players that were key for Sporting in previous seasons have missed not only this game but many other games this season, including defender Ike Opara who is out on a ruptured Achilles tendon and midfielder Paulo Nagamura who has a lower back strain. Forward Dom Dwyer, who was a strong contender for last year’s Golden Boot race, entered the match as a second half substitute due to problems with a neck injury.

The list for Sporting continues with Bernardo Anor (hamstring strain), Seth Sinovic (concussion), Jacob Peterson (hamstring strain) and Chance Myers (ruptured Achilles tendon).

Takeaways and upcoming games

It was noted following last weekend’s game against the New York Red Bulls that the main difference between the two talented sides was in fact depth. The match between the Red Bulls and the Sounders was a clash of high intensity and tactics. Coach Jesse Marsch and New York, however, did not have the same options off the bench for substitutes as Sigi Schmid and in the later minutes of the game it showed.

Seattle is in a unique position this season with the number of players on their roster who can slide into a starting position. Even the confidence of rookie Christian Roldan seems to be growing with each game, with Roldan now boasting five starts in his inaugural MLS season.

Yes, big names were missing for Seattle against Kansas City but Sporting can say the same, and with greater numbers on their list. The take aways from the match should not be the importance of players like Dempsey, Martins and Alonso to Seattle but instead the talent of some of their younger and less experienced players.

Looking towards upcoming matches against FC Dallas and Cascadia rivals the Portland Timbers, Seattle need to clean up their play in the midfield and continue to use width. Pappa and Roldan have the vision to act as potent wings for the Sounders and combinations into the central midfield or the center forwards offer shining moments in many recent games.

The Sounders are now tied for first place in the Western conference with the Vancouver Whitecaps, at 26 points a piece with a record of 8-4-2. Interestingly, Sporting is the only team in the Western conference with fewer losses than Seattle and they now sit in third place with 24 points.

Next Saturday, Seattle hosts FC Dallas at home in what will be a thrilling inter-conference matchup.