By Matt Hoffman (@mhoff)
Two teams heading in different directions are meeting tonight as the Seattle Sounders host Sporting Kansas City in winner-takes-all Knockout Round match at CenturyLink Field (7pm, Unimas & FS1).
Seattle and Sporting only met twice in the regular season and the results were decidedly in favor of Sporting. In fact, it was Seattle’s loss in Kansas City this summer that brought a close to Sigi Schmid’s time with the club.
A lot has changed, for both clubs, since then. Seattle, who mustered only one shot in that match, has since signed Nicolas Lodeiro in the Summer Transfer Window and has been on tear since then only losing twice over fourteen games. Once considered a lock to miss the playoffs, Seattle managed to finish fourth in the Western Conference making it now eight consecutive seasons the Sounders have made it to the postseason, the second longest streak in MLS history.
Not far behind is Sporting, who have reached the postseason for the sixth year in a row. Sporting doesn’t have the recent successes that Seattle had. SKC would win only three of their final ten games and would only glean three total points in matches against playoff teams. On the flip side, Sporting is riding a season-best nine game unbeaten streak into Seattle.
What’s more, Sporting Kansas City coach Peter Vermes was able to field the same starting XI for the team’s final two games. You would have to go back to early May for the last time Vermes was able to field the same squad in back-to-back games.
Scouting Seattle
Seattle is a completely different side from the team that crumbled before Sporting this summer. Osvaldo Alonso and Lodeiro are both top players in the position. If Seattle can control the game and get threatening runs from up top. Already without Clint Dempsey, Seattle may be without left winger Andreas Ivanschitz. An MRI round Ivanschitz has a knee sprain. With Roman Torres and Chad Marshall perhaps making the best center back pairing in MLS, it may fall to Jordan Morris.
Scouting Sporting
Sporting is best when they are disruptive force. Getting interceptions and deflections and turning those into counter opportunities for Dom Dwyer to pounce on. It’s a veteran team in both the good and bad. If Sporting give up the first goal, I am curious to how they respond over the next ten, fifteen minutes because this might be the last run for a lot of players on the field for Kansas City tonight.
Seattle will win if..
In past seasons Seattle lost their swagger and played tightly in the post-season. I just don’t see that happening this year. Seattle is playing with house money right there. There is a looseness and an energy about them. Playing aggressive and finding ways to feed the ball to Morris in dangerous positions will inevitably lead to goals. The defense needs to clear the ball and not let Sporting linger in the final third.
Sporting will win if..
If Tim Melia comes up big, that’ll help a lot. On the other end, if Sporting can create and finish their chances, they could secure the rare road team knockout round win.
