Seattle, WA – In a match that could’ve played a big role in helping to secure their seeding in the top four spots of the MLS’ Western Conference, the Seattle Sounders couldn’t do enough on the attack to take all three points against visiting Cascadia Rival, the Vancouver Whitecaps. Seattle had a ferocious attacking push towards the end of the match, but a combination of near misses and incredible saves by Vancouver keeper Yohei Takaoka resulted in the two clubs splitting points as decision day draws nearer. While the first half was largely a wash with equal statistics on both sides, the second half was largely in favor of Seattle, but those sheer numbers alone couldn’t ultimately result in a goal. There’s still plenty to play for (seeding wise) if you’re the Sounders, but all three points tonight would’ve made their path to the highest seed possible much easier.
The Seattle Sounders FC celebrated their “Fan appreciation” match at Lumen Field (Photo by Paul Kahl)
Late push proves too little and too late for Sounders
Following last matches heroics by Cristian Roldan with a winner at the death to beat the LA Galaxy and punch their playoff ticket, the Sounders were looking to keep that momentum rolling over with their attack into this match against the Whitecaps. Seattle really wasn’t able to keep any sort of that same attacking energy into the first half of this match, as their main push came in the second half of this contest. With the lack of a definite, killer striker at the top of their offense, the Sounders have especially struggled at finishing their chances and haven’t had the same sort of bite that they’ve had in years prior.
The real period of attack for Seattle came in the final 15 (20, if you include the five minutes or so of extra time allotted by referee Nima Saghafi) minutes of the match, as the Sounders had numerous near-miss chances that either careened just feet away from the goal or were turned away by Whitecaps goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka. It was encouraging to see this sort of push from Seattle and the group that they had on the field at the time, but it needed to have been earlier in the match. If the Sounders were able to get more time to keep this push going, they would likely find a way around Takaoka to score, but that wasn’t the case, and the whistle was blown.
Vancouver Whitecaps goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka denied the Seattle Sounders several times late into the second half (Photo by Paul Kahl)
Defensive dominance rings true one last time at Lumen
While the attack has struggled for most of the season with Seattle, the Sounders have been a very strong club defensively. Lumen Field has somewhat returned to the sort of “fortress” that it has been for the club previously, at least in the regard of keeping their opponents off the scoreboard. The draw tonight was the 13th clean sheet of the season for the Sounders, and the tenth at home. The overall clean sheets is tied for the most in the league at this current moment with the Houston Dynamo, while the ten at home is the outright most in the league. While at times Seattle has had some defensive lapses that have resulted in them splitting points with clubs, the Sounders have done a great job defensively for the most part this season. With the attack drying up since May, the club’s defensive effort has been critical towards Seattle keeping their spot near the top of the table.
Seattle Sounders FC defender Jackson Ragen and the rest of the teams backline did an adequate job at preventing the Vancouver Whitecaps attack from ever really challenging Stefan Frei (Photo by Paul Kahl)
What’s next?
Following tonight’s scoreless draw against the Vancouver Whitecaps, the final regular season match at home for Seattle, the Sounders head out on the road to battle St. Louis City SC on Saturday, October 21st with a kickoff time of 6PM PST. It’ll be the first time that the Sounders play St. Louis in their home, after beating them by a three-goal margin at Lumen Field back in April. Since that time, St. Louis has secured the top spot in the Western Conference and essentially have nothing to play for, considering what was just mentioned. The Sounders are still playing for something, as seeding is still in play for them when they play on decision day. With help, Seattle can move as high as the second seed. The third seed is more likely, but that would at minimum require them to win in this match. The bottom line is that the Sounders still need to be aiming for a victory in their regular season finale.
Check out photographer Paul Kahl’s photos from the match here
