Sounders vs Whitecaps, Synopsis: Breaking the Bunker

With a slightly better finish, Seattle Sounders could possibly have brought up seven more points. Instead, they will have to make do with their seventh multi-goal win this season, beating Vancouver Whitecaps 3-1 on Saturday.

Joao Paulo and Raul Ruudiaz were completed with an own goal, while the only goal Saunders allowed was a highly doubtful penalty. The Sounders finished nearly 70% of the possession and paid off Whitecaps 22-3, failing to seize some of their best chances.

8 ‘- Ali Adnan Lucas Cavallini found a line inside the penalty area, but Stephan Fry managed to block the close shot, which was blocked by his back foot.

26 ‘- Nicolas Ludero strikes a superb free kick in Raul Ruidiaz. His open head went wide.

34 ‘- Laudero Jordan found Morris in the back post but I saw him go away.

45 + 1 – Joao Paulo prepares Lodeiro to take a shot from about 20 yards from a corner kick. Lodeiro made a strong connection but Meredith was Able to save diving.

46 ‘- Joao Paulo succeeded in a bad clearance attempt at 25 yards, it took one touch to level it and then fired a shot that beat Meredith inside the far post. The sequence began with Lerdam’s pass to Christian Roldan, who worked himself freely before placing a dangerous cross. Although two of Saunders are close to coming to an end, … it was Joao Paolo’s second goal this season and he has now scored or helped in four of his past five matches. 1-0

53 ‘- Roldan scores another goal a few minutes later when a cross pass towards Ruydiaz hits defender Eric Godoy and hits the net. 2-0

59 ‘- Saunders quickly added the third goal when Ruydiaz found himself alone in front of goal with a corner kick from a corner kick by Ludero that blocked Morris’s defense. 3-0

62 ‘- Referee Timothy Ford inexplicably tried to turn the match upside down by not only giving him a highly questionable penalty kick but also showing Yeimar Goméz Andrade a red card, most likely DOGSO. The video assistant referee reasonably requested a second look. Although Cavallini seemed to start friction outside the box, Ford apparently decided that Gomez Andrade’s back foot caused the striker to fall down and earned a penalty with a red card changed to yellow. Then, Freddy Monteiro converted the penalty kick. 3-1

68 ‘- Janio Bikel A. Red card After he missed an attempt, he effectively stepped on Gustav Svenson’s stomach.

72 ‘- Gomez Andrade missed a shot attempting, but she went straight to the unnoticed Lodero at about 10 yards. His attempt passed over the bar.

79 ‘- Morris blocked a defender to get the ball in the penalty area, but his attempt went far.

85 ‘- Morris finds himself once again with a golden opportunity. Alex Roldan found it open to the rear post, but Morris couldn’t keep his header unbalanced in the frame.

87 ‘- Christian Roldan broke into the goal after a nice pass from Morris, but Meredith stopped his left-foot shot.

Frustrated at Just Record three: It’s hard to complain about a 3-1 win, but the Sounders raised expectations at this point and they definitely felt they could have scored more. Morris, in particular, had too many good looks just to come blank. Four of Morris’ five shots came from 12 yards or closer, including one upon separation. But the most frustrating mistake was due to Ludero, who managed to prepare for a virtual attempt with just Gomez Andrade’s jammed shot for a high shot.

Break the cellar: It’s possible that these complaints underestimate how dominant the Sounders have this problem. They shot Whitecaps 22-3 – one of the most unbalanced shooting variations in team history – and a possession of 69.8% was the best season. Unlike previous matches where they dominated possession and had to catch crosses, the Sounders managed to score their goal early enough not to cause too much tension.

Throwing out in styleWith at least two – and possibly three – rookies absent in the next five games, Team Sounders needed to make the most of this opportunity. Nothing about their playing style suggests they will need it, but they did get 10 points in the ninth-placed team – and could finish the week at Western Conference leadership by three points with a game in hand. Even if a disaster strikes within the next month, they are doing well.

That punishment …Kaito: Once again, the Sounders won 3-1 so I don’t want to put in too much negativity, but … come on. I must assume VAR was asking Ford to cancel both sides of the call – the penalty kick and the red – but it looks like he was too embarrassed to do so. Instead, he insisted that late-fender Gomez Andrade somehow justified the penalty. I have no idea how he decided yellow was justified. Hope PRO has something to say about it.

“I’m very happy. If your team scores three goals – our goal difference is very good – you will win a lot of games. We put pressure on them and put them under pressure. I’m very pleased.” – Schmitzer

+19 – The Sounders improve their goal difference to +19. If they had to maintain that for an entire season, it would be +46, or just two, of the record set by LAFC last year.