The Seattle Sounders ( 12-11-8, 47 ) broke out of their scoring slump by posting proverbial three spot on Cascadia Rivals Vancouver Whitecaps ( 14-6-10, 48) Wednesday Night in front of 41, 868 fans who could not believe that their team’s goal-scoring cup had runneth over. The breakout performance by the goal-starved Sounders was due to a tactical switch in which head coach Brian Schmetzer put Clint Dempsey as the point man in a 4-2-3-1 formation. The Sounders had scored just
The Sounders had scored just three goals in their last five games which included two losses and three draws. The Sounders were scoreless in their last two games. A 2-0 loss to Real Salt Lake on September 23rd and a 0-0 draw at FC Dallas on September 16th.
With Dempsey upfront creating space in the middle of the field Victor Rodriguez, Nicolas Lodeiro and Cristian Roldan were able to roam in midfield creating space for each other. With space and time, the trio was able to attack the Whitecaps defense with short passes and precision dribbling.
Rodriguez gave the home side the lead in the 17th minute when he received a pass from Lodeiro rifled a left footed shot that beat Vancouver goalkeeper David Ousted for the 1-0 lead. The Sounders had numerous other chances but were unable to get the second goal before the halftime break. Vancouver nearly equalized in the 36th minute when Stefan Frei used his left-hand to swat a Freddy Montero free kick that was headed for the back of the Sounders goal.
The Sounders continued their offensive onslaught and the passing and interlink play between the midfield players resulted in a Nicolas Lodeiro goal in the 61st minute and a Clint Dempsey goal seven minutes late to seal the victory. Defensive midfielder Ozzie Alonso suffered a strained quadricep and defender Roman Torres suffered a minor leg injury. Torress is listed as day to day while Alonso is expected to miss a few games.
The Sounders, Portland ( 13-10-8, 47), and Sporting Kansa City (12-6-11, 47) are all one point behind the Whitecaps who are still in first place in the Western Conference with 48 points.
