By Mazvita Maraire Posted on

Sounders lack creativity in 1-0 loss to Timbers

The highest-scoring team in the West took on the best defense in the West. The Timbers’ high-flying offense against the Sounders’ stingy defense made the 121st meeting between the two rivals spicy, as they say. The early drama saw Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei leave the game in the fifth minute after making a save on a point-blank shot by the Timbers’ Mason Toye. During the shot attempt, Toye hit Frei in the head and was replaced by Andrew Thomas.

SHUFFLED LINE UP

Brain Schmetzer’s insertion of Pedro de Lave Ga at right wing and Cristian Roldan in the middle next to Josh Atencio had the Sounders controlling the game’s tempo and neutralizing the Timber’s attack in the early stages. The Sounders’ best chance of the half came early in the half. Jordan Morris’s free header during a corner kick landed in the hands of Timbers keeper Maxime Crépeau.

The  Timbers gained a foothold in the game after 25 minutes with several counterattacks. While disjointed the Timber’s counter, attacks sent multiple players into the box, confusing the Sounder’s defense.  Steady play by Nouhou and Alex Roldan kept the Timbers Evander and   Toye at bay.  The first half finished with the Timbers having the better run of play, but the Sounder’s defense held firm, and the two sides went into their respective locker room with a 0-0 scoreline.

SECOND HALF  ADJUSTMENT

Portland Timbers took advantage of some lethargic defending by the Sounders and broke the deadlock in the 55th minute on a right-footed strike by Juan Mosquera. After gaining possession in midfield, Evander turned right and laid the ball off the streaking Mosquera, who was allowed to gallop down the right side and unleash a rocket that beat Thomas.  

Looking for offense and creativity, Brian Schmetzer inserted Georgi e  Minoungu for Rothrock and Raul Ruidiaz for de la Vega just one minute after the Timbers scored.

They infused some energy into the game, but more was needed as the Timbers succeeded possession to the Sounders and packed the middle of the field, making it difficult for the Sounders to find any passing lanes.       Schemtzer continued to throw caution to the wind and inserted  Reed Baker Whiting for Nohou Tolo and Danny Leyva for Albert Rusnák. The four subs combined brought energy and pace to the game. The Sounders had two corners and two shots in the six minutes of stoppage time.

BIG TAKE

Schmetzer’s plan to neutralize the Timbers puppet master Evander worked for the most part. The lack of concentration and awareness by the  Sounders players on the  Timber’s goal is troubling.  More troubling was the lack of creativity in the attacking third. The issues continue, such as a lack of runners in the box,  hesitation when in possession, and a lack of belief that the ball will arrive when making runs. Pedro de La Vega showed he can be a game changer, but it will take some games. With the season winding down, Schmetzer must pick his best  11 and let them get familiar with each other.

MATCH NOTES

  • Sounders FC falls to eighth in the Western Conference with 40 points (11-9-7), while the Timbers jump to sixth, also with 40 points (11-9-7). Portland (sixth), Houston (seventh) and Seattle (eighth) are all level on 40 points apiece, but are separated by the goal-differential tiebreaker.
  • Saturday marked the 121st all-time meeting between the Sounders and Timbers dating back to 1975. Seattle leads the all-time series 57-47-17.
  • Since the Timbers entered MLS in 2011, the regular-season series is even at 15-15-9.
  • Seattle falls to third place in the Cascadia Cup standings with four points (1-1-1), while Portland jumps to second with six points (2-2-0). Vancouver currently leads the 2024 standings with seven points (2-1-1). Sounders FC has one more match each against Vancouver and Portland remaining on its Cascadia Cup schedule.
  • After starting goalkeeper Stefan Frei suffered an injury in the opening minutes, Andrew Thomas came on and played the remainder of the match.
  • Georgi Minoungou, signed to a First Team contract on Wednesday, came on as a substitute in the second half. The appearance marked his first in MLS regular-season action as a contracted First Team player.

MATCH SUMMARY

Seattle Sounders FC 0 – Portland Timbers 1

Saturday, August 31, 2024

Venue: Providence Park

Referee: Lukasz Szpala

Assistants: Chris Elliott, Cameron Blanchard

Fourth Official: Malik Badawi

VAR: Carol Anne Chenard

Attendance: 25,218

Weather: 85 degrees and clear

SCORING SUMMARY

POR – Juan Mosquera (Evander) 55’

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY

None

LINEUPS & STATS

Seattle Sounders FC – Stefan Frei (Andrew Thomas 8’); Alex Roldan, Yeimar, Jackson Ragen, Nouhou (Reed Baker-Whiting 80’); Cristian Roldan, Josh Atencio (Obed Vargas 74’), Pedro de la Vega (Raúl Ruidíaz 56’), Albert Rusnák (Danny Leyva 80’), Paul Rothrock (Georgi Minoungou 56’); Jordan Morris

Substitutes not used: Andrew Thomas, Jonathan Bell, João Paulo, Danny Musovski

Total shots: 13

Shots on goal: 4

Fouls: 16

Offside: 1

Corner-Kicks: 13

Saves: 4

Portland Timbers – Maxime Crepeau; Kamal Miller, Claudio Bravo, Dario Zuparic, Juan Mosquera; Evander (Cristhian Paredes 90’+4’), Diego Chara, David Ayala, Santiago Moreno; Antony (Eric Miller 89’), Mason Toye (Eryk Williamson 84’)

Substitutes not used: James Pantemis, Miguel Araujo, Ega Ikoba, Finn Surman

Total shots: 12

Shots on goal: 5

Fouls: 9

Offside: 1

Corner-kicks: 5

Saves: 4

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