SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC v. HOUSTON DYNAMO

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. Dinamo Houston, formerly known as San Jose Earthquakes, visit The Evergreen for an MLS top-10 showdown. Oh, here we go.

What: MLS league match, Seattle Sounders FC v. Houston Dynamo.

Where: Royal Brougham Park, Occidental Avenue, Seattle, Washington.

When: 7:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, Saturday 28 September 2024 CE.

At Stake: A victory over Houston would assure MLS Cup qualification. Should we draw, we are dependent on the results of Dallas v. Orlando, where Dallas must lose or draw, and possibly Austin v. Salt Lake in order to secure qualification. Aside from that, any points earned at this stage would only affect seeding in the tournament. For us to be displaced from the tournament would require an absolute collapse on our part.

Where to Watch: MLS Season Pass via Apple TV.

Where to Listen: KJR 99.3 FM and El Rey 1360 AM.

Dinamo Houston have irritated me by removing the white elements of their kit so that I can no longer refer to them as the Creamsicles. This injures me in a way that is hard to express in words.

Sounders must face Houston, still, and that, my brothers and sisters, is where we come in. Whether you’re at the ground, at the pub, or at a mate’s house or flat, it’s time to make some noise. I mean an obscene amount of noise. Look after each other. Tie your scarves proper. Be present. Be loud. The Brougham Faithful won’t let the side down. I expect the usual level of flag-waving, singing, chanting, and general carrying-on. That should hearten the lads, who could use a bit of chuffing up. Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s time to put the Houston to the sword.

It’s MLS football under the Saturday night lights of Royal Brougham Park. GO ON YOU SOUNDERS!!! GET IN!!!

Before kick-off, please join me in the auld toast: “TO THE SEATTLE SOUNDERS FOOTBALL CLUB…AND VICTORY!!!”

I present to you the 1978 Houston Hurricane. Founded 1978. Dissolved 1980.

You’ve come a long way…Baby.

The Good News

Sounders are unbeaten in their last three in the league. We have a record of 9-1-2 in our last 13 matches in the league and a home record of 12-6-4 in all competitions.

Jordan Morris’ finishing has come ‘round, as he hit a brace against the Quakes last match. Granted there was a pretty fair amount of luck involved, but that’s part of the game. When the ball bounces your way and you can bash it into the net it counts the same as if it were a scorcher from outside the box or from a perfectly executed cross or one-two.

Last time Allen Chapman was Referee for us, we won at Portland, 1:2. That’s got to be a good omen, yeh?

Jordan Morris leads the line for us with 13 goals this season. Ruidiaz and Rusnak have eight each. Rusnak leads the squad in assists with 13, Vargas is next with seven.

Standout Sounders left-centre-half Jackson Ragen has been signed to a three-years contract. I wonder if he’s gotten a well-deserved raise from the roughly €88,000/year he was making that had MLS executives vote him as ‘Best Value Contract’. This is a smart contract extension as Ragen is dead-reliable in the centre of defence.

We haven’t been shut out since 31 August and our 1:0 defeat at Morrison Street. That’s something that’s getting better. It had been a problem earlier in the season.

The Bad News

Houston have an 8-3-6 record when away from their Dowling Street ground. That’s a pretty decent away record.

Houston haven’t lost a match since 24 August, when they were defeated 0:1 by Toronto. Since 29 May, Houston have only lost twice in the league (8-6-2).

Houston have played markedly better against the teams we struggle with. Specifically the better teams in the league. They’ve had better results against Kansas City, Portland, Colorado, San Jose, DC United, Salt Lake, Vancouver, and LAFC. So there’s that to consider.

There are extremely marginal differences between the sides in goals scored (SEA +0.14/match) and conceded (HOU 0.05 less/match). We’ll be looking in the mirror when we play this one.

One thing I noticed from the San Jose match and other matches this season is that our movement off the ball is not very good. Our players make a pass and kind of stare at the person they passed the football to. There are often not multiple passing options available for the player on the ball. This is also a function of deficient player movement. This issue needs to be sorted in training.

We have a nasty habit of giving up late goals. Sometimes that late goal is the equaliser. Other times it’s the goal that sinks us. It has to end. This must get sorted in training.

We have been shut out 10 times in all competitions, by Austin, LA Galaxy (twice), Dallas, Vancouver, Salt Lake, LAFC (thrice), and Portland. Although we’ve gotten better at scoring goals of late, and statistically we’re more likely to score two goals than concede two, it’s important to point this out.

The Side I Would Select

I’d have this lot in the team.

Rationale: The Gaffer has made it pretty clear this is his team, plus or minus one or two players. With MLS Cup looming, it’s time to start preparing.

GK     Frei

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Gomez Andrade

RB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM    Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     de la Vega

CF     Morris

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

This seems like a safe bet.

GK     Frei

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Gomez Andrade

RB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM    Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     de la Vega

CF     Morris

Intangibles

The Referee for Saturday night’s match will be Allen Chapman.

Sounders FC record in matches with Chapman as Ref: 13-5-8

Houston record in matches with Chapman as Ref: 12-6-10

General notes on personnel

Houston transfers IN:

Dorsey - re-signed

Gyamfi - draft

Sargeant - draft

Gregus (Minnesota United FC) free

Segal (New York City FC) undisclosed fee

Sylla - draft

Blessing (Toronto FC) €253,000

Gaines (Nashville SC) €70,000

Valverde (LDU Quito) undisclosed fee

Ponce (AEK Athens) €9M

Ennali (Gornik Zabrze) €2.75M

Arzu (Real Espana) undisclosed fee

Moreno (Al-Hazem) free

Houston transfers OUT:

Achara - reserves

Auguste - released

Avila (Sporting Kansas City Reserves) free

Hadebe (Konyaspor) free

Murana (Birmingham Legion) free

Rios - released

Vera (Olimpia Asuncion) free

Franco (Libertad) end of loan

Baird (FC Cincinnati) free

Ulfarsson (Debreceni VSC) undisclosed fee

Gasper (Chicago Fire) undisclosed fee

Comparison against common opponents

SKC 2:1 SEA

SEA 2:0 SKC

HOU 1:1 SKC

SKC 1:2 HOU

(against SKC: SEA 1-0-1 +1, HOU 1-1-0 +1) edge HOU

POR 1:2 SEA

POR 1:0 SEA

HOU 1:0 POR

POR 2:2 HOU

(against POR: SEA 1-0-1 0, HOU 1-1-0 +1) edge HOU

SEA 1:1 COL

COL 0:1 HOU

HOU 3:1 COL

(against COL: SEA 0-1-0 0, HOU 2-0-0 +4) edge HOU

SJ 3:2 SEA

SEA 2:2 SJ

HOU 2:1 SJ

SJ 0:1 HOU

(against SJ: SEA 0-1-1 -1, HOU 2-0-0 +2) edge HOU

SEA 2:1 CHI

CHI 2:1 HOU

(against CHI: SEA 1-0-0 +1, HOU 0-0-1 -1) edge SEA

SEA 2:0 MIN

SEA 2:0 MIN LC

MIN 2:3 SEA

MIN 1:2 HOU

HOU 1:1 MIN

(against MIN: SEA 3-0-0 +5, HOU 1-1-0 +1) edge SEA

SEA 0:0 ATX

ATX 0:1 SEA

HOU 0:1 ATX

ATX 0:1 HOU

(against ATX: SEA 1-1-0 +1, HOU 1-0-1 0) edge SEA

DAL 0:0 SEA

SEA 3:2 DAL

DAL 2:0 HOU

HOU 1:1 DAL

(against DAL: SEA 1-1-0 +1, HOU 0-1-1 -2) edge SEA

STL 1:2 SEA

SEA 2:0 STL

HOU 0:0 STL

STL 2:1 HOU CCC

HOU 1:0 STL CCC

(against STL: SEA 2-0-0 +3, HOU 1-1-1 0) edge SEA

LAG 1:0 SEA

SEA 0:0 LAG
SEA 3:1 LAG LC

LAG 2:1 HOU

(against LAG: SEA 1-1-1 +1, HOU 0-0-1 -1) edge SEA

DC 2:1 SEA

DC 1:4 HOU

(against DC: SEA 0-0-1 -1, HOU 1-0-0 +3) edge HOU

RSL 2:0 SEA

SEA 1:1 RSL

RSL 3:2 HOU

HOU 3:0 RSL LC

HOU 4:1 RSL

(against RSL: SEA 0-1-1 -2, HOU 2-0-1 +5) edge HOU

SEA 0:2 VAN

SEA 1:1 VAN

VAN 3:4 HOU

HOU 1:1 VAN

(against VAN: SEA 0-1-1 -2, HOU 1-1-0 +1) edge HOU

LAFC 2:1 SEA

SEA 0:3 LAFC

SEA 0:3 LAFC LC

SEA 0:1 LAFC USOC

LAFC 0:2 HOU

HOU 0:0 LAFC

(against LAFC: SEA 0-0-4 -8, HOU 1-1-0 +2) edge HOU

CLB 0:4 SEA* *CLB had ½ team and field player as goalie

HOU 0:1 CLB CCC

CLB 1:1 HOU CCC

(against CLB: SEA 1-0-0 +4, HOU 0-1-1 -1) Data tainted, comparison not possible

Know Thine Enemy

Dinamo Houston as they lined up in their 0:1 defeat against Austin at McKalla Place on 21 September.

GOALKEEPER

Steve Clark, 38

United States

Notable Clubs: Michigan Bucks (51/0), Honefoss (94/0), Columbus Crew SC (100/0), AC Horsens (11/0), DC United (5/0), Portland Timbers (74/0), Houston Dynamo (93/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €200,000

Notes: Played his university football for Oakland (58/0). Won a Norwegian second division title with Honefoss BK. Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo.

DEFENCE

Franco Escobar, 29

Argentina

Notable Clubs: Newell’s Old Boys (41/0), Atlanta United FC (63/2), Los Angeles FC (19/1), Houston Dynamo (49/4)

Estimated Transfer Value: €800,000

Notes: Developed by Newell’s Old Boys. Won an MLS Cup, US Open Cup, and Campeones Cup with Atlanta United. Won an MLS league title and MLS Cup double with Los Angeles FC. Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo.

Micael, 24

Brazil

Notable Clubs: Atletico Mineiro (2/0), Houston Dynamo (54/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €850,000

Notes: Full name: Micael dos Santos Silva. Developed by Inter de Limeira and Atletico Mineiro. Won a Brazillian league title, Copa do Brasil, and a Supercopa do Brasil with Atletico Mineiro. Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo.

Erik Sviatchenko, 32

Denmark (5/1)

Notable Clubs: Midtjylland (254/25), Celtic (42/1), Houston Dynamo (44/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Developed by Viborg FF, Houlkaer IF, Sondermarken, FK Viborg, and Midtjylland. Won three Danish Superliga titles and two Danish Cups with Midtjylland. Won two Scottish Premierships, a Scottish Cup, and two Scottish League Cups with Celtic. Named Danish Superliga Player of the Year 2019-20. Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo.

Griffin Dorsey, 25

United States

Notable Clubs: Toronto FC (2/0), Houston Dynamo (95/9)

Estimated Transfer Value: €650,000

Notes: Developed by Colorado Rush SC. Played his university football for Indiana (44/8). Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo.

MIDFIELD

Artur, 28

Brazil

Notable Clubs: Sao Paulo FC (4/0), Columbus Crew SC (138/2), Houston Dynamo (64/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3M

Notes: Full name: Jose Artur de Lima Junior. Developed by Bahia, Juventus-SC, and Sao Paulo. Won an MLS Cup and Campeones Cup with Columbus Crew SC. Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo.

Amine Bassi, 26

Morocco

Notable Clubs: AS Nancy (106/24), FC Metz (9/0), Barnsley (15/2), Houston Dynamo (56/13)

Estimated Transfer Value: €4.5M

Notes: Developed by US Bezons, Racing Club de France, Epinal, and AS Nancy. Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo.

Adalberto Carrasquilla, 25

Panama (59/2)

Notable Clubs: Tauro (86/4), Cartagena (46/1), Houston Dynamo (91/9)

Estimated Transfer Value: €4.5M

Notes: Won two Panamanian league titles with Tauro. Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo. Won CONCACAF Gold Cup Golden Ball 2023. Named to CONCACAF Gold Cup Best XI 2023. Named to CONCACAF Nations League Finals Best XI.

FORWARD

Ibrahim Aliyu, 22

Nigeria

Notable Clubs: Lokomotiva Zagreb (79/14), Houston Dynamo (54/9)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3M

Notes: Developed by Oasis FC, Footwork FC, and Lokomotiva Zagreb. Played for Nigeria U20s (4/0). Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo.

Ezequiel Ponce, 27

Argentina

Notable Clubs: Newell’s Old Boys (27/5), Granada (25/2), Lille (32/2), AEK Athens (56/31), Spartak Moscow (59/19), Elche (47/5), Houston Dynamo (7/3)

Estimated Transfer Value: €7M

Notes: Developed by Newell’s Old Boys.

Sebastian Kowalczyk, 26

Poland

Notable Clubs: Pogon Szczecin (169/19), Houston Dynamo (37/4)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Developed by Salos Szczecin and Pogon Szczecin. Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo (although he played no matches in that 2023 tournament).

Familiar Faces

Houston defender Daniel Steres was selected by the Sounders FC in the 2012 MLS Waiver Draft. Steres never played a match for the first-team.

Houston defender Ethan Bartlow played his university football for Washington.

Houston and Australia defender Brad Smith played with the Sounders FC (63/3) from 2018-2021.

Squads

Sounders FC from:

Frei, Thomas, Baker, Bell, Gomez Andrade, Hawkins, Nathan, Nouhou, Ragen, Alex, Atencio, Baker-Whiting, De la Vega, Kitahara, Leyva, Rusnak, Vargas, Morris, Cristian, Leo Chu, Minoungou, Musovski, Rodrigues, Rothrock, Ruidiaz, Teves.

Houston from:

Clark, Tarbell, Valdez, Arzu, Bartlow, Dorsey, Micael, Escobar, Sargeant, Schmitt, Smith, Steres, Sviatchenko, Bassi, Blessing, Caicedo, Carrasquilla, Artur, Gregus, Kowalczyk, Moreno, Raines, Sylla, Valverde, Aliyu, Gyamfi, Ferreira, Gaines, Ponce, Segal.

Injury List

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Sounders FC -

OUT: Joao Paulo (calf).

MATCHDAY DECISION: Leo Chu (illness), Ruidiaz (knee).

Houston -

OUT: Ennali (knee), Herrera (hamstring), Quinones (knee).

MATCHDAY DECISION: Blessing (head), Ponce (thigh).

Discipline

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Sounders FC: No players suspended. Nouhou out next match if booked.

Houston: No players suspended. Dorsey and Micael out next match if booked.

Fun Fact

Sounders FC Reserves will face Houston Dynamo Reserves on Sunday night. Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. PDT at Starfire. Go on lads! Get in!

SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC v. SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. San Jose Earthquakes, the legacy club with a massive identity crisis (Clash, Quakes, Dynamo, Quakes?), visit the Evergreen to face the Sounders FC in a midweek fixture. 

What: MLS league match, Seattle Sounders FC v. San Jose Earthquakes.

Where: Royal Brougham Park, Occidental Avenue, Seattle, Washington.

When: 7:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, Wednesday 18 September 2024 CE.

At Stake: Seeding for MLS Cup. Also Sounders haven’t beaten these since 2021. It would be a very bad look to lose to San Jose who currently are in 29th place, the rock-bottom of the MLS league table. Lastly, there’s also the Heritage Cup at stake, which is meaningful if you have any fucks to give about that.

Where to Watch: MLS Season Pass via Apple TV. Remember that for home matches, Apple TV makes the KJR simulcast available in the control layer. Or you could opt to not change the audio and hear the commentary from Mike Rogondino and Heath Pearce. Spanish speakers may prefer to hear the commentary of Sergio Ruiz and Walter Roque, which is also accessible through the control layer of Apple TV.

Where to Listen: KJR 950 AM and El Rey 1360 AM.

Yeh, I know it’s a midweek fixture and our supporters have lives and careers outside of watching football at the ground. That said, you’re not going to want to miss this one. If there’s anything Sounders FC supporters are sick and tired of, it’s not being able to beat San Jose in the league. With Sounders entering a patch of good form, perhaps this is the night where it all comes ‘round. It would be supremely satisfying to beat this lot like a drum. Add to that a rivalry that goes back to NASL days, and you’ve got yourselves a volatile cocktail of mutual dislike.

Round up your mates and get ye to the ground. If that’s beyond your means, you know the drill. Pubs and dwellings for stories and tellings, houses and flats for pints and cats, pie and chips for boats and ships. What can I say? It’s time to get loud again, and welcome our close, personal friends from the South Bay to Green Hell.

It’s Sounders midweek football, under the lights at Royal Brougham Park. GO ON YOU SOUNDERS!!! GET IN!!!

Before kick-off, please join me in the auld toast: “TO THE SEATTLE SOUNDERS FOOTBALL CLUB…AND VICTORY!!!”

We’ve not managed a win in the last six in the league to San Jose. I guarantee you that makes the Gaffer all sorts of salty.

The Good News

Sounders have recovered nicely from their defeat at Morrison Street and have won both their matches since then.

With the exceptions of Joao Paulo and Leo Chu, we are healthy to a man, and have got Nouhou back from his time with the Cameroon.

Sounders’ home record has recently improved to 12-5-4 in all competitions. The Quakes, in stark contrast, are utterly woeful on the road, with a 2-2-13 record away from their Coleman Avenue ground providing ample evidence.

With Vargas (19 years old), Minoungou (22), Baker-Whiting (19), and De La Vega (23) getting meaningful minutes on Sunday, the Sounders showed a commitment to youth development. That is good to see, and I commend the coaching staff for it.

With Jack Skahan suspended and Cade Cowell sold to the Chivas, that’s two less good footballers we have to face midweek.

The Bad News

We haven’t beaten this lot in the league since a 0:1 victory at Coleman Avenue on 12 May 2021. Also, the Quakes have had an extra day of rest, whilst Sounders are on a two-day turn-around.

Morris is struggling with his finishing. Many chances on Sunday went begging. If this continues, we need another option at centre-forward/false-9.

When we last played San Jose on 23 March, Sounders overcame a 2:0 deficit at Coleman Avenue, equalising with late goals from Ruidiaz and Musovski, only for our defence to buckle one minute after Musovski’s equaliser, conceding Ebobisse’s winner on 82 minutes.

The main goal threats from San Jose are Pellegrino, who leads the line with six goals, followed by Ebobisse, Espinoza, and Lopez with four goals each. Espinoza is also the primary playmaker, leading the Quakes with 11 assists.

Victor Rivas will be the Referee for this match. The last Sounders match he presided over was our 1:1 draw against Vancouver on 18 May at Royal Brougham Park. To say the officiating was controversial would be a gross understatement. Jordan Morris’ 9th minute goal was overshadowed by four bookings handed out to Sounders players —  Vargas, Joao Paulo, and Nouhou was twice-booked for a sending-off. In addition, Scotland international Ryan Gauld hit a late equaliser in stoppage-time (95’). Laborda was the only player booked for the ‘Caps. At the time it felt super match-fixy, but it’s also possible that Rivas just had a bad match as Ref. You be the judge.

The Side I Would Select

It’s all about who played the full match on Sunday. For me, if they’re older players or nursing minor injuries, they need to not play two matches in four days’ time.

Rationale:

Frei played well on Sunday, but maybe an extra rest would be good, as the end of the league schedule is a bit compressed, with Sounders playing Houston, at Vancouver, and at Colorado over a period of seven days. As Nouhou is just returning and his last match with Cameroon was on 10 September, he should be fresh and ready to play. Bell, a Jamaica international, has been excellent this season when called upon and should spell Gomez Andrade to let the 31-year old Colombian centre-half rest his legs a bit. Rusnak could also use a respite, and Atencio should deputise quite well in his place. Ruidiaz has only been in the team 14 times this season, and should have fresh legs. In addition, Raul is a menace to San Jose, having hit nine goals against them over 13 matches during his time in Seattle. Everyone else in this list is either young enough to play two in a row, or a Roldan. The Gaffer claims the Roldan brothers are particularly durable and are capable of playing back to back matches in a short space of time.

GK     Thomas

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Bell

RB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Atencio

RF     De La Vega

CF     Ruidiaz

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

This seems like a safe bet.

GK     Frei

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Gomez Andrade

RB    Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     Minoungou

CF     Morris

Intangibles

The Referee for Wednesday night’s match will be Victor Rivas.

Sounders FC record in matches where Rivas is ref: 2-2-1

San Jose record in matches where Rivas is ref: 4-2-3

General notes on personnel

San Jose transfers IN:

Judd (Los Angeles Galaxy) €182,000

Morales (New York City FC) free

Thompson - re-signed

Skahan - re-signed

Yarbrough (Colorado Rapids) free

Vitor Costa (CS Maritimo) unknown fee

Wilson (Vizela) free

Bieganski (Wisla Krakow) loan

Pellegrino (Bodo Glimt) €260,000

Ricketts - draft

Hernan Lopez (Godoy Cruz) €5.5M

Jackson (MLS Pool) free

San Jose transfers OUT:

Agren (IK Brage) free

Cilley (St. Louis City SC2) free

Judson (Avai FC) free

Monteiro (Gaziantep FK) free

Nathan (Seattle Sounders FC)

Tingey (Loudoun United) free

Trauco (Criciuma EC) free

Mensah (New England Revolution) free

Akinola (Toronto FC) end of loan

Hoppe (Middlesbrough FC) end of loan

Cowell (CD Guadalajara) €3.65M

Bieganski (Wisla Krakow) loan terminated

Comparison against common opponents

DAL 0:0 SEA

SEA 3:2 DAL

DAL 2:1 SJ

(against DAL: SEA 1-1-0 +1, SJ 0-0-1 -1) edge SEA

LAG 1:0 SEA

SEA 0:0 LAG

SEA 3:1 LAG LC

SJ 1:3 LAG

LAG 4:3 SJ

SJ 0:3 LAG

SJ 1:2 LAG LC

(against LAG: SEA 1-1-1 +1, SJ 0-0-4 -7) edge SEA

SEA 0:2 VAN

SEA 1:1 VAN

SJ 0:2 VAN

VAN 2:0 SJ

(against VAN: SEA 0-1-1 -2, SJ 0-0-2 -4) edge SEA

SKC 2:1 SEA

SEA 2:0 SKC

SKC 2:1 SJ

SJ 1:2 SKC

(against SKC: SEA 1-0-1 +1, SJ 0-0-2 -2) edge SEA

HOU 2:2 SEA

HOU 2:1 SJ

SJ 0:1 HOU

(against HOU: SEA 0-1-0 0, SJ 0-0-2 -2) edge SEA

SEA 0:0 ATX
ATX 0:1 SEA

ATX 4:3 SJ

SJ 1:1 ATX

(against ATX: SEA 1-1-0 +1, SJ 0-1-1 -1) edge SEA

SEA 1:1 COL

SJ 0:3 COL

COL 2:3 SJ

(against COL: 0-1-0 0, SJ 1-0-1 -2) even

LAFC 2:1 SEA

SEA 0:3 LAFC

SEA 0:3 LAFC LC

SEA 0:1 LAFC USOC

SJ 3:1 LAFC

LAFC 6:2 SJ

LAFC 4:1 SJ LC

(against LAFC: SEA 0-0-4 -8, SJ 1-0-2 -5) edge SJ

POR 1:2 SEA

POR 1:0 SEA

POR 4:2 SJ

SJ 1:2 POR

(against POR: SEA 1-0-1 0, SJ 0-0-2 -3) edge SEA

STL 1:2 SEA

SEA 2:0 STL

STL 2:0 SJ

(against STL: SEA 2-0-0 +3, SJ 0-0-1 -2) edge SEA

SEA 2:1 CHI

SJ 1:0 CHI

(against CHI: SEA 1-0-0 +1, SJ 1-0-0 +1) even

SEA 2:0 MIN

SEA 2:0 MIN LC
MIN 2:3 SEA

MIN 2:0 SJ

SJ 1:2 MIN

(against MIN: SEA 3-0-0 +5, SJ 0-0-2 -3) edge SEA

RSL 2:0 SEA

SEA 1:1 RSL

RSL 0:2 SJ

(against RSL: SEA 0-1-1 0, SJ 1-0-0 +2) edge SJ

SAC 1:2 SEA USOC

SAC 4:3 SJ USOC

(against SAC: SEA 1-0-0 +1, SJ 0-0-1 -1) edge SEA

SEA 1:3 NCX LC

SJ 5:0 NCX LC

(against NCX: SEA 0-0-1 -2, SJ 1-0-0 +5) edge SJ

Know Thine Enemy

San Jose as they lined up in their 2:0 defeat at Vancouver on 14 September.

GOALKEEPER

Daniel, 30

Brazil

Notable Clubs: Internacional (68/0), San Jose Earthquakes (29/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Full name: Daniel de Sousa Britto. Developed by Uniao Rondonopolis and Internacional.

DEFENCE

Paul Marie, 29

France

Notable Clubs: San Jose Earthquakes (132/6)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Developed by UA Saint-Sever, GRF Severin, Grab Sourdin, Avranches, and Caen. Played his university football for Newberry (16/4, NCAA II) and Florida International (52/14).

Tanner Beason, 27

United States

Notable Clubs: San Jose Earthquakes (107/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1M

Notes: Developed by North Carolina Fusion. Played his university football for Stanford (81/20).

Rodrigues, 26

Brazil

Notable Clubs: ABC (40/2), Gremio (54/0), San Jose Earthquakes (67/4)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Full name: Antonio Josenildo Rodrigues de Oliveira. Developed by ABC and Cruzeiro.

Carlos Akapo, 31

Equatorial Guinea (39/2)

Notable Clubs: Huracan (24/0), Numancia (29/0), Huesca (61/0), Cadiz (45/1), San Jose Earthquakes (43/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €800,000

Notes: Developed by Kelme, Hercules, Elche, and Huracan.

Benji Kikanovic, 24

United States

Notable Clubs: San Jose Earthquakes (95/14)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.8M

Notes: Developed by Placer United. Played his university football for Sacramento State (34/9).

MIDFIELD

Jackson Yueill, 27

United States (16/0)

Notable Clubs: San Jose Earthquakes (204/12)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3M

Notes: Played his university football for UCLA (40/9). Developed by Minnesota Thunder. Won CONCACAF Gold Cup and CONCACAF Nations League with United States.

Niko Tsakiris, 19

United States

Notable Clubs: San Jose Earthquakes (44/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.5M

Notes: Developed by De Anza Force, IMG Academy, and San Jose Earthquakes. Has played at youth levels for United States (9/4). Won a CONCACAF U-20 Championship. Won a CONCACAF U-20 Golden Ball in 2024.

FORWARD

Hernan Lopez, 24

Argentina

Notable Clubs: River Plate (1/1), Central Cordoba SdE (29/4), Godoy Cruz (46/7), San Jose Earthquakes (18/4)

Estimated Transfer Value: €5.5M

Notes: Developed by Pacifico Villa del Parque, Juventud de Devoto, Agronomia, Cultural de Tapiales, Argentinos Juniors, and River Plate.

Preston Judd, 25

United States

Notable Clubs: Los Angeles Galaxy (17/3), San Jose Earthquakes (25/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €400,000

Notes: Developed by Las Vegas Academy. Played his university football for California Baptist (39/22) and Denver (19/7).

Cristian Espinoza, 29

Argentina

Notable Clubs: Huracan (90/9), Alaves (6/0), Valladolid (10/0), Boca Juniors (15/2), San Jose Earthquakes (181/32)

Estimated Transfer Value: €6M

Notes: Developed by Huracan. Won an Argentine league title with Boca Juniors. Won an Argentinian Cup with Huracan. Won an Argentinian Supercopa with Huracan.

Familiar Faces

San Jose Manager Ian Russell is a Seattle native and played for the Sounders (38/16) from 1998-99. Russell also played for the University of Washington.

Squads

Sounders FC from:

Frei, Thomas, Baker, Bell, Gomez Andrade, Hawkins, Nathan, Nouhou, Ragen, Alex, Atencio, Baker-Whiting, De la Vega, Kitahara, Leyva, Rusnak, Vargas, Morris, Cristian, Minoungou, Musovski, Rodrigues, Rothrock, Ruidiaz, Teves.

San Jose from:

Yarbrough, Daniel, Thompson, Marie, Walls, Beason, Akapo, Rodrigues, Munie, Verhoeven, Gruezo, Espinoza, Yueill, Morales, Tsakiris, Medina, Mendoza, Lopez, Ebobisse, Bouda, Judd, Pellegrino.

Injury List

Sounders FC -

OUT: Joao Paulo (calf), Leo Chu (knee).

MATCHDAY DECISION: none.

San Jose -

OUT: Baldisimo (lower body, we’ll say corns), Vitor Costa (lower body, we’ll say syphillis), Kikanovic (lower body, we’ll say ingrown pubic hairs), Marcinkowski (lower body, we’ll say excessive use of the Thigh-Master), Richmond (lower body, we’ll say dislocated penis), Ricketts (lower body, we’ll say…well…ricketts), Wilson (lower body, we’ll say bruised anus).

MATCHDAY DECISION: Judd (upper body, we’ll say abraded left nipple).

Discipline

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Sounders FC: No players suspended. Nouhou out next match if booked.

San Jose: Skahan is suspended for accumulated bookings.

Fun Fact

The only active Sounders players that have scored on San Jose in the league are Ruidiaz (9 goals), Cristian Roldan (5 goals), Jordan Morris (5 goals), Danny Musovski (1 goal), and Joao Paulo (1 goal).