SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC v. HOUSTON DYNAMO - MLS CUP ROUND OF 16 - GAME 1 - ROYAL BROUGHAM PARK, OCCIDENTAL AVENUE, SEATTLE, WASHINGTON

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. With the MLS season over, and Sounders FC placing 7th in the league championship, the MLS Cup tournament is now at hand. Houston travel the 900,000,000 light years from Planet Texas, transformed from the lawless American Frontier to an abject maze of cruel legality that has made everyone’s lives much less than they were, to The Evergreen, where they will face our Boys in Green. Strap in and brace for impact.

What: MLS Cup Round of 16 - Game 1, Seattle Sounders FC v. Houston Dynamo.

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

When: 6:00 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, Monday 28 October 2024 CE.

At Stake: At the very least, with a victory, maintaining the home field advantage the club worked so hard to earn. At worst, with a defeat, needing to win the last two games of the cup tie away then home to advance. Best of three was a terrible idea. What was MLS thinking?

Where to Watch: Apple TV, Fox Sports 1, and Fox Deportes.

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

Theres’ not much margin for error now. That’s the way that cup football was meant to be. Inter Miami may have won the league, but Sounders FC has a chance to contest MLS Cup, and that’s not nothin’.

If you’re not sick or waiting on your vaccine to kick in, you should get yourself to the ground if you have the time and the means. Failing this, of course, it’s pubs and dwellings for stories and tellings, houses and flats for pints and cats, and pie and chips for boats and ships.

Support is vital. This is cup football. Look after one another. Be as loud as you can be. Chuff up the lads and they will reward us with victory. Batten the hatches as Seattle get to see Monday night football for the first time this year. GO ON YOU SOUNDERS!!! GET IN!!! SOUNDERS FOR THE CUP!!!

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

Strike true, Jordo. Strike true.

The Good News

We are undefeated against the Houston this season, with a draw and victory to show for our troubles. If the statistics hold, there’s every reason to think that we will be victorious.

Atencio and Baker are in concussion protocol but the rest of the squad are healthy. That’s a lot of talent to choose from. If all goes by the numbers we should be well-matched with Houston.

The danger men for the Sounders are the same as it’s been all season. Morris leads the line with 13 goals, with Rusnak next with 10, and Ruidiaz third with eight. Rusnak has the most assists in the squad with 13, Vargas is next with seven, and Morris and Cristian are tied for third with five each.

Royal Brougham Park has been a fortress for much of this season. Our supporters are matchless which helps makes our home ground a miserable place for the visiting side to play. Sounders FC have a record of 12-8-5 in all competitions this season at home, whilst for Houston, road trips are a bit of a mixed bag (8-3-8) with the same number of wins as losses.

The Bad News

Houston has played better than we have against teams we have struggled with. They have produced better results against Kansas City, Portland, Colorado, San Jose, DC United, Salt Lake, and LAFC. Houston were undefeated against LAFC with a win and a draw, whereas we were defeated in all four of our matches with a -8 goal difference.

The difference between us and the Houston is marginal in both goal scoring (Seattle 0.18 more goals/match) and in defence (Seattle 0.08 less goals conceded/match) in all competitions. For all our efforts to earn points in the league, our reward will be statistically looking in the mirror against our current opponent.

Vargas is suspended and Atencio is likely not going to be available. Vargas is a critical contributor to the side, and if Atencio is out, it makes our bench not as deep as it could be.

The danger men for Houston are Aliyu with six goals; next are Blessing, Ferreira, and Ponce with five goals each. Bassi leads the squad in assists with eight; next is Carrasquilla with seven, and Aliyu with five.

Referee will be Ted “Uncle Ted” Unkel. Saint Brigid preserve us.

If the Sounders FC are to hoist any silverware in 2024, then the MLS Cup tournament is the last chance.

The Side I Would Select

It’s Cup football now. There’s no resting players for later. Here’s my selection for the first game in our cup tie with Houston.

GK     Frei

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Gomez Andrade

RB     Alex

LDM    Joao Paulo

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     de la Vega

CF     Morris

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

I would be shocked if these players weren’t in the team.

GK     Frei

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Gomez Andrade

RB     Alex

LDM    Joao Paulo

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     de la Vega

CF     Morris

Intangibles

The Referee for Game one of our MLS Cup tie against Houston will be Ted Unkel.

Sounders FC record with Unkel as Ref: 8-1-6

Houston record with Unkel as Ref: 1-3-9

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) undisclosed fee (This transfer doesn’t happen until 1 July)

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

SEA 1:1 POR

HOU 1:0 POR

POR 2:2 HOU

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

SEA 1:1 COL

COL 0:1 SEA

COL 0:1 HOU

HOU 3:1 COL

(against COL: SEA 1-1-0 +1, 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

STL 3:0 HOU

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

LAG 1:0 SEA

SEA 0:0 LAG
SEA 3:1 LAG LC

LAG 2:1 HOU

HOU 2:1 LAG

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

VAN 3:4 HOU

HOU 1:1 VAN

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

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

SEA 2:0 NE

HOU 2:1 NE

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

Know Thine Enemy

Dinamo Houston as they lined up against LA Galaxy on 19 October in their 2:1 victory at Walker Street.

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 (97/0)

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

Daniel Steres, 33

United States

Notable Clubs: Ventura County Fusion (21/1), Wilmington Hammerheads (25/7), LA Galaxy (140/8), Houston Dynamo (65/6)

Estimated Transfer Value: €300,000

Notes: Played his university football for San Diego State (72/13).

Micael, 24

Brazil

Notable Clubs: Atletico Mineiro (2/0), Houston Dynamo (57/1)

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, 33

Denmark (5/1)

Notable Clubs: Midtjylland (254/25), Celtic (42/1), Houston Dynamo (48/1)

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 (98/9)

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 (68/2)

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 (59/13)

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.

Hector Herrera, 34

Mexico (105/10)

Notable Clubs: Pachuca (52/2), Porto (164/26), Atletico Madrid (58/0), Houston Dynamo (62/5)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2M

Notes: Developed by Pachuca, Cuautla, and Tampico Madero. Won a Portuguese league title and two Supertacas with Porto. Won a La Liga title with Atletico Madrid.  Won a US Open Cup with Houston Dynamo. Won CONCACAF Gold Cup and CONCACAF Cup with Mexico. Twice-named to Portuguese league Team of the Year. Named to CONCACAF Best XI three times. Named to CONCACAF Nations League Finals Best XI. Won CONCACAF Cup Golden Ball. Named to CONCACAF Gold Cup Best XI. Named to MLS Best XI 2023.

FORWARD

Ibrahim Aliyu, 22

Nigeria

Notable Clubs: Lokomotiva Zagreb (79/14), Houston Dynamo (58/9)

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 (10/5)

Estimated Transfer Value: €7M

Notes: Developed by Newell’s Old Boys.

Adalberto Carrasquilla, 25

Panama (59/2)

Notable Clubs: Tauro (86/4), Cartagena (46/1), Houston Dynamo (95/9)

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.

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, Joao Paulo, Kitahara, Leyva, Rusnak, Morris, Cristian, Leo Chu, Minoungou, Musovski, Rodrigues, Rothrock, Ruidiaz, Teves.

Houston from:

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

Injury List

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Sounders FC -

OUT: none.

MATCHDAY DECISION: Atencio (concussion protocol), Baker (concussion protocol).

Houston -

OUT: Ennali (knee), Quinones (knees), Smith (thigh).

MATCHDAY DECISION: none.

Discipline

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Sounders FC: Vargas is suspended for being sent off in his last league match against Portland.

Houston: No players suspended. Godoy has been fined for accumulated bookings.

Fun Fact

According to a Sounders FC press release, “All Washington State Ferries sailing into and out of Colman Dock on Bainbridge and Bremerton routes are flying Sounders FC flags on matchday”.