COLORADO RAPIDS v. SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. Sounders FC head up to Commerce City in the Rocky Mountains for a mile-high Saturday night tête-à-tête with Colorado Rapids.

What: MLS league match, Colorado Rapids v. Seattle Sounders FC.

Where: Victory Way, Commerce City, Colorado.

When: 6:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, Saturday 26 April 2025 CE.

At Stake: Points in the league. Sounders FC currently find themselves 16th in the league table on 12 points, due to the two-match winning streak that we’re on. A victory would likely put us within shouting distance of the league’s top 10 clubs.

Where to Watch: MLS Season Pass via Apple TV and Apple TV+.

Where to Listen: KJR 93.3 FM and El Rey 1360 AM.

Another trip for a high-altitude game, same old strategy for dealing with it. You’re breathing just the same, but the body is getting less oxygen. Yeah…that’s going to be a problem in the area of professional athletics. That said, support is even more vital in the rarefied air of Commerce City.

Although Rapids haven’t given us as much trouble over the years as their neighbours to the north have, they’re off to a good start this season, and have fortified themselves even further with their transfer spend. This includes their purchase of former Sounders FC and United States youth international holding midfielder Josh Atencio. Clearly, Colorado Rapids know a quality footballer when they see one.

If you’re heading out to the match, look after each other and tie your scarves proper. Behave yourselves outside the ground, be as loud as humanly possible once things get underway. If you are hame in The Evergreen, link it up with your mates in the places where we meet.

It’s league football under the Saturday night lights at Victory Way. GO ON YOU SOUNDERS!!! GET IN!!!

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

Moose is back to scoring goals, but will Schmetzer attempt to fix the thing

not broken and have Morris in his place? (Photo Credit: Seattle Times)

The Good News

We’re scoring goals again. We’re shutting out our opposition the last two matches, instead of getting shut out ourselves. Perhaps we’re turning a corner into a sustained patch of good form.

Our form over the last five matches is slightly better, with Sounders taking eight points out of the last 15 (2-2-1), and our opponents taking seven points out of the last 15 (2-1-2).

Although having Ragen out with his hamstring issue is less than ideal, and with Arriola lost for the season, Sounders seem to be managing with their depth options, such as Kent, Minoungou, Bell, and Kim.

The match last Sat versus Nashville, and the five goals we hit past LAFC earlier this season, have temporarily restored my faith in our ability to score goals and control the play. We’re using the width of the pitch more sensibly, playing faster with both ball movement and player movement, and most importantly, finishing better.

Ryan Kent got his debut last Sat, coming on as a substitute and seemed to look the part. Is he as good or better than Arriola? This remains to be seen. However, I am encouraged by Kent’s maiden effort. Let’s hope Jose Mourinho and Fenerbahce grossly undervalued him.

The Bad News

In seven away matches, Sounders have only won at Dallas and Antigua FC (2-1-4). This is a problem. Conversely: Colorado has only lost once in five home matches in all competitions (3-1-1).

The difference between the two clubs in terms of average goals scored and conceded is only marginally different. Sounders are scoring 0.10 more goals per match and conceding only 0.05 less goals per match. So if you’re going by the numbers, it’s a crap-shoot.

The sale of Josh Atencio to Colorado is the latest in an example of our young talent leaving the club because they can’t get in the team, regardless of their commitment to training or the quality of their skills. The Yanks national team programme rates our youngers (and in the case of Obed Vargas, Mexico). Other clubs rate our youngers. Why can’t they get in the team? Our youngers leave our club because they don’t get playing time. This damages the club’s future as well as its reputation in terms of recruitment for our academy. If we were spending money for the type of players that would be dominant in MLS and that was the plan, such as Dempsey, Obafemi Martins, Ruidiaz, or Lodeiro, that would make sense. With the club’s recent shift to transfer austerity, it makes no sense from either a football point of view or a business one that we drive away our youngers, often not getting a transfer fee in return for our part in developing them. Our core is ageing and we haven’t seen a trophy since 2022. If our plan isn’t developing our youngers into the senior squad with meaningful appearances and minutes, and it isn’t buying top-level talent from other clubs, then what exactly is the plan at Longacres?

Sounders FC have struggled to get results at altitude over the years. Our all-time record in the league at Salt Lake and Colorado is bad enough at 10-7-18, or a winning percentage of .286. Our all-time record in the league at Colorado and Salt Lake since Brian Schmetzer took over is far more dismal at 3-5-9, a winning percentage of .176.

The Side I Would Select

I’d select players with the highest combination of youth and skill for playing at altitude.

Rationale: Stamina is pretty important at altitude so I’d go with as many younger players as possible. Bell is a Jamaican international and Hawkins is a United States youth international, so there’s plenty of quality there. Kossa-Rienzi has proven his worth so far at right-back, with Alex Roldan struggling to get back in the team. Leyva is also a United States youth international, so again plenty of quality. Vargas has earned his first senior cap for Mexico and has been a mainstay in the Sounders team for quite some time now. Ferreira over Rusnak because there’s no loss in quality and Jesus is six years younger. De la Vega would be the right-forward anyway and is 21 years-old. Musovski is scoring goals, although it would be foolish to not even consider Yu Tsukanome and Osaze De Rosario who are both scoring hatfuls of goals for the reserves. Older veterans (Morris, Rusnak, Gomez Andrade, Kim, Joao Paulo, Cristian, Kent, and Alex) can come off the bench if need be after half-time or after the hour mark.

GK     Thomas

LB     Nouhou

RCH    Bell

LCH    Hawkins

RB     Kossa-Rienzi

LDM    Vargas

RDM    Leyva

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Ferreira

RF     de la Vega

CF       Musovski

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

I’d expect the same team we saw in the win over Nashville in the 5-2-3 shape, with the exception of Musovski. I’d imagine that the Gaffer will drop Musovski, despite the fact he’s scoring goals, in favour of Morris. To be fair, Morris is the Sounders FC all-time club leader in goals scored in all competitions.

GK     Frei

LB     Rothrock

LCH    Nouhou

CH      Kim

RCH    Gomez Andrade

RB     Kossa-Rienzi

LDM    Vargas

RDM    Cristian

LF     Ferreira

CF     Morris

RF     de la Vega

Intangibles

Investment.

Colorado Rapids 2025 transfer spend so far: €8.17M

Seattle Sounders FC 2025 transfer spend so far: €1.45M

Altitude.

Still a factor…because science. We still use the “arrive as late as possible for the match” strategy. Refer to the Bad News section of this report to see the results of this strategy.

Getting one over on your old mates?

Josh Atencio will probably be motivated to stick it to his old mates. Josh has played in eight league matches of Colorado’s nine. He’s been in the team every time. When Josh was with us, he struggled to get into the team. You’d have to ask how a United States youth international was struggling to find minutes in a Sounders squad with an ageing core. Still wondering. Josh was sold to Colorado in February for €1.25M, one of the few times that the Sounders have made a transfer fee when our young talent leaves because they can’t get in the team.

Officiating.

The Referee for Saturday’s match will be Alexis Da Silva.

Colorado record with Da Silva as Ref: 2-0-0

Sounders FC record with Da Silva as Ref: 1-1-0

The streak.

Sounders have won two on the trot, including a 1:0 away victory at the Dallas and our first ever goals scored against Nashville last Sat, securing a 3:0 win. Have we truly turned the corner and unlocked the potential of our squad?

General notes on personnel

Colorado transfers IN:

Awaziem (FC Cincinnati) €475,000

Murphy (FC Cincinnati) €475,000

Alex Harris - draft

Bassett - re-signed

Edwards - re-signed

Fadal (Valencia) free

Ku-DiPietro (DC United) €1.1M

Atencio (Seattle Sounders FC) €1.25M

Jamison (Orange County SC) €365,000

Hansen - reserves

Colorado transfers OUT:

Abubakar (FC Dallas) free

Anderson (Hartford Athletic) free

Bandre (Tampa Bay Rowdies) free

Remi Cabral (Phoenix Rising) free

Lewis (Barnsley) free

Loffelsend (San Diego FC) expansion draft

Navarro (Talleres) €1.75M

Jones (Las Vegas Lights FC) loan

Chacon (Alajuelense) free

Fernandez (Portland Timbers) up to €220,000

Comparison against common opponents

COL 2:1 LAFC CCC

LAFC 1:0 COL CCC

SEA 5:2 LAFC

(against LAFC: COL 1-0-1 0, SEA 1-0-0 +3) edge SEA

STL 0:0 COL

STL 1:0 SEA

(against STL: COL 0-1-0 0, SEA 0-0-1 -1) marginal edge COL

COL 3:3 DAL

DAL 0:1 SEA

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

SJ 1:2 COL

SJ 1:1 SEA

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

COL 2:0 CLT

SEA 2:2 CLT

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

COL 3:2 SD

SD 3:0 SEA

(against SD: COL 1-0-0 +1, SEA 0-0-1 -3) decisive edge COL

HOU 2:2 COL

SEA 0:0 HOU

(against HOU: COL 0-1-0 0, SEA 0-1-0 0) even

Know Thine Enemy

Colorado as they lined up in their 2:2 draw against Houston at the Walker Street ground on 19 April. 

GOALKEEPER

Zack Steffen, 30

United States (30/0)

Notable Clubs: Columbus Crew (76/0), Pittsburgh Riverhounds (9/0), Manchester City (2/0), Fortuna Dusseldorf (17/0), Middlesbrough (42/0), Colorado Rapids (41/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2M

Notes: Developed by West Chester United, FC Delco, and Philadelphia Union. Played his university football for Maryland (48/0). Won two English Premier League titles and one English League Cup with Manchester City. Won a CONCACAF Nations League with United States. Named MLS Goalkeeper of the Year 2018. Named to MLS Best XI 2018. Named 2024 Leagues Cup Best Goalkeeper.

DEFENCE

Sam Vines, 25

United States (9/1)

Notable Clubs: Colorado Rapids (83/3), Royal Antwerp (44/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.5M

Notes: Developed by Pride SC and Colorado Rapids. Won a Belgian Pro League title, Belgian Cup, and Belgian Super Cup with Royal Antwerp. Won a CONCACAF Gold Cup with United States.

Andreas Maxso, 31

Denmark (2/0)

Notable Clubs: FC Nordsjaelland (108/3), Osmanlispor (20/1), FC Zurich (28/0), Brondby IF (96/5), Colorado Rapids (74/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.8M

Notes: Developed by Brondby IF and FC Nordsjaelland. Won a Danish Superliga title with Brondby.

Chidozie Awaziem, 28

Nigeria (33/1)

Notable Clubs: Porto (10/0), Nantes (22/1), Rizespor (16/0), Leganes (26/0), Boavista (54/0), Alanyaspor (18/1), Hajduk Split (28/5), FC Cincinnati (7/0), Colorado Rapids (9/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2M

Notes: Developed by El-Kanemi Warriors and Porto. Won a Supertaca with Porto. Won a Croatian Cup with Hajduk Split.

Reggie Cannon, 26

United States (28/1)

Notable Clubs: FC Dallas (67/2), Boavista (82/0), Queens Park Rangers (21/0), Colorado Rapids (12/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.5M

Notes: Developed by FC Dallas. Played his university football for UCLA (20/0). Won a CONCACAF Gold Cup and a CONCACAF Nations League with United States.

MIDFIELD

Djordje Mihailovic, 26

United States (11/3)

Notable Clubs: Chicago Fire (73/7), CF Montreal (61/13), AZ Alkmaar (23/1), Colorado Rapids (38/15)

Estimated Transfer Value: €4M

Notes: Developed by Chicago Blast and Chicago Fire. Won a Canadian Championship with CF Montreal. Son of former Washington Diplomats midfielder Aleks Mihailovic.

Oliver Larraz, 23

United States

Notable Clubs: Colorado Rapids (48/1), San Diego Loyal (12/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €800,000

Notes: Developed by Colorado Rapids and MSV Duisburg.

Josh Atencio, 23

United States (1/0)

Notable Clubs: Seattle Sounders FC (91/1), Colorado Rapids (8/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.5M

Notes: Developed by Seattle Sounders FC. Has played for the United States at youth levels (13/0).

Cole Bassett, 23

United States (1/1)

Notable Clubs: Colorado Rapids (136/29), Feyenoord (8/0), Fortuna Sittard (10/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3.5M

Notes: Developed by Colorado Rush and Colorado Rapids. Played for United States at youth levels (4/2).

FORWARD

Darren Yapi, 20

United States

Notable Clubs: Colorado Rapids (67/3)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.5M

Notes: Developed by Colorado Rapids. Has played for United States at youth levels (9/0).

Rafael Navarro, 25

Brazil

Notable Clubs: Botafogo (62/18), Palmeiras (47/2), Colorado Rapids (53/21)

Estimated Transfer Value: €5M

Notes: Full name: Rafael Navarro Leal. Developed by Fluminense and Atletico Goianiense. Won a Brazilian Serie B title with Botafogo. Won a Recopa Sudamericana, two Brazilian Serie A titles and a Supercopa do Brasil with Palmeiras.

Familiar Faces

Colorado midfielder Josh Atencio played for Seattle Sounders FC (91/1) from 2020-2024.

Colorado coach Chris Little was a coach at Seattle Sounders FC Academy from 2017-2018 and with Seattle Sounders FC Reserves from 2019-2020. He managed several Sounders FC Academy teams to national championships.

Squads

Colorado from:

Hansen, Rosenberry, Cannon, Maxso, Awaziem, Murphy, Edwards, Jones, Travis, Larraz, Mihailovic, Atencio, Frederick, Fadal, Sam Bassett, Ronan, Ku-DiPietro, Cole Bassett, Amadou, Navarro, Calvin Harris, Alex Harris, Stewart-Baynes, Yapi, Cabral, Jamison.

Sounders FC from:

Frei, Thomas, Castro, Baker, Baker-Whiting, Bell, Burney, Gomez Andrade, Hawkins, Kim, Kossa-Rienzi, Nouhou, Alex, Sousa, Joao Paulo, Leyva, Cristian, Rusnak, Vargas, de la Vega, Ferreira, Kent, Minoungou, Morris, Musovski, Rothrock.

Injury List

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Colorado -

OUT: Beaudry (ankle), Fadal (knee), Vines (groin).

MATCHDAY DECISION: none.

Sounders FC -

OUT: Ragen (hamstring), Arriola (knee).

MATCHDAY DECISION: none.

Discipline

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Colorado: Steffen is suspended this match for being booked twice in one match.

Sounders FC: No players suspended.

Fun Fact

Sounders FC Reserves had themselves a time in their midweek fixture at Kansas City Reserves. Down an early goal in the first half, our lads picked themselves up to score four goals before the end of the half on the way to a 1:4 victory at Swope Park, the last two goals being scored in a span of six minutes. Osaze De Rosario scored a brace (giving him seven goals, all scored in the league), with Yu Tsukanome (seven goals in all competitions) and newboy Charles Dodzi (his first goal for us) each adding a goal, with 17 year-old goalkeeper Mohammed Shour directing the defence. Senior squad players Reed Baker-Whiting, Travian Sousa, and Georgi Minoungou were in the team as well. WELL DONE LADS!!!

Sounders FC Reserves in the team:

Shour, Baker-Whiting, Yamada, Katsaros, Sousa, Dodzi, Kingston, Minoungou, Tsukanome, Gomez, De Rosario.

Substitutes:

Helleren, Lopez, Robles, Diaw, Pedder, Khoury, Alvarez.