SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC v. AUSTIN FC

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. The second half of the MLS season is underway, as our beloved Sounders FC host Austin on a Saturday night.

What: MLS league match, Seattle Sounders FC v. Austin FC.

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

When: 7:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, Saturday 28 June 2025 CE.

At Stake: Staving off mediocrity. Sounders are in 15th place in the league table, dead mid-table. If we’re better than a mid-table club in this league, we had better start showing it. A victory could see Sounders leap as high as 11th place, although it would require LAFC (VAN), SJ (LAG), NYC (@MTL), and NYRB (MIN) to drop points to get us there.

Where to Watch: MLS Season Pass via Apple TV.

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

Back to league football, fam. Over the years we’ve done well against Austin (4-3-1). Looks like it’s going to be a bit chilly at night (55ºF) with rain possible, so pack a jumper or a jacket if you’re going to the ground.

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

With all our centre-halves either injured or suspended,

who’s lining up next to Ragen at right-centre-half?

The Good News

We’re nowhere close to being terrible.

In the eight times we’ve played Austin in the league, we have only lost once (4-3-1).

Austin have not travelled well this season, with a 3-1-5 record on the road.

Austin have scored the fewest league goals of any MLS club this season (15).

The Bad News

We’re nowhere close to being dominant.

The club seems rudderless. There is no direction or plan that Sounders are working towards that I can discern based on available information. Sounders aren’t buying veteran players expected to make an immediate impact. The players coming through our academy system and reserve team are not getting meaningful minutes at the senior squad level as our core continues to age. To compound the problem, none of our youngers are going out on loan that have their progress currently blocked by players in our senior squad. Our young players often leave the club, likely because they’ve been frozen out of the team, because our Manager thinks they “aren’t ready” or haven’t “earned” a place in the team. When they do leave the club it’s often on a free transfer. This means we recoup almost none of the resources spent developing our youngers. We’ve watched 16 clubs join the league since we did in 2009. Nine of those clubs have brand new stadia, whilst we continue to share with the NFL. We talk big about contending for trophies, yet we haven’t managed to even win our regional cup (Cascadia Cup) since 2021. Sounders haven’t won the league since the one time they did, in 2014. Sounders haven’t won the US Open Cup, and lately not even cared to truly compete in it (with the notable exception of 2024), since 2014. We’ve lost legendary players such as Alonso, Dempsey, Martins, Lodeiro, and Ruidiaz. Were they ever truly replaced? One season ago we contested every trophy we participated in, reaching two cup semi-finals, a cup quarter final, and a respectable 7th place finish in the MLS league table. What has become of us?

The Side I Would Select

Between injuries and suspensions, I’d have this lot:

GK     Frei

LB     Baker-Whiting

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Burney

RB     Kossa-Rienzi

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rusnak

CAM   Ferreira

RF     de la Vega

CF     De Rosario

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

I’d expect pretty much the same team that played against Paris Saint-Germain, minus injuries and suspensions.

GK     Frei

LB     Baker-Whiting

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Burney

RB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     Kent

CF     Ferreira

Intangibles

Lessons learnt?

We played some big-time opponents in Club World Cup. We held our own. Can we apply what we’ve learnt to defeating league opposition?

The streak.

We haven’t won a match since 28 May when we defeated San Diego FC at Royal Brougham Park. That puts us directly under the cosh. What will the Sounders’ response be?

We are being left behind.

Sounders FC 2025 season declared transfer fees paid: €1.45M

Austin 2025 season declared transfer fees paid: €25.12M

General notes on personnel

Austin transfers IN:

Sanchez (LAFC) free

Vazquez (Monterrey) €9.6M

Dubersarsky (Instituto) €2.9M

Sabovic (Djurgarden) free

Uzuni (Granada) €12M

Thomas - reserves

Taylor (Inter Miami) €615,000

Austin transfers OUT:
Bersano - retired

Finlay - retired

Hedges (Des Moines Menace) free

Jimenez - retired

Ring (HJK Helsinki) free

Valencia (Universidad Catolica) free

Zardes (MLS Pool) buyout

Driussi (River Plate) €9.75M

Las (Louisville City) loan

Vaisanen (BK Hacken) €450,000

Comparison against common opponents

RSL 2:0 SEA

ATX 1:1 RSL

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

SEA 5:2 LAFC

LAFC 4:0 SEA

LAFC 0:1 ATX

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

STL 1:0 SEA

SEA 4:1 STL

STL 0:1 ATX

(against STL: SEA 1-0-1 +2, ATX 1-0-0 +1) marginal edge SEA

SEA 0:0 HOU

HOU 1:3 SEA

HOU 2:0 ATX

ATX 3:1 HOU USOC

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

SD 3:0 SEA

SEA 1:0 SD

ATX 2:1 SD

SD 2:0 ATX

(against SD: SEA 1-0-1 -2, ATX 1-0-1 -1) marginal edge ATX

COL 1:1 SEA

ATX 0:1 COL

COL 0:2 ATX

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

POR 1:1 SEA

POR 1:0 ATX

ATX 0:0 POR

(against POR: SEA 0-1-0 0, ATX 0-1-1 -1) even

SEA 2:3 MIN

ATX 0:3 MIN

MIN 1:1 ATX

(against MIN: SEA 0-0-1 -1, MIN 0-1-1 -3) marginal edge SEA

VAN 3:0 SEA

VAN 5:1 ATX

ATX 0:0 VAN

(against VAN: SEA 0-0-1 -3, ATX 0-1-1 -4) even

Know Thine Enemy

Austin as they lined up in their 2:1 victory over the Red Donkeys at McKalla Place on 14 June.

GOALKEEPER

Brad Stuver, 34

United States

Notable Clubs: Columbus Crew SC (2/0), New York City FC (7/0), Austin FC (151/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €600,000

Notes: Played his university football for Cleveland State (71/0).

DEFENCE

Guilherme Biro, 25

Brazil

Notable Clubs: Coritiba (71/1), Mirassol (43/2), Austin FC (50/5)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Full name: Guilherme da Trindade Dubas.

Oleksandr Svatok, 30

Ukraine (9/0)

Notable Clubs: Volyn Lutsk (4/0), Zorya Luhansk (41/1), Hajduk Split (16/0), Dnipro-1 (90/2), Austin FC (23/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Developed by Inter Dnipropetrovsk and Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk.

Brendan Hines-Ike, 30

United States

Notable Clubs: Orebro SK (70/2), KV Kortrijk (53/1), DC United (46/1), Austin FC (44/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1M

Notes: Developed by Chivas USA. Played his university football for Creighton (50/2) and South Florida (20/2).

Mikkel Desler, 30

Denmark

Notable Clubs: Odense (116/1), Haugesund (67/2), Toulouse (89/2), Austin FC (14/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.8M

Notes: Full name: Mikkel Desler Puggaard. Developed by Assens and Odense. Won a Coupe de France and Ligue 2 title with Toulouse.

MIDFIELD

Jon Gallagher, 29

Ireland

Notable Clubs: Atlanta United FC (16/4), Aberdeen (22/1), Austin FC (144/13)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2M

Notes: Developed by Beachside SC and Home United. Played his university football for Notre Dame (84/39).

Besard Sabovic, 27

Sweden

Notable Clubs: Djurgarden (74/6), Brommapojkarna (7/0), Dalkurd (27/5), Mjallby (27/4), Kayserispor (11/0), Khimki (21/1), Austin FC (18/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.5M

Notes: Developed by Brommapojkarna and Djurgarden. Won an Allsvenskan title with Djurgarden.

Daniel Pereira, 24

Venezuela (7/0)

Notable Clubs: Austin FC (127/4)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3M

Notes: Full name: Daniel Pereira Gil. Developed by Virginia Blue Ridge Star. Played his university football for Virginia Tech (26/6). Has youth caps for Venezuela.

Osman Bukari, 26

Ghana (18/3)

Notable Clubs: Trencin (51/12), Gent (25/4), Nantes (24/2), Red Star Belgrade (56/19), Austin FC (28/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €5M

Notes: Developed by Accra Lions and Anderlecht. Won a Coupe de France with Nantes. Won 2x Serbian SuperLiga and 2x Serbian Cup with Red Star Belgrade. Named to Slovak Super Liga Team of the Season 2019-20.

FORWARD

Brandon Vasquez, 26

United States (11/4)

Notable Clubs: Atlanta United FC (32/3), FC Cincinnati (112/32), Monterrey (40/10), Austin FC (18/5)

Estimated Transfer Value: €7.5M

Notes: Full name: Brandon Vasquez Toledo. Developed by Tijuana. Won an MSL Cup and US Open Cup with Atlanta United FC. Won an MLS league title with FC Cincinnati. Named to MLS Best XI 2022.

Owen Wolff, 20

United States

Notable Clubs: Austin FC (105/3)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3M

Notes: Developed by Columbus Crew SC, Atlanta United FC, and Austin FC. Played for United States (10/3) at youth levels.

Familiar Faces

Austin goalkeeper Stefan Cleveland played for the Sounders FC (22/0) from 2020-2023.

Squads

Sounders FC from:

Frei, Thomas, Baker, Baker-Whiting, Burney, Kossa-Rienzi, Ragen, Alex, Sousa, Joao Paulo, Leyva, Cristian, Rusnak, Vargas, de la Vega, De Rosario, Ferreira, Kent, Morris, Minoungou, Musovski, Rothrock.

Austin from:

Stuver, Cleveland, Thomas, Desler, Hines-Ike, Svatok, Gallagher, Cascante, Kolmanic, Biro, Sanchez, Pereira, Sabovic, Taylor, Dubersarsky, Burton, Obrian, Vazquez, Uzuni, Bukari, Fodrey, Rubio, Farkarlun.

Injury List

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Sounders FC -

OUT: Hawkins (quadriceps), Kim (calf), Gomez Andrade (hamstring/calf), Arriola (knee).

MATCHDAY DECISION: none.

Austin -

OUT: none.

MATCHDAY DECISION: Uzuni (hamstring).

Discipline

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Sounders FC: Bell and Nouhou will serve a one-match ban for being sent off at Vancouver. Musovski out next match if booked.

Austin: No players suspended.

Fun Fact

Sounders FC Goalkeeper, Stefan Frei is on 998 saves in league play. Two more to 1,000, Stef!!!

SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC v. PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN FC - FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP - GROUP STAGE - ROYAL BROUGHAM PARK, OCCIDENTAL AVENUE, SEATTLE, WASHINGTON

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. Monday, our guests are 2024-25 UEFA, Ligue 1, French Cup and French Super Cup champions, Paris Saint-Germain. So, you know…there’s that.

If you’re having trouble focusing on football this day…you are not alone. Saints preserve us all, Saint Brigid hear my prayer.

What: FIFA Club World Cup Group Stage, Seattle Sounders FC v. Paris Saint-Germain.

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

When: 12:00 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, Monday 23 June 2025 CE.

At Stake: Holding our own and not being the patsy that FIFA and the rest of the world likely think that we are. There is a mathematical possibility of going through, but I think we’d need to beat this lot by three goals and also for Botafogo to defeat Atleti. I’ll let you lot calculate the odds of that happening. Oh, and it’s $7.5M more to Longacres if we manage this highly improbable feat.

Where to Watch: DAZN.

Where to Listen: If there’s local radio coverage, I don’t know about it.

Sounders have produced solid performances against superior foes. I thought we’d be lucky to keep the score to less than 0:4 against Botafogo. The lads responded by narrowly being defeated 1:2 in a match we well could’ve won with better finishing. I thought we’d be lucky to keep the score less than 0:4 against Atletico Madrid, and we were able to cut their lead from 0:2 to 1:2, before finally succumbing 1:3.

So I’m a bit torn about what my expectations are for this match. Paris Saint-Germain seem like a very different kettle of fish than our previous two opponents. They won everything they competed in. Four trophies in one season. We haven’t won fuck-all in three and a half seasons. That said, Botafogo managed a 1:0 smash and grab against them on 19 June. To which I promptly said “Oi! Stop goin’ through our washing, Botafogo!” because the 1:0 smash and grab is from our necessarily cynical playbook.

At the end of that exhaustive reckoning, my expectations are quite simple. Play well enough that the rest of the world respects us. To me that entails conceding less than four goals, and doing as we did in the previous matches - making the big-money scions of world club football sweat the result against a team (that would be us) that has less than a 100th of their budget.

That is all.

Get ye down to the ground if ye can manage it, and if it feels safe to go. If not head to a trusted pub or keep ye hame, and gather your mates around the telly.

It’s Sounders football on the world stage, under the afternoon sun 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!!!”

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

Although, to be fair, Lao Tzu didn’t have to put up with the shitfuckery of MLS and FIFA.

The Good News

We’ve done quite well in this tournament, considering our budget constraints and the quality of our opposition. At this point, we’ve grown to expect a fighting effort that sees us in with a shout. Why should it be different on Monday?

It is possible for Jordan Morris to come on as a substitute. However, he will sensibly be kept out rather than chance a relapse of his injuries unless he is absolutely needed.

Regardless of the result on Monday, I’d like to thank all the players in the Sounders squad, and the coaching and football operations staff. Club World Cup has been a bonny ride thus far, and we managed better than many thought possible.

The Bad News

What did PSG not win this season? They won UEFA Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France (they actually contested the tournament that their FA organised, rather than having their reserves shoulder that responsibility, as we did), and the  Trophee des Champions (which pits the Ligue 1 Champion and Coupe de France winner from last season against each other).

PSG average the better part of three goals per match (2.6 goals/match), and concede an average of less than a goal per match (0.93 goals conceded/match) in all competitions.

Aggregate estimated transfer value of the entire PSG squad is €1.06B. Aggregate estimated transfer value of the entire Sounders FC squad is €51.57M.

Dropping a 1:0 to Botafogo a few days ago has likely stung the Parisians’ pride. They’re likely to take it out on our lot.

PSG need a victory against us in order to have a shot at going through to the knockout stage. As Atletico Madrid can force a three-way tie on six points, should PSG defeat us, by defeating Botafogo. Thus, PSG will want the comfort of scoring several more goals to ensure their qualification for the next round. In short, they’re going to want to beat us by as many goals as they can manage so they don’t have to sweat the result of Atleti v. Botafogo at the Rose Bowl.

The Side I Would Select

Gaffer’s got decent results against our betters. I’ll go along with his choices, but I still think De Rosario should get a shot at at least 45 minutes of football to see if he can hit one. Nouhou has learnt his hard lesson about keepin’ his head. Let’s see him back in the team, though we should mark that Baker-Whiting did very well in his stead against Atleti.

GK     Frei

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Bell

RB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     de la Vega

CF     De Rosario

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

Barring injury or players suddenly dropping out of favour, I’d expect the same line-up as against Atleti, with the possible exception of Nouhou being back in the team at left-back.

GK     Frei

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Bell

RB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     de la Vega

CF     Musovski

Intangibles

Economic inequalities:

SEA amount spent on transfers: €1.45M

PSG amount spent on transfers: €240M

Wear and tear?

PSG have played 60 matches already this season, including their group stage matches in CWC. Are they worn to the bone?

General notes on personnel

PSG transfers IN:

Kvaratskhelia (Napoli) €70M

Joao Neves (Benfica) €59.92M

Doue (Rennes) €50M

Pacho (Eintracht Frankfurt) €40M

Safonov (Krasnodar) €20M

Zague - reserves

Simons (RB Leipzig) end of loan

Ekitike (Eintracht Frankfurt) end of loan

Gabriel Moscardo (Corinthians) end of loan

Gharbi (Lausanne) end of loan

Renato Sanches (AS Roma) end of loan

Bernat (Benfica) end of loan

Ndour (Braga) end of loan

Kari (Lorient) end of loan

Housni (Al-Sadd) end of loan

Michut (Adana Demirspor) end of loan

Dagba (Auxerre) end of loan

Lemina (Wolverhampton) end of loan

Lavallee (Dunkerque) end of loan

PSG transfers OUT:

Simons (RB Leipzig) €50M

Ugarte (Manchester United) €50M

Ekitike (Eintracht Frankfurt) €16.5M

Danilo Pereira (Al-Ittihad) €5M

Ndour (Fiorentina) €5M

Muani (Juventus) €3.6M loan fee

Mbappe (Real Madrid) free

Gharbi (Braga) free

Bernat (Villarreal) free

Michut (Adana Demirspor) free

Dagba (Beerschot) free

Lemina (Annecy) free

Asensio (Aston Villa) loan

Soler (West Ham United) loan

Skriniar (Fenerbahce) loan

Gabriel Moscardo (Reims) loan

Mukiele (Leverkusen) loan

Renato Sanches (Benfica) loan

Housni (Le Havre) loan

Lavallee (Aubagne) loan

Kurzawa - released

Navas - released

Rico - released

Letellier - released

Comparison against common opponents

SEA 1:3 ATM CWC

PSG 4:0 ATM CWC

(against ATM: SEA 0-0-1 -2, PSG 1-0-0 +4) decisive edge PSG

SEA 1:2 BOT         CWC

PSG 0:1 BOT CWC

(against BOT: SEA 0-0-1 -1, PSG 0-0-1 -1) even

Know Thine Enemy

PSG as they lined up in their 0:1 defeat against Botafogo at the Rose Bowl, on 19 June.

GOALKEEPER

Gianluigi Donnarumma, 26

Italy (74/0)

Notable Clubs: AC Milan (215/0), Paris Saint-Germain (104/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €40M

Notes: Developed by ASD Club Napoli and AC Milan. Won Supercoppa Italia with AC Milan. Won 4x Ligue 1 titles, 2x Coupe de France, 3x Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain. Won a UEFA European Championship with Italy. Named UEFA European Championship Player of the Tournament and Team of the Tournament 2020. Named to FIFPro World 11 2021. Named Serie A Best Goalkeeper 2020-21. Named 2x Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year. Named 2x Serie A Team of the Year. Named to UEFA Champions League Team of the Season 2024-25.

DEFENCE

Lucas Hernandez, 29

France (39/0)

Notable Clubs: Atletico Madrid (67/1), Bayern Munich (74/0), Paris Saint-Germain (43/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €25M

Notes: Developed by Rayo Majadahonda and Atletico Madrid. Won a UEFA Europa League and UEFA Super Cup with Atletico Madrid. Won 4x Bundesliga championships, a DFB Pokal, 2x DFL Supercup, and a FIFA World Club Cup with Bayern Munich. Won 2x Ligue 1 titles, 2x Coupe de France, 2x Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain. Won a FIFA World Cup and a UEFA Nations League with France.

Lucas Beraldo, 21

Brazil (4/0)

Notable Clubs: Sao Paulo (36/1), Paris Saint-Germain (38/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €25M

Notes: Developed by Uniao Barbarense, XV de Piracicaba, and Sao Paulo. Won a Copa do Brasil with Sao Paulo. Won 2x Ligue 1 titles, 2x Coupe de France, 2x Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League.

Willian Pacho, 23

Ecuador (26/2)

Notable Clubs: Independiente del Valle (26/0), Royal Antwerp (42/0), Eintracht Frankfurt (33/0), Paris Saint-Germain (28/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €65M

Notes: Developed by Huracan de Quininde and Independiente del Valle. Won an Ecuadorian Serie A title and a U-20 Copa Libertadores with Independiente del Valle. Won a Belgian Pro League title and Belgian Cup with Royal Antwerp. Won a Ligue 1 title, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain.

Achraf Hakimi, 26

Morocco (85/11)

Notable Clubs: Real Madrid (9/2), Borussia Dortmund (54/7), Inter Milan (37/7), Paris Saint-Germain (110/17)

Estimated Transfer Value: €80M

Notes: Full name: Achraf Hakimi Mouh. Developed by Colonia Ofigevi and Real Madrid. Won a Supercopa de Espana, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, and a FIFA Club World Cup with Real Madrid. Won a DFL Supercup with Borussia Dortmund. Won an Italian Serie A title with Inter Milan. Won 4x Ligue 1 titles, 2x Coupe de France, 3x Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain. Named 2x African Youth Player of the Year. Named to Bundesliga Team of the Year 2019-20. Named to UEFA Champions League Breakthrough XI 2019. Named to UEFA Champions League Team of the Season 2024-25. Named 3x to CAF Team of the year. Named to African Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament 2021. Named to Serie A Team of the Year 2020-21. Named to FIFPro World 11 2022. Awarded the Prix Marc-Vivien Foe 2024-25.

MIDFIELD

Warren Zaire-Emery, 19

France (7/1)

Notable Clubs: Paris Saint-Germain (81/5)

Estimated Transfer Value: €55M

Notes: Developed by Aubervilliers and Paris Saint-Germain. Played for France at youth levels (27/2). Won 3x Ligue 1 titles, 2x Coupe de France, 2x Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League. Won a UEFA European U-17 Championship with France. Named Ligue 1 Player of the Year 2023-24.

Vitinha, 25

Portugal (29/0)

Notable Clubs: Porto (38/2), Wolverhampton (19/0), Paris Saint-Germain (93/14)

Estimated Transfer Value: €80M

Notes: Full name: Vitor Machado Ferreira. Won 2x Premeira Liga, and 2x Taca de Portugal. Won 3x Ligue 1 titles, 2x Coupe de France, 3x Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain. Won a UEFA Nations League with Portugal. Named Premeira Liga Young Player of the Year 2021-22. Named to Primeira Liga Team of the Year 2021-22. Named 2x UEFA Champions League Team of the Season.

Senny Mayulu, 19

France

Notable Clubs: Paris Saint-Germain (28/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €15M

Notes: Developed by Saint-Denis US, AF Epinay-sur-Seine, and Paris Saint-Germain. Played for France at youth levels (21/3). Won a Championnat National U19 with Paris Saint-Germain U-19s. Won 2x Ligue 1 titles, 2x Coupe de France, a Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain. Won a Lafarge Foot Avenir with France U-18s.

FORWARD

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, 24

Georgia (41/18)

Notable Clubs: Dinamo Tbilisi (4/1), Rustavi (18/3), Lokomotiv Moscow (7/1), Rubin Kazan (69/9), Dinamo Batumi (11/8), Napoli (85/28), Paris Saint-Germain (14/4)

Estimated Transfer Value: €90M

Notes: Developed by Dinamo Tbilisi. Won a Russian Cup with Lokomotiv Moscow. Won 2x Serie A titles with Napoli. Won a UEFA Champions League, Ligue 1 title, and a Coupe de France with Paris Saint-Germain. Named 2x Russian Premier League Young Player of the Season. Named Russian Premier League Left Winger of the Season 2020-21. Named 4x Georgian Footballer of the Year. Named UEFA Champions League Young Player of the Season 2022-23. Named Serie A Most Valuable Player 2022-23. Named to Serie A Team of the Season 2022-23. Serie A Goal of the Season 2022-23. Serie A Goal of the Year 2023. Named to Serie A Team of the Year 2022-23.

Goncalo Ramos, 24

Portugal (16/9)

Notable Clubs: Benfica (64/30), Paris Saint-Germain (51/21)

Estimated Transfer Value: €40M

Notes: Developed by Olhanense, Loule, and Benfica. Won a Primeira Liga for Benfica. Won 2x Ligue 1, 2x Coupe de France, 2x Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League. Won a UEFA Nations League with Portugal. Named to Primeira Liga Team of the Year 2022-23.

Desire Doue, 20

France (3/0)

Notable Clubs: Rennes (57/7), Paris Saint-Germain (31/6)

Estimated Transfer Value: €90M

Notes: Developed by Rennes. Won a Ligue 1 titie, a Coup de France, a Trophee des Champions, and a UEFA Champions League. Won UEFA U-17 Championship with France U-17s. Named Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year 2024-25. Named UEFA Champions League Young Player of the Season 2024-25. Named to UEFA Champions League Team of the Season 2024-25.

Familiar Faces

None.

Squads

Sounders FC from:

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

PSG from:

Donnarumma, Safonov, Lavallee, Tenas, Hakimi, Kimpembe, Lucas Beraldo, Marquinhos, Hernandez, Nuno Mendes, Zague, Kamara, El Hannach, Pacho, Ruiz, Vitinha, Lee, Gabriel Moscardo, Mayulu, Zaire-Emery, Joao Neves, Kvaratskhelia, Goncalo Ramos, Dembele, Doue, Barcola, Mbaye.

Injury List

(Best guess)

Sounders FC -

OUT: Kim (calf), Gomez Andrade (hamstring/calf), Arriola (knee).

MATCHDAY DECISION: Morris (hamstring), Hawkins (quadriceps).

PSG -

OUT: no information

MATCHDAY DECISION: no information

Discipline

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

PSG: No players suspended. Fabian and Marquinhos out next match if booked.

Fun Fact

Sounders FC and United States youth international centre-half, Stuart Hawkins has just earned his High School degree. Well done, Stewie!!!