SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC v. CLUB SANTOS LAGUNA S.A. DE C.V. LEAGUES CUP - GROUP STAGE - ROYAL BROUGHAM PARK, OCCIDENTAL AVENUE, SEATTLE, WASHINGTON

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. A CHÀCH NAOMH!!! (HOLY SHIT!!!) DID YOU SEE THAT, THURSDAY NIGHT!!!? That said, it’s next match up as Santos Laguna make the trip down from the Rockies to The Evergreen to face us fresh off the most lopsided beating we’ve ever administered in the MLS-era. Yeh, don’t go expecting Oshan or Jada to teach ye how tae swear in Scots. Don’t worry Green Fam, I’ve got ye covered on that front.

What: Leagues Cup, Group Stage, Seattle Sounders FC v. Club Santos Laguna S.A. de C.V.

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

When: 7:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, Sunday 3 August 2025 CE.

At Stake: That depends on where you are with Leagues Cup. If you don’t like what Leagues Cup has done to the domestic football calendar, then this match, and all matches in this tournament, are meaningless. If you really fancy MLS v. Liga MX, and that’s your jam, Leagues Cup is super-important. If you just think of it as another chance for the Sounders FC to win a trophy this season, then Leagues Cup is a potential means to that end. That pretty much sums it up.

Where to Watch: MLS Season Pass via Apple TV, Apple TV+, Fox Sports 1, Univision, and TUDN.

Where to Listen: El Rey 1360 AM.

[Stares blankly at the computer screen, wide-eyed for several seconds]

Well. Wot a difference a day makes, isn’t it? Before Thursday night’s epic result, it was fair to wonder how we were going to cope with a team that has thrashed us on a regular basis over the years, with our best result against them a 0:0 draw in Seattle in March of this year.

Then the unthinkable happened. We absolutely crushed Cruz Azul 7:0. I don’t even know what to say. I was absolutely slack-jawed on the settee. I’ve never shouted “NO WAY!” so many times during one Sounders match before. It was like a dream. I am having to remind myself that this actually happened. Not a film or telly drama, but it actually happened in real-life.

Now Santos Laguna comes to town. I can remember the 6:1 thrashing they gave us, years ago. Can we expect a similar reckoning as we dealt to Cruz Azul?

It’s Leagues Cup football, such as it is. 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 nearly flawless performance. It was like a dream. FANTASTICO!!! (photo credit: marca.com)

The Good News

Santos Laguna’s goalkeeper, Acevedo, got himself sent off in Colorado, and will serve a one-match ban. For me, that’s the door to victory opened just a crack.

Nouhou is doing much better with the mental aspect of footballing. He kept his head on Thursday, and if he continues to do so, he will be extremely effective for us. Musovski on the other hand, nearly got himself sent-off and has to make a mental note to not immediately react next time.

After the 7:0, I can only wonder, “Is this our new level?”.

Pedro de la Vega is starting to silence his many critics. I always knew he was a quality player. Now we’re starting to see it in a way that can’t be denied.

I never saw us play as well as we did Thursday. I only hope we are able to sustain something resembling that level going forward.

Sounders goalkeeper, Andrew Thomas and the rest of the defence were brilliant, limiting Cruz Azul to only a couple dangerous chances.

Seven goals……still tryna get over it. Don’t want to get over it.

We actually played something resembling actual, attractive, attacking football, instead of just a slog hoofing the football up and down the pitch. It was nice to see players working lovely combinations, and making incisive runs to support possession and attack. Truly lovely - well done to the players and also credit to the Sounders’ support staff and coaching staff for what must have been an exhaustive preparation job.

The Bad News

We’ve seen the ceiling of the Sounders in Thursday’s massive result. We’ve also seen the floor this season, getting pasted at Figueroa Street by LAFC 4:0. I am honestly confused as to which team we are, and what to expect.

Absolutely drumming Cruz Azul 7:0……how is it even possible to follow that up?

This is long, but it needs to be said. Please forgive me, but I’m tired of what I’ve been seeing around me for the last 30 years. As much as I loved last night’s result, and that’s an amount that cannae be measured with existing technology, I was overjoyed, it also is a reminder to me that there’s no way to holistically root for clubs from MLS in Leagues Cup (or really any international club competition). If you favour the Liga MX Clubs then you favour the steep advantage they have with regard to higher player wages, an infinitely less complicated transfer system, and the ability of the people of Mexico to elect a President that is actually interested and truly invested in looking after workers. In this scenario, the Liga MX clubs are the ‘good guys’. So it seems to me If you favour the MLS clubs (mea culpa), then you’re rooting for executives that created a monopoly (although the courts ruled that MLS isn’t a monopoly, we know the real truth - that it was just another instance of the Law siding with big business over workers), suppressed player wages, attempted to prevent MLS players from forming a union, created the most labyrinth, insane, and nearly impossible to understand process for dealing with player transfers, and who are trying to de-legitimise the oldest football tournament in North America, the US Open Cup, because it’s seen as not profitable enough to bother with, and a country that twice elected a President with ambitions to be a Fascist dictator, even though he showed everyone what a shitty con man he is, and that he is a petty, vain, cruel criminal, and arguably has the IQ of a potato, with due apologies to potatoes who deserve better than to be compared to that wee man-baby. The hard lessons from 2016 were not learnt by nearly a third of registered voters in America, and now we’re here, watching that shitty lot blow off Federal court rulings, kidnap people off the street and put them in jail, or worse, without due process, accelerate Climate Catastrophe, compromise the safety of our food, water, and drugs, slash consumer protections and protections for workers, and generally ruin to a worse extent what had already been disintegrating for decades. When MLS clubs win in Leagues Cup, it’s a statement that says ‘MLS can exploit labour, pay them less and still get results in international club football’. I love the Sounders, but hate MLS, Leagues Cup, many of the corporate sponsors, and the banksters at Sinclair Group that we’re currently doing business with. Sure, our sponsors will donate money and resources from time to time, but it’s only to sportswash their images as they make billions of dollars whilst they sack American workers by the thousands, and cut the pay and increase the amount of work for the rest of the lot. Enjoy when Sounders win matches, I certainly do, but do so whilst retaining an understanding of how MLS (and every professional sport league in America, for that matter) is yet another cog in the machine that oppresses workers.

The Side I Would Select

Two days between matches. Makes sense to heavily rotate, then finish strong against Tijuana.

GK     Thomas

LB     Baker-Whiting

LCH    Bell

RCH    Kim

RB     Kossa-Rienzi

LDM    Vargas

RDM    Brunell

LF     de la Vega

CAM   Leyva

RF     Minoungou

CF     De Rosario

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

I’d expect the lads that ran out against San Jose, minus the injured Morris. 2-day turn-around be damned.

GK     Thomas

LB     Baker-Whiting

LCH    Bell

RCH    Gomez Andrade

RB     Kossa-Rienzi

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     de la Vega

CAM   Rusnak

RF     Ferreira

CF     Musovski

Intangibles

For once, we weren’t outspent.

SEA 2025 season disclosed transfers payed: €1.45M

CSL 2025-26 season disclosed transfers payed: €850,000

SEA 2025 squad aggregate estimated transfer value: €51.75

CSL 2025 squad aggregate estimated transfer value: €32.85

General notes on personnel

Santos Laguna transfers IN:

Palacios (Millonarios) €850,000

Balanta (Tijuana) loan

Ortega (Juarez) loan

Ocejo (UdeG) end of loan

Gonzalez (Puebla) end of loan

Santos Laguna transfers OUT:

Santamaria (Universitario) free

Jimenez - reserves

Naveda (Club America) end of loan

Comparison against common opponents

COL 1:1 SEA

COL 2:1 CSL LC

(against COL: SEA 0-1-0 0, CSL 0-0-1 -1) edge SEA

Know Thine Enemy

Santos Laguna as they lined up in their 2:1 Leagues Cup defeat against Colorado Rapids, on 31 July at Victory Way.

GOALKEEPER

Carlos Acevedo, 29

Mexico (6/0)

Notable Clubs: Santos Laguna (173/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3M

Notes: Full name: Carlos Acevedo Lopez. Developed by Santos Laguna. Won a Liga MX title with Santos Laguna.

DEFENCE

Bruno Amione, 23

Argentina

Notable Clubs: Belgrano (8/0), Hellas Verona (11/0), Reggina (16/0), Sampdoria (26/1), Santos Laguna (25/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2.8M

Notes: Developed by Belgrano. Played at youth levels for Argentina (12/2). Won South American U-17 Championship with Argentina U-17s.

Kevin Balanta, 28

Colombia (1/0)

Notable Clubs: Deportivo Cali (93/3), Tijuana (31/1), Queretaro (48/0), Tijuana (45/0), Defensa y Justicia (5/0), Santos Laguna (2/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2M

Notes: Full name: Kevin Alexander Balanta Lucumi. On loan from Tijuana. Won a Columbian league title with Deportivo Cali.

Ismael Govea, 28

Mexico (1/0)

Notable Clubs: Atlas (56/2), Santos Laguna (54/0), Tijuana (27/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Full name: Ismael Govea Solorzano. Developed by Atlas.

MIDFIELD

Diego Medina, 24

Mexico

Notable Clubs: Santos Laguna (78/7), Tampico Madero (41/7)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1M

Notes: Full name: Diego Javier Medina Vazquez. Developed by Santos Laguna.

Ronaldo Prieto, 28

Mexico

Notable Clubs: Veracruz (15/0), Tampico Madero (19/6), Santos Laguna (67/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €600,000

Notes: Full name: Ronaldo De Jesus Prieto Ramirez.

Salvador Mariscal, 22

Mexico

Notable Clubs: Santos Laguna (44/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Full name: Salvador Mariscal Murra. Developed by Santos Laguna. Won 2x Revelations Cup with Mexico U-20s. Played for Mexico U-20s (14/4).

Aldo Lopez, 25

Mexico

Notable Clubs: Atlas (1/0), Tampico Madero (48/3), Santos Laguna (58/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.5M

Notes: Full name: Aldo Lopez Vargas. Developed by Atlas and Santos Laguna.

FORWARD

Cristian Dajome, 31

Colombia

Notable Clubs: Bogota FC (65/15), Cucuta Deportivo (17/4), Deportes Tolima (16/2), Atletico Nacional (28/5), Deportivo Pasto (14/2), America de Cali (33/4), Independiente del Valle (27/5), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (91/15), DC United (50/5), Santos Laguna (1/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €800,000

Notes: Full name: Cristian Andres Dajome Arboleda. Developed by Bogota FC. Won a Colombian Championship, Recopa Sudamericana, and a Copa Libertadores with Atletico Nacional. Won a Copa Sudamericana with Independiente del Valle. Won a Canadian Championship with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Jesus Ocejo, 27

Mexico

Notable Clubs: Santos Laguna (65/2), Tampico Madero (18/7), Atlas (15/1), UdeG (34/25)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Full name: Jesus Alberto Ocejo Zazueta. Named Best Player Liga de Expansion MX 2024-25.

Jordan Carillo, 23

Mexico (2/0)

Notable Clubs: Santos Laguna (63/3), Sporting Gijon (22/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.3M

Notes: Full name: Jordan Carrillo Rodriguez. Developed by Monterrey and Santos Laguna. Played for Mexico at youth levels (14/4). Won a Central American and Caribbean Games with Mexico U-23s. Named Liga MX Best Rookie 2021-22.

Familiar Faces

None.

Squads

(best guess)

Sounders FC from:

Thomas, Castro, Baker, Baker-Whiting, Bell, Burney, Gomez Andrade, Kim, Kossa-Rienzi, Nouhou, Ragen, Alex, Sousa, Brunell, Leyva, Cristian, Rusnak, Vargas, de la Vega, De Rosario, Ferreira, Kent, Minoungou, Musovski, Rothrock.

Santos Laguna from:

Holguin, Amione, Balanta, Ortega, Gutierrez, Echeverria, Govea, Abella, Lopez, Mariscal, Guemez, Prieto, Villalba, Carrillo, Dajome, Palacios, Sordo, Medina, Fagundez, Barticciotto, Ocejo.

Injury List

(no information available at press time. Best guess for Sounders FC based on old injury info)

Sounders FC -

OUT: Morris (shoulder), Frei (concussion), Hawkins (quadriceps), Joao Paulo (knee), Arriola (knee).

MATCHDAY DECISION: Rothrock (hand).

Santos Laguna -

OUT: No information.

MATCHDAY DECISION: No information.

Discipline

Sounders FC: Musovski and De Rosario are both carrying a booking into this match.

Santos Laguna: Acevedo is suspended and will serve a one-match ban. Medina, Prieto, Balanta, Fagundez, and Ocejo are all carrying bookings into this match.

Fun Fact

Per Sounders FC Communications, Sounders 7:0 victory over Cruz Azul was the largest margin of victory by an MLS side over a Liga MX side in the history of the MLS-era. It was also the largest margin of victory for Sounders in any competition in the MLS-era. Well done, lads. You’ve made us proud.