SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC v. CHARLOTTE FC

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. Sounders FC make a triumphant return to The Evergreen after besting Antigua GFC 1:3, with our trip to Guatemala bearing the fruits of delicious victory. The focus now switches to league football, with Charlotte FC as the visitors.

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

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

When: 7:30 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, Saturday 22 February 2025 CE.

At Stake: First points available in the MLS league championship. Who wants it?

Where to Watch: MLS Season Pass via Apple TV.

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

It’s another fine day in the Fatherlan– I mean, America, and there’s footballing goodness just ‘round the corner. Yeh, I know the Charlotte have put a few pieces together, but surely they are no match for our Boys in Green.

This means we gather our numbers and converge on Royal Brougham Park. Failing that, we gather up in our pubs and dwellings for stories and tellings. Houses and flats for pints and cats. And boats and ships for pie and chips. The point is, we support the lads. I believe our guests from North Carolina deserve nothing less than a warm, Pacific Northwest welcome. You know what to do, Fam.

It’s Sounders 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!!!”

Young Pedro got himself a goal whilst down in Guatemala. Nice one, lad!

The Good News

A convincing 1:3 away victory in the CONCACAF Champions Cup against one of the best clubs in Guatemala gets us off to a proper start. This hopefully sets the tone for what promises to be another successful season.

There are those among us who believe Sounders FC can only focus on one tournament at a time, sacrificing the others, which would suggest a shortage of talent. I think that assessment is an inaccurate one, and we have the depth to prove we can do better. Take last season for example: 7th Place finish in the league, reaching the Semi-Finals in both the US Open Cup and the MLS Cup, and a Quarter-Final appearance in the Leagues Cup. That was a good run, and this season I feel we are capable of better if we manage the workload properly, spreading the minutes throughout our squad.

Including our victory in Guatemala midweek, Sounders FC are unbeaten so far, including our pre-season matches (5-2-0 combined). We are averaging over three goals per match (3.14 goals/match), including results from pre-season matches.

The Sounders attack was re-fashioned for our Champions Cup match. Although Morris was still at centre-forward, Arriola replaced Rothrock on the left, de la Vega took the right-forward role that had been Cristian Roldan’s, and with Rusnak working his way back to full fitness, Ferreira was playing at the #10 when I had expected him to be more of a False-9. I have to say the changes worked spectacularly. Respect to the coaching staff and management who re-built the attack. I had my doubts, but it’s working. For now.

Ferreira looked very sharp on the ball. He seems like a triple-threat as he can break defences down by dribbling, passing, or through goal scoring. We’ve gotten a very versatile player, and at the age of 24, Jesus has plenty of football ahead of him.

The all-female officiating crew for the midweek cup tie was 100% excellent. That is the fairest shake I have ever seen an American team get during an away match in Central America. I sensed no bias at all. The match in Antigua Wednesday night was one of the most evenly officiated matches I’ve ever seen in 40+ years of following football. Nothing but props. Can we please have them certified in the PRO Referees pool for MLS match assignment?

The Bad News

If there was any retaliation for Antigua FC players tackling Vargas with reckless challenges, I didn’t see those attempts to address the balance. Antigua FC players three times, that I remember, cut Vargas down coming right through the back of his legs. It’s unacceptable. I’m not saying we should break the rules and attempt to injure. That’s not who we are, or how anyone should play football. Our legal tackles should be just as savage, though, when provoked.

Charlotte does have a bit of heft in the team, and if the resumes of the players in the team against Portland on 15 February are any indication this is going to be a difficult match. Wilfried Zaha was a regular goal scorer in the English Premier League and has an estimated transfer fee of €8M. Their first-choice Croatian goalkeeper, Kristijan Kahlina, was named MLS Goalkeeper of the Year last season. He was developed by Dinamo Zagreb and won a league title and Supercup with Bulgarian club Ludogorets. Defender Nathan Byrne played over 90 times for Swindon and 127 times for Wigan in England. Centre-half Tim Ream has played 67 times for the Yanks, 114 times for Bolton, and 281 times for Fulham. Addison Malanda is an up and coming, young French prospect. Ashley Westwood played 437 matches of football in England for Crewe, Aston Villa, and Burnley, and captains the side for Charlotte. Eryk Williamson helped the Yanks win a CONCACAF Gold Cup. Pep Biel made quite a name for himself at Copenhagen and Olympiacos, winning honours in Denmark. Patrick Agyemang is a promising young forward with two goals in his two appearances for the Yanks. Liel Abada has won honours in both Israel and Scotland. His transfer fee is estimated at €7M.

Charlotte won their last three pre-season matches 3:2 over Phoenix Rising, 1:0 over Austin FC, and 2:0 over our close, personal friends Portland Timbers. Charlotte played all but one of their pre-season matches on the road and were unbeaten (4-2-0).

Charlotte have conceded only seven goals in seven matches during their pre-season. That defence is going to be tricky to unlock.

The Side I Would Select

The group that played in Guatemala did quite well, but I think I’d keep out Rusnak just to make sure he’s completely recovered. I’d also heavily rotate the team as it’s only two days between matches this week. I think this selection has more than enough talent to defeat Charlotte.

GK     Frei

LB     Sousa

LCH    Bell

RCH    Hawkins

RB     Baker

LDM    Joao Paulo

RDM   Leyva

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Ferreira

RF     Minoungou

CF     Musovski

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

Anyone who can go again after Wednesday’s victory at Antigua will probably go again. Expect Rusnak to be in the team, unless his injury flares up in training. The Gaffer might rest Gomez Andrade (33 years-old), but I doubt he’ll rest Morris (30 years-old), who played over 2800 minutes in the league last season.

GK     Frei

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Bell

RB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     de la Vega

CF     Morris

Intangibles

Rotation. Will the Gaffer rotate most of the team with only two days between matches? History says no. So fatigue could be a factor, hopefully not accompanied by injury.

Officiating. Jair Marrufo will be the match referee for Saturday night.

Sounders FC record with Marrufo as Ref: 19-6-7

Charlotte FC record with Marrufo as Ref: 2-0-2

Venue. Sounders FC are super tough to beat at Royal Brougham Park. Between the regular support, the Brougham Faithful, and the Sounders FC team, Charlotte FC will know no rest.

General notes on personnel

Charlotte FC transfers IN:

Biel (Olympiacos) loan

Williamson (Portland Timbers) €97,000

Zaha (Galatasaray) loan €2.7M

Thomas - draft

Charlotte FC transfers OUT:
Lindsay - released

Paterson - released

Urso (Houston Dynamo) free

Diop (San Diego FC) expansion draft

Uronen (AIK Stockholm) free

Swiderski (Panathinaikos) €1.9M

Joao Pedro (Rio Ave) loan

Comparison against common opponents

n/a

Know Thine Enemy

Charlotte as they lined up in their 2:0 victory over Portland Timbers in their last pre-season match on 15 February.

GOALKEEPER

Kristijan Kahlina, 32

Croatia

Notable Clubs: Koper (11/0), Ludogorets (19/0), Charlotte FC (89/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2M

Notes: Developed by Dinamo Zagreb. Won a Bulgarian league title and Supercup with Ludogorets. Named MLS Goalkeeper of the Year 2024. Named to MLS Best XI 2024.

DEFENCE

Nathan Byrne, 32

England

Notable Clubs: Brentford (11/0), Bournemouth (9/0), Crawley (12/1), Swindon (90/10), Wolverhampton (24/2), Wigan (127/2), Charlton (17/1), Derby (82/0), Charlotte FC (67/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1M

Notes: Developed by St. Albans City and Tottenham. Won an EFL League One title with Wigan. Named to PFA Team of the Year League One 2014-15 and 2017-18. Named to EFL Team of the Season 2017-18.

Tim Ream, 37

United States (67/1)

Notable Clubs: New York RB (58/1), Bolton (114/0), Fulham (281/5), Charlotte FC (67/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €400,000

Notes: Developed by St. Louis Scott Gallagher. Played his university football for St. Louis (82/6). Won an EFL Championship league title, and twice won the EFL Championship promotion play-offs with Fulham. Won CONCACAF Nations League twice with United States. Named to PFA Team of the Year EFL Championship 2021-22.

Addison Malanda, 23

France

Notable Clubs: Nimes (1/0), Rodez (33/0), Charlotte FC (67/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3.5M

Notes: Developed by Nimes.

MIDFIELD

Andrew Privett, 24

United States

Notable Clubs: Charlotte FC (42/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1M

Notes: Developed by Baltimore Armour. Played his university football for Penn State (68/14).

Ashley Westwood, 34

England

Notable Clubs: Crewe (128/14), Aston Villa (147/5), Burnley (162/7), Charlotte FC (62/5)

Estimated Transfer Value: €500,000

Notes: Developed by Crewe. Won EFL League Two promotion play-offs.

Eryk Williamson, 27

United States (6/0)

Notable Clubs: Portland Timbers (98/6), Charlotte FC (0/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.2M

Notes: Developed by DC United. Played his university football for Maryland (58/14). Won a CONCACAF Gold Cup with United States.

Pep Biel, 28

Spain

Notable Clubs: Zaragoza (23/6), Copenhagen (95/23), Olympiacos (43/10), Augsberg (11/0), Charlotte FC (9/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3M

Notes: Developed by Constancia and Rayo Vallecano. Won a Danish Superliga title with Copenhagen. Named to Danish Superliga Player of the Year 2021-22. Named to Danish Superliga Team of the Year 2021-22.

FORWARD

Patrick Agyemang, 24

United States (2/2)

Notable Clubs: Charlotte FC (43/11)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2.5M

Notes: Developed by Hartford Hellions. Played his university football for Eastern Connecticut (NCAA III) (39/30) and Rhode Island (37/19).

Liel Abada, 23

Israel (10/1)

Notable Clubs: Maccabi Petah Tikva (67/20), Celtic (79/21), Charlotte FC (24/7)

Estimated Transfer Value: €7M

Notes: Developed by Hapoel Petah Tikva and Maccabi Petah Tikva. Won an Israeli 2nd  division league title with Maccabi Petah TIkva. Won two Scottish Premier League titles, a Scottish Cup, and two Scottish League Cups with Celtic. Named PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year 2021-22.

Wilfried Zaha, 32

England (2/0) and Ivory Coast (33/5)

Notable Clubs: Crystal Palace (433/82), Manchester United (2/0), Cardiff City (12/0), Galatasaray (30/9), Lyon (4/0), Charlotte FC (0/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €8M

Notes: Developed by Crystal Palace. Won EFL Championship Promotion play-offs with Crystal Palace. Won an FA Community Shield with Manchester United. Won a Turkish Super Lig title and Turkish Super Cup with Galatasaray. Named to PFA Team of the Year EFL Championship 2012-13.

Familiar Faces

Charlotte FC midfielder Brandt Bronico played for the Sounders FC U23s (9/4) in 2015.

Squads

Sounders FC from:

Frei, Thomas, Baker, Bell, Burney, Gomez Andrade, Hawkins, Kim, Nouhou, Ragen, Alex, Sousa, Joao Paulo, Leyva, Cristian, Rusnak, Vargas, Arriola, de la Vega, Ferreira, Morris, Minoungou, Musovski, Rothrock.

Charlotte from:

Kahlina, Bingham, Johnson, Ream, Tuiloma, Malanda, Byrne, Thomas, Neeley, Williamson, Bronico, Bender, Cambridge, Westwood, Scardina, Privett, Petkovic, Diani, Biel, Berchimas, Agyemang, Tavares, Smalls, Abada, Toklomati, Zaha.

Injury List

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Sounders FC -

OUT: Baker-Whiting (hamstring).

MATCHDAY DECISION: none.

Charlotte -

OUT: Cambridge (thigh), Forbes (thigh).

MATCHDAY DECISION: Agyemang (ankle).

Discipline

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

No players suspended from either club.

Fun Fact

Sounders FC Academy U-16s are currently at the International Cup held in Doha, Qatar, a tournament for U-17 teams from clubs around the world. Our lads were drawn into a group that included Rangers FC of Scotland, Mohammed VI Football Academy of Morocco, and Aspire Academy of Qatar. Although we succumbed to Rangers 2:0, our U-16s were able to defeat Mohammed VI FA 0:3, and also defeat Aspire Academy 0:1. On the strength of our two victories in the Group Stage, we qualified for the Semi-Finals, where were unable to get past Real Madrid, who defeated us 2:0. Sounders FC Academy U-16s will play Rangers on Saturday in the tournament’s match for 3rd Place. Congratulations to our lads for finishing in the top half of the tournament, and showing the rest of the world a peek at what we’re building here in The Evergreen.

ANTIGUA GFC v. SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC CONCACAF CHAMPIONS CUP - FIRST ROUND 1ST LEG - ESTADIO PENSATIVO, 22 AVIENDA 5-28 ZONA 15, ANTIGUA, GUATEMALA

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. We’re all sort of in the same boat, isn’t it? We’ve likely put on the better part of a stone’s weight from holiday eating. Liver screaming for help to anyone who will listen, begging to avoid further punishment. Oh…right, football. Sounders FC go on their ultimate Spring Break odyssey to Guatemala, if by ultimate Spring Break odyssey you mean playing football in front of 10,000 people whose 100% justified hostility will probably make our lads eager to return hame to The Evergreen. It’s the start of the 2025 Season. Oh here we go.

What: CONCACAF Champions Cup First Round 1st Leg, Antigua GFC v. Seattle Sounders FC.

Where: Estadio Pensativo, 22 Avienda 5-28 Zona 15, Antigua, Guatemala.

When: 5:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, Wednesday 19 February 2025 CE.

At Stake: Well. What the bloody hell are we talking about here?! It’s the CONCACAF Champions Cup. To have a shot at winning it you have to advance past the First Round, isn’t it.

Where to Watch: Fox Sports 2, ViX+, and the CONCACAF YouTube channel.

Where to Listen: No radio coverage for the United States was listed at press time. If KJR and the El Rey are broadcasting the match, I don’t know anything about it.

Well it’s been a minute, Fam. We haven’t qualified for this tournament since 2022 when we triumphantly hoisted the, then named, CONCACAF Champions League trophy, adorned by ribbons in the colours of the bank that sponsors the tournament rather than the eternal blue and forever green that it should’ve been, after getting the better of Pumas in front of a packed house of over 68,000 fans who made such a racket it tripped the local seismological sensors. Twice.

I think our return to CONCACAF play is long overdue. So brace yourselves rest of CONCACAF. We’re back.

If you’re heading down to Guatemala for the match, stick together, be cool, and be super loud at the ground. Look after one another, and tie your scarves proper. For those of us that remain here, you know the drill. Focus all your psychic energy that’s not required to keep you alive into the lads and their efforts. I’ve looked over their squad, and I know for a fact we can do this. We can get a result at Antigua, return hame and advance to the next round. I feel it in my bones. Let the chips fall where they may.

It’s CONCACAF Champions Cup football, under the lights at the Pensativo. GO ON YOU SOUNDERS!!! GET IN!!!

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

Will Jesus be the player he was in 2022 for the Dallas scoring 18 goals and assisting on six in 33 league appearances, or will he play more as he did last season when he made 22 league appearances scoring five goals and assisting on six?

The Good News

Antigua has played only four matches in this tournament in their history. They have yet to win a match (0-2-2), and were eliminated in the Group Stage of the 2016-17 edition.

Sounders have only been defeated by a Guatemalan club once. A 2:0 defeat at Comunicaciones in Guatemala City in 1997.

Total estimated transfer value of the Antigua GFC squad: €4.23M. Total estimated transfer fee of the Sounders FC squad: €51.6M. Although I would generally root for the scrappy underdog in this scenario, because Late-Stage Capitalism isn’t helping the likes of us, Fam. It would appear, on paper, assuming that asset value rules all (it doesn’t) we have the better squad. I’ve just wondered why I wrote this bit. It’s kind of gross. Nevertheless, you know, no stone unturned.

In an effort to shore up the squad, Sounders FC added high-profile signings Jesus Ferreira, and Paul Arriola. We also added Travian Sousa from our Reserve team, Leo Burney from Ballard FC via Sounders FC Academy and Sounders FC Reserves, and re-acquired Korean centre-half Kim Kee-hee. Ferreira and Arriola add a bit of goal scoring and playmaking punch. The rest will provide depth to our defence. In the words of my maternal Grandfather in his old skool Brooklyn accent: “It couldn’t hoit”.

Sounders FC have faced clubs from Central America in the………tournament (they keep changing the bloody name) and have a record of 10-5-8 as tabulated by CONCACAF. Sounders FC have played 50 matches in the CONCACAF Champions Cup/League/Cup and have an all-time record of 21-11-18. That’s a fair amount better than average in my reckoning.

We return our first-choice goalkeeper and back four, who together, ably aided by our holding midfielders, posted the best defensive record in the league last season. Although veteran goalkeeper Stefan Frei is 38 years-old, and doing his best Peter Shilton impression, he appeared to be fit, quick, and spry in pre-season highlight videos. Conclusion: We’re far better than just competent at defending, and when the stars line up correctly, good at turning that defence into a decisive counter-attack.

Sounders played well in pre-season. We didn’t lose a match, and did reasonably well against decent opposition. We could stand to tighten up at the back a bit, but I think that will come with match sharpness, repetition, and getting back to basics in training.

The Bad News

Rusnak had a minor injury which was described as a “tweak in his quadriceps”. The Gaffer has described him as being recovered enough to “have a good chance” at playing in the Wednesday night CONCACAF Champions Cup tie in Guatemala. Let’s hope that Albert remains fit and is fully recovered. Preferably in time to play in this match, but ideally not if he requires more recovery time. I ask myself who will play the #10 role if Rusnak is injured for any length of time. Cristian, Leyva, Arriola, Joao Paulo, Ferreira? Yeh, I don’t know. Maybe we should have thought that through a bit.

Baker-Whiting is out with a hamstring issue. Let’s hope he regains fitness soon, we’re playing in as many as four competitions this season, and we’re going to need him to play. A lot.

Although Kim will add depth at defence, he’s 35 years-old, and thus closer to the end of his career than the beginning. It would have made more sense to have Stuart Hawkins play those minutes and maybe added a true old skool target man centre-forward instead.

Ferreira has seen his goalscoring production decrease over the last three seasons from 18 in 2022, to 12 in 2023, and last season only five goals. Let’s hope he plays a bit more like his old self this season. Counterpoint: Ferreira is also a very good playmaker, so he’s not a one-trick-pony and has versatility and nuance as a part of his game.

The leading scorers for the Sounders FC in this competition are Montero (9 goals), Lodeiro (7), Fucito (5), Evans (4), Neagle (4), Morris (4), and Fernandez (4). Of the aforementioned footballers, only Morris is still with the club.

In addition to the sale of Josh Atencio to Colorado Rapids for €1.24M, Chris Aquino, who scored 10 goals last season for the Sounders Reserves has been sold to FC Juarez of Mexico’s Liga MX. The terms of Aquino’s sale were undisclosed. The overarching theme seems to be that Sounders FC are in the business of selling off young talent who can’t seem to find their way into the Sounders squad or team and instead purchasing players that are at or near the end of their careers. Both Atencio and Aquino are United States youth internationals. I get that Aquino probably wasn’t going to take minutes away from Rusnak, or de la Vega, even if he was offered a senior contract - which he wasn’t to the best of my knowledge. With Atencio though, it’s extremely confusing why he was sold. Atencio is extremely versatile can can play an attacking or holding role in midfield, and can also deputise at centre-half in a pinch. This leaves me wondering if Josh wanted to leave the club, because he was getting stifled playing behind Cristian, Joao Paulo, and Vargas. Atencio in his six years with Sounders FC, playing primarily in the defensive midfield, has made 91 appearances in the league (average of about 15 appearances per year) and was in the team for league matches only 48 times (average of 8 selections per year) If it’s going to be Cristian and Vargas getting most of the minutes at the #6 and #8, their cover is going to be Joao Paulo and with Atencio gone, Danny Leyva. Leyva has made 66 appearances in the league for Sounders FC over his six years with the senior team. That’s an average of 11 appearances a season. Guess how many times Leyva was in the team at kick-off in the league? 27 times. That’s an average of 4.5 times a year that Leyva was selected in the team for league matches. Leyva went out on loan at Colorado Rapids in 2023 and made 16 appearances for them, including making it into the team six times. It should also be pointed out that Leyva is also a United States youth international (22 caps and two goals over four different age levels). So in the final analysis, we’ve sold a talented and versatile 23 year-old in Atencio, who was recently on the United States U23 team for the Olympics (the de facto U23 FIFA World Cup), and an 18 year-old in Aquino who scored 10 goals for the reserves last season and is also a United States youth international. We have purchased Kim, a 35 year-old defender, and Arriola, a 30 year-old midfielder. Why can’t young Sounders Academy and Reserves players get in the team at the senior level other than the obvious exception of Obed Vargas? Make it make sense. Why does Sounders FC excel at pissing away young talent, either allowing them to waste away on the bench or selling them on to make room for 30-something mercenaries to take their places? It’s not sustainable from a footballing or a business perspective.

The Side I Would Select

With the goal being to win everything, you’ve gotta play your top players in the CONCACAF Champions Cup for sure. Apparently de la Vega has been playing at lot at the #10 during pre-season. I guess we’ll see.

GK     Frei

RB     Nouhou

RCH    Ragen

LCH    Gomez Andrade

LB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Morris

CAM   de la Vega

RF     Arriola

CF     Ferreira

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

Rusnak trained in full recently, and the Gaffer said in his presser that Albert is making the trip to Guatemala. I doubt he’d travel for an international club match, and then sit the bench. Although you never know with Schmetzer, who may use Rusnak as a substitute or have him in the team and then substitute him with the match under control, or after reaching a minutes cap if one has been set by the club’s medical staff. Too many questions, and as always, no firm and concrete answers.

GK     Frei

RB     Nouhou

RCH    Ragen

LCH    Gomez Andrade

LB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Morris

CAM   Rusnak

RF     Arriola

CF     Ferreira

Intangibles

Altitude. Antigua, Guatemala has an elevation of 5069 feet. That’s almost as high as Colorado Rapids’ Victory Way ground (5164 feet), and significantly higher than Salt Lake’s State Street ground (4450 feet). There are two strategies to prepare for pro athletics at altitude. One is acclimation over several days. The other is to arrive as close to the match as possible. Schmetzer will definitely choose the second option, as he and his staff (erroneously) think the affects of altitude are psychological. Seriously, Schmetzer actually said that. Out loud.

Refereeing. In matches that feature American clubs playing away matches in Central America the officiating is sometimes heavily biased in the favour of the hosts. So we’ll see how that sorts out, and whether or not we get a fair shake.

Politics. America has been interfering with governments in Central America for a very, very long time. And “interfering with governments” is the most charitable way to state it considering that what actually happened was regime changes and sometimes getting mercenaries to murder, disappear, or smear political opposition and anyone who would get in the way of American corporate profits. As a result, we are hated. This of course extends to sport. I wouldn’t expect a warm welcome at the Estadio Pensativo. I hope I’m wrong about that. The warm welcome I mean. The rest is a matter of public record.

Form. Sounders have had 6½ pre-season matches against Puskas Akademia (Hungary), Aalborg BK (Denmark), IFK Norrkoping and Hammarby IF (Sweden). The training match against Aalborg BK consisted of three 45 minute periods. Sounders then returned home for two matches against Louisville City FC of the USL Championship. Sounders finished with a pre-season record of 4-2-0. In stark contrast, Antigua GFC are already 8 matches into the Liga Nacional’s Torneo Clausura, with a record of 5-1-2, and definitely will have the edge in match sharpness.

General notes on personnel

Antigua GFC transfers IN:

Apaolaza (Carabobo FC) free

Flores (Metropolitanos) free

Diego Santis (Suchitepequez) free

Lang (Coatepeque) free

Prillwitz (Guastatoya) free

Rosales (CSD Municipal)

Oscar Santis (Dinamo Tbilisi) free

Sican (CD Marquense) free

Diaz (San Benito FC) free

Espinoza (Zacapa) undisclosed

Gomez (Pereira) loan

Franco (Oaxaca) end of loan

Ramirez (Achuapa) end of loan

Mora (Quiche) end of loan

Antigua GFC transfers OUT:

Linares (CSD Municipal) free

Gamboa (UMECIT FC) free

Alas (Guastatoya) free

Grajeda (Communicaciones) free

Mora (Juventude Copalera) free

Williams (Hapoel Raanana) loan

Macareno (Real Esteli FC) loan

Paz (Malacateco) loan

Trigueros (Xinabajul) loan

Caicedo - released

Gomez (Pereira) end of loan

Comparison against common opponents

n/a

Know Thine Enemy

Antigua GFC as they lined up in their 6:0 victory over Xinabajul at the Estadio Pensativo on 12 February.

GOALKEEPER

Estuardo Sican, 29

Guatemala

Notable Clubs: Xinabajul (22/0), Municipal (2/0), Marquense (9/0), Antigua GFC (1/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €75,000

Notes: Full name: Estuardo Santiago Sican Avila.

DEFENCE

Angel Diaz, 25

Argentina

Notable Clubs: Coban Imperial (24/0), Antigua GFC (17/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €175,000

Notes: Full name: Angel Santiago Diaz.

Kevin Grijalva, 30

Guatemala

Notable Clubs: Comunicaciones (31/1), Antigua GFC (59/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €150,000

Notes: Full name: Kevin Josue Grijalva Gonzalez. Won seven Guatamalan league titles, and a CONCACAF League title with Comunicaciones.

Alexander Robinson, 36

Costa Rica

Notable Clubs: Saprissa (161/13), Juventude (8/0), Antigua GFC (33/1), Grecia (14/0), Comunicaciones (29/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €50,000

Notes: Full name: Alexander Robinson Delgado. Developed by Saprissa. Won five Costa Rican league titles with Saprissa. Won a Guatemalan league title with Antigua GFC. Won a CONCACAF League with Comunicaciones.

Jose Galvez, 25

Guatemala

Notable Clubs: Antigua GFC (97/4), Iztapa (11/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €200,000

Notes: Full name: Jose Miguel Galvez Ruiz. Won two Guatemalan league titles with Antigua GFC.

MIDFIELD

Diego Fernandez, 19

Guatemala 

Notable Clubs: Antigua GFC (19/4)

Estimated Transfer Value: Not listed

Notes: Diego Andre Fernandez Chinchilla.

Jose Rosales, 31

Guatemala (6/1)

Notable Clubs: Malacateco (29/0), Xelaju (12/0), Deportivo Petapa (19/1), Municipal (179/1), Xinabajul (14/0), Guastatoya (15/1), Antigua GFC (6/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €125,000

Notes: Full name: Jose Mario Rosales Marroquin. Won a Guatemalan league title with Municipal.

Selvin Sagastume, 17

Guatemala

Notable Clubs: Nueva Concepcion (6/0), Antigua GFC (10/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €100,000

Notes: Full name: Selvin Saul Sagastume Morales. Developed by Nueva Concepcion. Has played for Guatemala (9/3) at youth levels.

Cristian Hernandez, 29

Argentina

Notable Clubs: Sanarate (34/8), Comunicaciones (35/4), Perez Zeledon (9/0), Iztapa (59/18), Antigua GFC (109/24)

Estimated Transfer Value: €225,000

Notes: Full name: Cristian Alexis Hernandez.

FORWARD

Oscar Santis, 25

Guatemala (38/11)

Notable Clubs: Suchitepequez (23/0), Comunicaciones (109/28), Antigua GFC (35/10), Dinamo Tbilisi (29/3)

Estimated Transfer Value: €100,000

Notes: Full name: Oscar Alexander Santis Cayax. Developed by Suchitepequez. Won a CONCACAF League and a Guatemalan league title with Comunicaciones. Won a Georgian Super Cup and Georgian Cup with Dinamo Tbilisi. Named CONCACAF League Best Young Player 2021.

Dewinder Bradley, 30

Guatemala (2/0)

Notable Clubs: Comunicaciones (19/1), Nueva Concepcion (21/9), Antigua GFC (102/34) 

Estimated Transfer Value: €200,000

Notes: Full name: Dewinder Deesmith Bradley Jolon. Won a Guatemalan league title with Comunicaciones.

Familiar Faces

None.

Squads

Antigua GFC from:

Moran, Sican, Cabrera, Grijalva, Juan Guillermo Carbonell, Ardon, Diaz, Diego Santis, Castellanos, Robinson, Juan Fernando Carbonell, Galvez, Rosales, Vasquez, Oscar Santis, Espinoza, Fernandez, de Leon, Sagastume, Lang, Franco, Hernandez, Apaolaza, Bradley, Guerra, Prillwitz, Flores, Romario Luiz, Avila.

Sounders FC from:

Frei, Thomas, Baker, Bell, Burney, Gomez Andrade, Hawkins, Kim, Nouhou, Ragen, Alex, Sousa, Joao Paulo, Leyva, Cristian, Rusnak, Vargas, Arriola, de la Vega, Ferreira, Morris, Minoungou, Musovski, Rothrock.

Note: Injury and squad information for Sounders FC is based solely on the Gaffer’s Tuesday presser, there is no ability to cross-reference or confirm as there is no media support from the club or MLS for non-league matches. CONCACAF released match notes, but it mostly contains talking points for commentators and studio presenters. As for Antigua GFC there is no information that I could find, so I really have no idea what their injury situation is.

Injury List

Antigua GFC -

OUT: none (as far as I know).

MATCHDAY DECISION: none (as far as I know).

Sounders FC -

OUT: Baker-Whiting (hamstring).

MATCHDAY DECISION: Rusnak (quadriceps).

Discipline

First match in the tournament, so the disciplinary slate is clean for all players.

Fun Fact

Sounders FC Reserves saw a burst of transfer activity towards the end of January, signing five players to MLS Next Pro contracts. Goalkeeper Mohammed Shour (Sounders FC Academy), defender Birame Diaw (Standard Liege), and midfielders Omar Hassan (Sounders FC Academy), Rafferty Pedder (Queens Park Rangers), and Danny Robles (re-signed). Welcome back, Danny, and a warm welcome to our new signings. Make us proud, lads.