By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA – For a lot of fans of the club, this seasons start for the Seattle Sounders FC reminds them all too much of the struggles since winning CONCACAF Champions League: playing well in so many facets but failing to convert their chances to totally capitalize on that strong play. While the Sounders weren’t fully healthy following week one in MLS play where they were without multiple starting players, Seattle put out another strong showing but had nothing to show for it in a scoreless draw against visiting Austin FC. It’s a frustrating result, but not the end of the world for the Sounders, yet it’s important to note that missing out on points like these could be the deciding factor in home field advantage or not when we reach the MLS Cup playoffs down the line.
In the pregame festivities, the Seattle Sounders debuted a new light show that features LEDs around Lumen Field. (Photo by Paul Kahl)
A dominating first half, but nothing to show for it
In the offensive statistics of this match, the Sounders dominated Austin in nearly every facet, and it all started in the first half. While not putting clean attempts on Austin goalkeeper Brad Stuver, Seattle was controlling possession of the match and ensuring that they were going to create the chances often in this match. A Josh Atencio attempt within the first twenty minutes didn’t have enough behind it and was collected with relative ease. Winger Leo Chu was able to whip a ball in that grazed the cross bar and went over, and the Sounders had a few attempts that were blocked by Austin defenders in their own box. It wasn’t hard for Seattle to get the ball into those dangerous areas of Austin’s half, it was the issue of making them count, a struggle that Sounders fans know all too well in recent memory.
Seattle Sounders FC midfielder Pedro de La Vega performed well in his first start for the club, with multiple thrilling possessions on the ball. (Photo by Nate Koppelman)
Failing to make it count, even with effective substitutes
The offensive domination continued early to begin the second half, as a Jordan Morris run was promising but Leo Chu’s through ball had been delayed due to hesitation and thus Morris was offside, and Atencio had another attempt on goal fail as it had the power but not the accuracy. Chu had to come off with cramps in the match, speeding up the process of bringing on Raul Ruidiaz as a substitute, and the Peruvian created numerous dangers attempts within his arrival, including a ball that hit the crossbar and down, and a shot that grazed that same bar but was too high. The Sounders continued their offensive push, with little if anything to show for Austin on the other side of the pitch, but it resulted in the same amount of goals: none. This goes down as a “what if” match for Seattle, as the one point surely should’ve been three had their finishing been more clinical or they had gotten a bounce in their favor at just one point in the match.
Seattle Sounders FC goalkeeper Andrew Thomas was strong in his second consecutive start of the season, while not facing much action. (Photo by Paul Kahl)
Next up?
Following today’s scoreless draw with Austin FC, the Seattle Sounders FC will head back out on the road for their next contest. The Sounders head to the East coast for their third match of the season, when they’ll take on the Philadelphia Union on Saturday, March 9th with a kickoff time of 4:30PM PST while being broadcast on Apple TV – MLS Season Pass. Both clubs in that match will be seeking their first win of the season, as Philadelphia has tallied two draws to kick off MLS regular season play and three draws in a row if we’re including their most recent (February 27th) CONCACAF Champions League match. Considering the solid play that they’ve had through the first two matches, yet failing to get results in them, it feels as though a positive result is coming for Seattle and hopefully that’s furthered if the club can get some of their key names back from injury.
Seattle Sounders FC midfielder Josh Atencio earned man of the match honors in the draw, showing strong holding and offensive play throughout the match. (Photo by Nate Koppelman)
Check out photographer Paul Kahl’s photos from the match here
Check out photographer Nate Koppelman’s photos from the match here
