Seattle, WA – In the second ever Seattle vs Portland doubleheader, the best rivalry in MLS produced a scoreless draw. The Sounders were the better team on the attack, but the Timbers noticeably packed defensive presence cleared away anything that Seattle tried to produce. There were a handful of tight chances on the day, but the Sounders poor finishing trend continues to hurt them when it comes to scoring and results. The one point keeps the Sounders atop the Western Conference, but also means that they’ve gone winless in the two Seattle vs Portland doubleheaders. In addition, through three matches so far this season, the Sounders have lost every Cascadia match they’ve played in this season.
Pre-match scenes at Lumen Field, as both the Seattle and Portland support groups had TIFO’s ready (Photos by Nate Koppelman)
Early danger
The first half of this match between Seattle and Portland saw both sides present no real danger between them, while the Sounders dominated possession. Seattle has been a side that’s created plenty of opportunity and chance throughout their season, failing to capitalize on it as of late, but none of that was evident through the first 45 minutes of this contest. All that middling possession, while they were making sloppy mistakes in their own half that the Timbers failed to capitalize on. As expected for this rivalry, it was chippy and heated (in terms of temperature and degree of intensity), with 17 fouls total being called and eleven of them against Portland.
Seattle was playing a dangerous game, with how sloppy and careless they had been in their own half, but the possession they’d controlled made it feel like they were just waiting to bust out of this quiet and get on the attack. With the veterans on this roster and the young talent that had been injected into this starting lineup, there was plenty of potential for the club to get their attack firing. With Raul Ruidiaz and Cristian Roldan on the bench, they were in solid position to do that in the second half.
Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan made his return to the pitch as a substitution in the 57th minute (Photo by Paul Kahl)
Failing to find the follow through
The second half turned the offense up a notch, as both sides were able to generate more from their attack but it failed to result in any score. As they had in the first half, Seattle led the way in terms of offensive statistics but couldn’t make it count. Neither side was able to create a “big chance” and if it was, it came off a mistake made by the opponent. The mistake aspect was mostly the Sounders department, whose sloppy mistakes and occasional cracks in defense gave the Timbers prime opportunity to break through and find a late winner, including a golden giveaway in the final minutes of stoppage time. It was encouraging to see Cristian Roldan, coming in as a 57th minute substitution, provide some spark and help conduct some quality passing, and it’s a good sign moving forward.
When it comes to the result of this rivalry match, neither Roldan or Ruidiaz (who entered at the same time) could be the hero that Seattle needed. Time ran out, and the two rivals split points. Outside of the basic shots, the Sounders dominated the attacking statistics but their generation of opportunities was much lower than it has been this year. Seattle is still looking to put together their finishing and find a rhythm, something that was present through the first portion of the regular season. They’re treading water right now, and their month of June needs to be much better than how May went if they want to stay firmly atop the Western Conference rather than scrapping by.
Seattle defender Nouhou clears a ball, having to make a few big stops late in the match (Photos by Paul Kahl)
Not a poor result, but could’ve been better
While splitting points is never necessarily a bad thing, especially since the Sounders have been downright bad in their recent run of form at Lumen Field. The issue with this match was that again Seattle failed to convert opportunities during a match that they dominated in terms of offensive statistics. That exact scenario has played out numerous times for the Sounders this season already, and it’s the reason why they’re barely hanging on to first place in the West and not extending their lead atop the conference. The chances are there, the talent is putting opportunities in play (including young talent), the club just isn’t finishing them.
Things got heated between teams themselves, as Portland had some animated discussion late (Photo by Nate Koppelman)
What’s next?
Seattle has ended its three match homestand, heading out on the road for two tough matches against current playoff teams in their respective conferences. The next time that the Sounders will do battle is on Saturday, June 10th in the state of North Carolina as they battle Charlotte FC for the second time ever. It’s the first time ever that Seattle will head down to play Charlotte in their building, as Seattle narrowly took a 2-1 result against them at Lumen Field in 2022. The Sounders will look to bounce back and snap out of their recent struggling shape against a Charlotte side that has lost four of their past five.
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Check out Paul Kahl’s match gallery here!
