MLS Seattle Sounders FC

Sounders FC News & Notes

Published on October 9, 2012 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Seattle Sounders FC News Release


Sounders FC on Break before Final Three Matches

Major League Soccer is on pause for a one week international break as 45 players from across the league will represent 19 countries in upcoming World Cup Qualifiers. For Sounders FC, it's the last bye week of the season before the Rave Green makes its final push to the MLS Cup Playoffs.

Seattle will play two of its final three matches at CenturyLink Field, hosting Real Salt Lake on October 17 in the league's first match after the international break. The match will feature the second and third seeds in the West in a battle for playoff position.

The regular season will conclude with a home fixture against playoff-hungry FC Dallas on October 21 and an away contest against West rivals LA Galaxy on October 28.

Sounders FC will also wrap up CONCACAF Champions League group play at home against CD Marathon of Honduras on October 24. Seattle has already qualified for the quarterfinal round.

The break kicked off in grand style as Sounders FC hosted the Portland Timbers in one of the most memorable matches in league history. The second-largest attendance for a standalone MLS match was on hand to witness Eddie Johnson and Fredy Montero lead Sounders FC to a 3-0 win over the Timbers.

Johnson's goal continued his record-setting pace as his season total has now reached 14, just ahead of the club's all-time leading scorer Montero who set his own career mark at 13 goals. Michael Gspurning has continued his stingy play in the Seattle nets as he recorded his seventh shutout of the season to lead MLS with a 0.74 goals against average.

The win propelled Sounders FC into third in the West, jumping the LA Galaxy and pulling within three points of second-place Real Salt Lake. Seattle has a game in hand on all other playoff teams, and will have head-to-head meetings with both RSL and LA before season's end.

Seattle also regained control of the Cascadia Cup. With nine points in the six derby matches, Sounders FC sits one point ahead of Portland. With hopes to defend the Cup, Seattle will keep a close eye on the final Cascadia Cup match of the season on October 20 as the Vancouver Whitecaps FC hosts the Timbers. A Vancouver win or draw would award the Cascadia Cup to Seattle for the second straight year.

Three Sounders FC players will take full advantage of the upcoming international break as Adam Johansson (Sweden), Eddie Johnson (USA) and Mario Martinez (Honduras) have joined their national teams for qualifiers on October 12 and October 16.

The rest of the group will remain in Seattle to rest and recuperate before making the final push to the playoffs. The team will train three times this week before taking Saturday off. Sounders FC will return to the training pitch on Sunday to prepare for Wednesday's clash with Real Salt Lake.

Tickets for Sounders FC home matches are available through www.SoundersFC.com, all Ticketmaster Outlets, CenturyLink Field Box Office or by calling 877-MLS-GOAL.

Sounders FC Fast Facts

* Sounders FC has played the most competitive games (172) since entering MLS in 2009

* Michael Gspurning is first in MLS with a 0.74 goals against average, and also leads the league in winning percentage at .722 (11-3-4)

* Mauro Rosales is third in MLS with 13 assists and tied for first with five game-winning assists

* Eddie Johnson is tied-fifth in the Budweiser Golden Boot Race with 14 goals. He has scored the third-most MLS goals of any US players (Chris Wondolowski - 25; Kenny Cooper - 16)

* Fredy Montero is tied-seventh in MLS with 13, setting a career-high for single season scoring

* Sounders FC is 5-2-2 when Christian Tiffert plays, outscoring opponents 20-7

* Seattle has not lost consecutive MLS games in 63 outings (32-12-19) - the longest stretch in league history

* Sounders FC is 6-1-3 across all competitions in 2012 when on six or seven days rest, and is 6-2-2 in MLS matches immediately following Cascadia Cup games

* Seattle has the second fewest losses (7) in MLS this season

* Sounders FC is 13-0-3 when scoring first this season. Seattle's current 30-game unbeaten streak (24-0-6) when scoring first is the second-longest active streak in MLS (New York - 56)

And Then There Were 12...

Just 12 teams have survived the first 31 weeks of the Major League Soccer regular season. With four teams in the West and two in the East already qualified for the playoffs, only six teams remain in contention for the final four playoff spots. In the West, San Jose clinched the No. 1 playoff seed and will have home field advantage throughout the postseason. Seattle is in third place, three points behind Real Salt Lake and two points ahead of LA Galaxy with one game in hand. Seattle, Salt Lake and Los Angeles are all guaranteed to finish no lower than the fourth seed, ensuring at least one home playoff game for each team. Vancouver leads Dallas by four points for the fifth and final spot.

Western Conference

Seed 1 (y-San Jose Earthquakes) vs. Seed 4 (x-LA Galaxy)/Seed 5 (Vancouver Whitecaps FC)

Seed 2 (x-Real Salt Lake) vs. Seed 3 (x-Seattle Sounders FC)

Eastern Conference

Seed 1 (x-Sporting Kansas City) vs. Seed 4 (New York Red Bulls)/Seed 5 (Houston Dynamo)

Seed 2 (x-Chicago Fire) vs. Seed 3 (D.C. United)

x - clinched playoff spot

y - clinched No. 1 playoff seed in Conference

On the Bubble

FC Dallas is four points out of the fifth and final playoff spot in the West with two games remaining.

Columbus Crew is one point out of the final spot in the East with two games remaining.

Playoff Notes

The first tiebreaker is goals scored. Seattle has scored the third-most goals (48) in the West behind San Jose (69) and LA Galaxy (56), and just two goals ahead of Salt Lake (46). The next tiebreaker is fewest Disciplinary Points. Seattle (545) has fewer than Salt Lake (547), San Jose (567) and Vancouver (634).

A Look Ahead

The final stretch of the season will be an exciting time for Sounders FC as each match holds special significance. In the October 17 meeting with Real Salt Lake, Seattle will have the opportunity to pull level with RSL for second in the West. The following Sunday, Sounders FC will be able to turn their game in hand into points and possibly end the playoff hopes of FC Dallas. Then, a midweek Champions League match will allow Seattle to potentially earn the top seed in the quarterfinals as they wrap up group play. And the season will conclude with an imperative matchup at LA Galaxy as both sides are sure to be battling for playoff positions.

Same Lineup, Same Result

Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid started the same lineup in back-to-back games for just the second time this season. The consistency in the Starting XI has proved successful for Seattle. Last week, Schmid started the same group that earned a scoreless draw in Vancouver and captured a 3-0 victory over the Timbers. Previously this season, Schmid used the starting lineup from the 2-1 road win in Colorado to capture a 4-0 home win over the LA Galaxy. When starting the same lineup in back-to-back games, Seattle is 3-0-1 with nine goals scored and one goal allowed. Overall, Schmid has used 28 different starting lineups in 31 games this season, near the most in MLS. Twenty-five different starters have been used, and 27 of 33 available players have appeared throughout the season.

The Cascadia Kings

Fredy Montero and Eddie Johnson understand the importance of the Cascadia Cup. In six derby matches this season, the two forwards have scored eight of Seattle's nine goals, with the only other goal coming from an own goal forced by Montero after a dangerous run in the box. Sunday's match against Portland marked the third time that both Montero and Johnson scored in a derby match this season.

Fredy and Eddie Keep Scoring, and Scoring

The success of Seattle's forward pairing reaches far beyond the Pacific Northwest. Fredy Montero and Eddie Johnson are among the league's most productive forward pairings, registering 27 goals combined this season. Only two other teams in MLS feature a forward pairing more productive than Montero and Johnson. San Jose's Chris Wondolowski (25) and Alan Gordon (13) lead the league with 38 goals and New York's Kenny Cooper (16) and Thierry Henry (14) have combined for 30 goals. Salt Lake features a dangerous forward pairing in Alvaro Saborio (17) and Fabian Espindola (9), and the LA Galaxy have Robbie Keane (15) and Landon Donovan (7) who have combined for 22 goals from the forward position. Overall, 34 of Seattle's 48 goals this season have been scored by forwards, which is already 13 more than the most productive year for Seattle forwards in 2009.

Setting the Standard

Since joining Sounders FC in 2009, Fredy Montero has been one of the league's most prolific goal scorers. Montero has scored at least 10 goals in all four seasons, and set his career-high on Sunday with his 13th goal of the 2012 campaign. He has 47 goals in regular season play since 2009, two behind D.C. United's Dwayne De Rosario (49) with Chris Wondolowski (66) leading the way. Montero is three goals away from hitting the 50-goal mark, and could become one of the fastest players to score 50 goals in league history.

Quickest to 50 Goals

Years Player Team Games Goals

1996-2002 Ante Razov LA Galaxy/Chicago 105 51

1996-99 Giovanni Savarese New York/New England 107 50

1997-2001 Ronald Cerritos San Jose 111 51

2007-12 Conor Casey Toronto FC/Colorado 114 50

2001-08 Brian Ching LA Galaxy/San Jose 119 50

2009-12 Fredy Montero Seattle Sounders FC 116 47

Parke on the Pitch

Jeff Parke is one of a kind. The defensive stalwart for Sounders FC made his 200th start on Sunday against the Timbers - the most of any sixth round draft pick in league history. The next-closest sixth round draft pick is San Jose's Alan Gordon who has started 87 games, 113 fewer than Parke. Seattle's Defender of the Year from 2011 has helped lead the club to the league's second-stingiest defense in 2012, allowing one goal per game through the first 31 matches.

Attendance Records Broken

Sounders FC hosted the second-largest crowd for a standalone MLS match when 66,452 packed CenturyLink Field on Sunday night for Seattle's derby match against Portland. The attendance also marked the largest attendance for a MLS game at CenturyLink Field, and ranks seventh in league history for a MLS match, including games coupled with international doubleheaders.

All told, over one million people (1,052,309) have attended a Sounders FC match this season, including home and road matches across all competitions and the Chelsea FC friendly (MLS Reserve League not included). There have been 740,839 people who have entered the gates at CenturyLink Field for matches this season, of which 656,330 attended MLS matches (average of 43,755).

Top 10 MLS Single Game Attendance Records

Attendance Date Result Location

92,650^ August 6, 2006 Chivas USA 1 vs. New England 1 LA Memorial Coliseum

92,216^ June 16, 1996 LA Galaxy 3 vs. Tampa Bay Mutiny 2 Rose Bowl

88,816^ August 10, 2005 Chivas USA 0 vs. LA Galaxy 1 LA Memorial Coliseum

73,123+ July 4, 1999 San Jose 2 vs. DC United 1 Stanford Stadium

70,550^ August 9, 2006 Houston 0 vs. LA Galaxy 1 Reliant Stadium

69,255 April 13, 1996 LA Galaxy 2 vs. Metro Stars 1 Rose Bowl

66,452 October 7, 2012 Sounders FC 3 vs. Portland Timbers 0 CenturyLink Field

66,237 August 18, 2007 New York 5 vs. LA Galaxy 4 Giants Stadium

64,140 October 15, 2011 Sounders FC 2 vs. San Jose 1 CenturyLink Field

62,703+ July 4, 1996 LA Galaxy 0 vs. New England 1 Rose Bowl

^ - International Doubleheader

+ - July 4

Big Crowds, Big Wins

The big crowds have translated to big wins for Sounders FC. In games with an attendance more than 55,000, Sounders FC is 4-0-0, outscoring opponents 11-1. The attack has put on a show in all four matches, scoring at least two goals in each game, including 3-nil and 4-nil wins this season. The defense has also played strong, posting three shutouts, allowing just one goal to MLS scoring leader Chris Wondolowski. The team is also undefeated (5-0-1) in MLS games featuring a crowd of more than 40,000, holding a plus-15 goal differential (16 goals scored with one goal allowed).

Sounders Games Aplenty

No team has played as many games as Sounders FC since the team joined MLS in 2009. Seattle has played 172 games across all competitions, five more than second-most Toronto FC. Sounders FC has played the most Cup games (Open Cup or Canadian Championship), and has played the second-most CONCACAF Champions League games, three fewer than Toronto. After the 2012 MLS regular season concludes on October 28, Seattle will have played the second-most competitive games (45) this year (Toronto FC - 46).

Most Games Played in 2012 (through end of regular season)

Team Total Games MLS Cup CCL

Toronto 46 34 4 8

Seattle 45 34 5 6

LA Galaxy 41 34 1 6

Sporting KC 39 34 5 0

Houston 39 34 1 4

Most Games Played Since 2009 (through October 9, 2012)

Team Total Games MLS Playoffs Cup CCL

Seattle 172 125 6 19 22

Toronto 167 126 0 16 25

Columbus 154 126 5 7 16

LA 153 126 11 3 13

Real Salt Lake 153 126 9 3 15

Houston 151 126 7 7 11

Dallas 143 126 5 4 8

Cascadia Cup to be Decided October 20

The 2012 Cascadia Cup will be decided at BC Place on October 20 in the final derby match of the season as Vancouver Whitecaps FC hosts the Portland Timbers. A Whitecaps win or draw would award the Cascadia Cup to Seattle while Portland must beat Vancouver to capture the Cup.

All nine regular season MLS matches between Seattle, Portland and Vancouver will be included in the 2012 Cascadia Cup competition. The team with the most points after all matches is the winner. The first tiebreaker is head-to-head points, followed by head-to-head goal differential and then goals scored. Seattle holds the advantage in head-to-head goal differential over Portland, forcing the Timbers to win outright with most points.

Cascadia Cup Schedule/Results

Date Location Result

May 19 BC Place, Vancouver Sounders FC 2 at Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2

May 26 JELD-WEN Field, Portland Vancouver Whitecaps FC 1 at Portland Timbers 1

June 24 JELD-WEN Field, Portland Sounders FC 1 at Portland Timbers 2

August 18 CenturyLink Field, Seattle Sounders FC 2 vs. Vancouver Whitecaps 0

August 25 JELD-WEN Field, Portland Vancouver Whitecaps FC 1 at Portland Timbers 2

September 15 JELD-WEN Field, Portland Sounders FC 1 at Portland Timbers 1

September 29 BC Place, Vancouver Sounders FC 0 at Vancouver Whitecaps FC 0

October 7 CenturyLink Field, Seattle Sounders FC 3 vs. Portland Timbers 0

October 20 BC Place, Vancouver Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. Portland Timbers

2012 Cascadia Cup Standings

Team GP Record (points) Goal Differential (GF/GA)

Portland Timbers 5 2-1-2 (8 points) -1 (6/7)

Seattle Sounders FC 5 2-1-3 (9 points) +4 (9/5)

Vancouver Whitecaps FC 5 0-2-3 (3 points) -3 (4/7)

MLS Goes International

All 19 MLS teams will have the weekend off from competition as the schedule accounts for international play. Ahead of 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches this week, as well as the CFU Caribbean Cup, a total of 45 MLS players were called up to 19 different national teams.

Eddie Johnson will be in familiar company as seven MLS players were called up to the US National Team. Mario Martinez will join a group of five other MLS players who will represent Honduras. Adam Johansson is the only MLS player called up by Sweden. Johansson is one of just four players to get called up by a European national team. New York's Joel Lindpere (Estonia), LA Galaxy forward Robbie Keane (Ireland) and Vancouver forward Kenny Miller (Scotland) are the only others.

Despite the absence of three players on the Sounders FC roster, Seattle's next opponent will face a similar situation with four players away on international duty (Will Johnson/Canada, Alvaro Saborio/Costa Rica, Nick Rimando/USA and Kyle Beckerman/USA).

World Cup Qualifiers (featuring Sounders FC players)

Friday, October 12

Honduras at Panama - 7:05 p.m.

Sweden at Faroe Islands - 9 a.m.

USA at Atigua and Barbuda - 4 p.m.

Tuesday, October 16

Canada at Honduras - 1 p.m.

Guatemala at USA - 4:15 p.m.

Sweden at Germany - 11:45 a.m.

Three Sounders FC Players Called In for World Cup Qualifying Matches

Seattle Sounders FC announced on Monday that Adam Johansson, Eddie Johnson and Mario Martinez have been called in by their national teams for upcoming 2014 World Cup Qualifiers.

Johansson, 29, will join Sweden for two qualifiers against Faroe Islands on October 12 in Torshavn, Faroe Islands and against Germany on October 16 in Berlin. Johansson currently has 11 caps for Sweden.

Sweden is in Group C and won its first qualifying match against Kazakhstan, 2-0. Germany leads the group with wins in its first two matches.

Johnson, 28, will join the U.S. National Team for qualifiers against Antigua and Barbuda on October 12 in St. John's and against Guatemala on October 16 in Kansas City.

Johnson currently has 41 caps and 12 goals for the U.S. since his debut in 2004. His last appearance for the national team was a scoreless draw against Colombia on October 12, 2010, at PPL Park in Chester, Penn.

The U.S. is currently tied with Guatemala and Jamaica with seven points through four matches in CONCACAF's Group A. Both the U.S. and Guatemala are even with six goals scored and four goals against.

Martinez, 23, will join Honduras for two qualifiers. The first match is against Panama on October 12 in Panama City. The second match is against Canada on October 16 in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. Martinez currently has 19 caps for Honduras.

Honduras is in CONCACAF's Group C and is currently tied with Canada for second with seven points, two points behind group leader Panama.

Academy Squads Cruise over SoCal

Sounders FC Academy went unbeaten in Southern California this past weekend, picking up three wins and a draw against Western Conference foes Arsenal FC and Real SoCal. The U18's drew with Arsenal on Saturday before defeating Real SoCal, 3-1, on Sunday behind two goals from Sam Langston. Denis Kalamar netted three goals over the weekend-giving him five on the season-as the U16's came away with a weekend sweep.

The Academy returns to action with a trip to California on October 20 for a matchup with San Juan Soccer Club.

Sounders FC U18 (USSDA) (1-1-3, 6 points)

Sounders FC at Arsenal FC (October 6) - D, 1-1

Isidro Prado-Huerta put the Rave Green up 1-0 with a 15th minute goal on a ball from Jordan Kollars, but Arsenal tied it up five minutes later and the score would stay level for a draw.

Sounders FC Goals (assists): Isidro Prado-Huerta (Jordan Kollars).

Sounders FC at Real SoCal (October 7) - W, 3-1

Sam Langston opened up his 2012-13 account with a brace as the U18's picked up their first win of the season. Jordan Morris and Ike Crook assisted Langston's goals before Duncan McCormick added a third score in the second half. Real SoCal got their score goal on a late penalty kick.

Sounders FC Goals (assists): Sam Langston (Jordan Morris), Sam Langston (Ike Crook), Duncan McCormick.

Sounders FC U16 (USSDA) (2-1-2, 8 points)

Sounders FC at Arsenal FC (October 6) - W, 1-0

Denis Kalamar scored the lone goal in the first half on a Sean Bowman assist as goalkeeper Evan Munn picked up his first clean sheet of the season.

Sounders FC Goals (assists): Denis Kalamar (Sean Bowman).

Sounders FC at Real SoCal (October 7) - W, 3-2

Kalamar scored two goals, including a late game-winning penalty kick, in a comeback win to close out the weekend. Marcus Machado fed Kalamar to put Seattle up 1-0 in the first half before a SoCal equalizer immediately after. After the home squad took a 2-1 in the beginning of the second half, Abdi Abdullah tied it up for the Rave Green with a 25-yard bomb. With the final whistle drawing near, David Olsen was taken down in the box for a penalty kick, which Kalamar converted for a 3-2 final.

Sounders FC Goals (assists): Denis Kalamar (Marcus Machado), Abdi Abdullah, Denis Kalamar (PK).

Sounders FC U17

Sounders FC vs. NW Nationals U18 (September 26) - W, 4-1

Sounders FC Goals: Elliot Havens, Odason Pelogi, Drew Barker, Shane Gomez.

Sounders FC U15

Sounders FC vs. Rush U16 (September 26) - D, 1-1

Sounders FC Goals: Miles Sanchez.

Upcoming Player Appearances

Tuesday, October 9 - David Estrada at Hard Rock Café (5 p.m.)

Tuesday, October 9 - Celebrity Waiter Night at Metropolitan Grill (6 p.m.) Players include Michael Gspurning, Zach Scott, Andy Rose and more.

Saturday, October 13 - Osvaldo Alonso at Home Depot (11 a.m.)

Monday, October 15 - Steve Zakuani at Hard Rock Café (5 p.m.)

Throw-ins

Christian Tiffert and Adam Johansson were named to the MLSsoccer.com Team of the Week for Week 31. It is Tiffert's second time being honored and Johansson's first...Sounders Academy product Michael Gallagher scored for the University of Washington in a 2-1 upset over eighth-ranked UCLA Monday night, snapping the Bruins' 16-game conference winning streak...Fredy Montero and Osvaldo Alonso are both one yellow card caution away from receiving a one-game suspension. Alonso has one game to go before receiving the good behavior incentive. Marc Burch, Servando Carrasco, Leo Gonzalez, Jeff Parke, Andy Rose and Zach Scott are all two cards away from suspension.

Check out the Seattle Sounders FC Statistics

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Major League Soccer Stories from October 9, 2012


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