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MLS Seattle Sounders FC

Sounders FC News & Notes

September 8, 2009 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Seattle Sounders FC News Release


Ten days after lifting its first cup, the Seattle Sounders FC launches its run down the stretch of the MLS regular season by returning to the scene of its biggest on-field achievement to date. Seattle visits RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., for Saturday night's match with D.C. United. Kickoff is 4:30 p.m. PT.

This marks the third meeting between the two sides. The Sounders FC (8-6-10, 34 points) defeated D.C. United in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final, 2-1, on September 2, and on June 17 United came from behind to earn at 3-3 league draw on Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field.

Four of Seattle's final six matches will be played on the road. The penultimate home game for the Sounders FC is September 19 against Chivas USA.

The Sounders FC enters the week in fourth place in the Western Conference and seventh overall in the race for the eight MLS playoff berths. United (7-5-12), currently third in the East and ninth overall, hosts Kansas City on Wednesday night. United is one of four teams with 33 points entering the week, and three of those clubs have games in hand on Seattle. Toronto FC has 31.

Seattle returns to MLS play after an idle week and winning its first trophy, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, on September 2. The offense has generated only three goals in the last seven league games, going 1-3-3 over that stretch.

The Sounders FC has earned four points in its last two away matches but those are the only points accrued since the start of August. D.C. United, involved in both CONCACAF Champions League and Open Cup play, is paying its ninth match in 28 days.

Saturday's match will be shown locally on KONG 6/16 and can be heard on News Talk 97.3 KIRO FM with Kevin Calabro and Greg Vanney calling the action. It will be available locally in Spanish on Ke Buena 1210 AM with Rene Aleman, Noe Menendez and Victor Hernandez.

The Chivas USA match, which begins at 12 noon on September 19, will be nationally televised on Fox Soccer Channel.

To purchase tickets to future home games, call 1-877-MLS-GOAL, visit www.SoundersFC.com, any Ticketmaster outlet or the Qwest Field Box office.

Upcoming Competition Schedule (All times Pacific)

Saturday, September 12, 4:30 p.m. - at D.C. United, RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.

Saturday, September 19, 12 p.m. - Chivas USA; Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field

Saturday, September 26, 4:30 p.m. - at New England Revolution, Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Mass.

Saturday, October 3, 4:30 p.m. - at Columbus Crew; Crew Stadium, Columbus, Ohio

Saturday, October 17, 5:30 p.m. - at Kansas City Wizards, Community America Ballpark, Kansas City, Kansas

Upcoming Training Schedule, Septemeber 8-18 (subject to change):

Tuesday, September 8 - Training at Starfire Sports Complex, 10 a.m.

Wednesday, September 9 - Training at Starfire Sports Complex, 10 a.m.

Thursday, September 10 - Travel to Washington, D.C.

Friday, September 11 - Training in Washington, D.C,; tbd

Sunday, September 13 - Travel to Seattle

Monday, September 14 - No Training

Tuesday, September 15 - Training at Starfire Sports Complex, 10 a.m.

Wednesday, September 16 - Training at Starfire Sports Complex, 10 a.m.

Thursday, September 17 - Training on Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field, 10 a.m.

Friday, September 18 - Training at Starfire Sports Complex, 10 a.m.

An Extremely Tight Race

Five points separate six teams currently battling for the final four MLS playoff spots. Seattle is in the thick of the fray, with 34 points. The Sounders FC trails Colorado (36) for the fifth seed. Real Salt Lake, D.C. United, Chivas USA and New England all have 33 points, with Chivas USA and the Revolution having played two fewer games than Seattle. Colorado has one game in hand.

Defending champion Columbus (39) and Houston (40) currently lead their respective divisions. The top two teams in each division automatically qualify for the playoffs, along with the four teams with the next highest totals.

Champions League Spot Secured

CONCACAF officials have confirmed that the Sounders FC has earned one of the four U.S. slots in the 2010-11 CONCACAF Champions League by virtue of the Cup Final victory. The Open Cup winner receives an automatic spot in the Champions League preliminary round. Three other berths, including two group stage slots, will be determined by the outcome of the MLS regular season and playoffs. CONCACAF is the game's governing body for North America, Central America and the Caribbean.

Montero on the Mark

Fredy Montero has found the mark in each of the first two meetings with D.C. United. Montero assisted on Seattle's second goal and scored the third in a 3-3 draw at home on June 17. He also scored the first goal in the U.S. Open Cup Final, a 2-1 win by Sounders FC.

Cards and Effects

Seattle players have served suspensions in five of the last six MLS games, and Freddie Ljungberg will miss this week's match after accumulating his fifth caution against Toronto FC on August 29. Tyrone Marshall is carrying four cautions into his next MLS match, however if he avoids a card his total will be reduced to three for good behavior. Jhon Kennedy Hurtado missed the Cup Final after receiving a red card in the semifinal win over Houston.

Another New Look?

Sigi Schmid made four changes to his Cup Final lineup from the previous outing versus Toronto FC. The alterations were due to both injuries and suspension. This week Schmid may have all of his key players available, save for the suspended Freddie Ljungberg. Tyrone Marshall (right hamstring strain) and Nate Jaqua (concussion) rejoined training this week and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado is eligible for selection after missing the Cup Final due a red card in the semifinal.

Tyson Wahl was paired with Patrick Ianni in central defense in the Cup Final. It was Wahl's first game action since August 2 and all of his nine MLS starts have been at left back. Peter Vagenas was inserted into central midfield and Sebastien Le Toux started in place of Jaqua.

Suddenly Road Warriors

With the majority of remaining matches on the road, the positive reversal of road form is a welcome sight. In the last two away games (1-0-1) the Sounders FC has taken as many points (4) as the previous eight road matches (0-4-4), combined.

Seattle has been stymied at home (0-1-2) since July 11 but has picked up results on the road of late. It ended an eight-game winless streak away from Seattle on August 15 by beating the L.A. Galaxy, 2-0, and the Sounders FC earned a 1-1 draw at Houston on August 23. The win over D.C. United in the Cup Final extended the unbeaten road stretch to three games in all competitions.

All four of Seattle's remaining road games occur in either the Central or Eastern Time Zones, and maybe that's not such a bad thing. The Sounders FC is undefeated (1-0-5) in previous trips outside the Pacific Time Zone, including a 1-0-2 road mark against teams in the East.

Keller at RFK

RFK Stadium continues to hold some good karma for Kasey Keller. After eight career starts at the stadium he remains unbeaten following the 2-1 win over D.C. United in the Open Cup Final. In seven starts for the U.S. National Team in Washington, Keller was unbeaten (5-0-2) while yielding only one goal. The opposition was formidable. Included in those matches was a 1-0 shutout of Argentina in 1999 and a record 4-0 victory over Mexico in 1995. Keller's last USMNT game at RFK was in 2004, a 6-0 romp over Panama in World Cup qualifying.

Seattle to be Well Traveled

This is the second of two trips within 10 days to Washington, D.C., and Seattle will eventually travel over 15,000 miles in September with three trips to the Eastern Times Zone.

Two years from now MLS will have three teams in the Pacific Northwest. Portland and Vancouver join the league in 2011. Projected mileage round trip to Portland (290 miles) and Vancouver (238) will level Seattle's average flight travel with the other MLS clubs. But for now, Sounders FC remains the only team, which means inevitably traveling greater distances than the other clubs.

Based on last season, MLS clubs averaged 31,764 miles per team with New England traveling the farthest (44,940) and Kansas City the shortest (26,790). Sounders FC will travel 46,898 miles this regular season.

Breaking Down Sounders FC Mileage:

Destination Round Trip Miles

4/4 - Toronto FC 4,140

4/18 - Chivas USA 1,918

5/2 - Chicago Fire 3,474

5/16 - FC Dallas 3,362

5/23 - Colorado Rapids 2,072

6/6 - Chivas USA 1,918

6/20 - New York Red Bulls 4,816

8/2 - San Jose Earthquakes 1,418

8/8 - Real Salt Lake 1,402

8/15 - L.A. Galaxy 1,918

8/23 - Houston Dynamo 3,782

9/12 - D.C. United 4,656

9/26 - New England Revolution 4,984

10/3 - Columbus Crew 4,026

10/17 - Kansas City Wizards 3,012

TOTAL 46,898

Sounders FC Claims Fifth Series

By splitting the points against Toronto FC on August 29, Seattle won its sixth season series to date. Already the Sounders FC had won series with Houston, Colorado, San Jose, New York and Los Angeles. The series with Real Salt Lake and Chicago were split and the Sounders FC has lost one series, to Chivas USA.

Back Four Shuffle Continues

Seattle's back four has been constantly shuffled since late June. In the past 14 MLS games, due to injuries, suspensions, and the unexpected, Seattle has been forced to shuffle its back four each time. The duo of Tyrone Marshall and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, after starting and playing the entire 90 minutes of the first 11 games, has played together only five times in the 13 games since.

Jaqua: Man in the Middle

Figuring in all three goals scored this month was forward Nate Jaqua, who volleyed in the equalizer at Houston on August 23. Jaqua had also assisted on both goals at Los Angeles. Of the team's last eight goals, Jaqua has scored three and assisted on four.

Three Keys to Offense

Fredy Montero, Nate Jaqua and Freddie Ljungberg are three of the team's top four Sounders FC scorers and at least one of those players has scored or assisted on the team's last 11 and 20 of the last 21 goals scored. Together, Montero (7), Jaqua (6) and Ljungberg (1) have scored 14 of the last 16.

Blue Means Business

For the second time Seattle wore its blue kit in Houston, and for the second time the Sounders FC brought home points. The club made its blue debut with a 2-0 win at Los Angeles on August 15 and donned the strip again for last week's 1-1 draw against the Dynamo. The team had worn all rave green in its first 10 road matches.

Life Begins at 40

Forty points has proven to be the threshold for teams aiming to secure one of the eight MLS playoff berths. In the league's 13 seasons to date, only twice has a club with 40 or more points missed the cut (41 by Miami in 2000 and 45 by Kansas City in 2005). A minimum of 39 points was required to reach the postseason over the last four seasons, with a maximum of 45 needed by Los Angeles in 2005.

In 2008, New York earned the eighth and final slot with 39 points, and the Red Bulls went on to reach the MLS Cup Final.

Soldiering On

Seattle is off to the second-best start in MLS expansion history, and has done so while facing its fair share of adversity. The Sounders FC has stayed above .500 since the outset despite finishing seven games shorthanded, going 0-3-4 in those contests. Resulting suspensions, injuries, national team call-ins and the unexpected have allowed Sigi Schmid to pick his starting lineup from his top players on only five occasions to date. Freddie Ljungberg will miss this week's game due to an accumulation of five yellow cards.

It's All About Goals

It's simple: When Sounders FC scores, points in the standings have followed. And when Seattle scores first, so much the better. It is 7-0-3 when striking first and 9-0-7 when scoring at least one goal. Each of Seattle's six losses has been by shutout.

Chasing History

With a record of 8-6-10 through the first 24 league games, Seattle is off to the best start for an MLS expansion franchise since the Chicago Fire (14-10-0) in 1998. Miami and Chicago are the only expansion teams to reach the playoffs, with the Fire winning both the MLS Cup and the U.S. Open Cup in its first season.

Previous Expansion Starts

Team 24 Games 25 Games 1st Season Notes

Chicago (1998): 14-10-0 15-10-0 Won MLS Cup, U.S. Open Cup

Miami (1998): 12-12-0 12-13-0 1st round playoffs

Salt Lake (2005): 5-15-4 5-16-4 Finished 5th, West

Chivas USA (2005): 3-17-4 3-17-5 Finished 6th, West

Toronto (2007): 5-14-6 5-14-6 Finished 7th, East

San Jose (2008): 7-9-8 7-10-8 Finished 7th, West

Seattle (2009): 8-6-10 Won U.S. Open Cup

Attendance Record

Sounders FC is the first franchise in MLS history to have 28,000 or more fans at 13 consecutive regular season or postseason home games. Each of the first 13 games on Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field has sold out. Seattle leads MLS with an average of 30,587. The MLS record for a season attendance average is 28,916, set by the L.A. Galaxy in 1996.

Crowds Swell

Due to the demand for Sounders FC tickets, stadium capacity has been expanded to 32,400 for the final seven MLS home games. Capacity was 27,700 for home dates between March 28 and June 17. The team utilized the full stadium capacity for Chelsea and FC Barcelona. A record crowd of 66,848 watched the Barcelona friendly and the throng of 65,289 was on hand for Chelsea on July 18. It was the fourth largest attendance ever to watch soccer in Seattle. The highest attendance for a league game this season was the 32,705 for the August 20 Sounders FC loss to New England.

Records Watch

The crowd of 66,848 for the Sounders FC-FC Barcelona friendly on August 5 was the largest for a soccer match played in Seattle.

The top 10 attendances are as follows:

66,848 August 5, 2009 Qwest Field Seattle v Barcelona (friendly)

66,830 August 9, 2006 Qwest Field Real Madrid v D.C. United (friendly)

66,722 July 22, 2003 Seahawks Stadium Manchester United v Celtic (friendly)

65,289 July 18, 2009 Qwest Field Sounders FC v Chelsea (friendly)

58,218 April 9, 1976 Kingdome Seattle v New York (friendly; Pele 2 goals)

56,416 April 16, 2008 Qwest Field Mexico v China (friendly)

56,256 August 25, 1977 Kingdome Seattle v Los Angeles (NASL playoffs)

49,606 August 9, 1980 Kingdome New York at Seattle (NASL)

47,052 May 31, 2008 Qwest Field Brazil v Canada (friendly)

43,651 January 29, 1994 Kingdome U.S. v Russia (friendly)

About D.C. United

D.C. United ranks second among MLS teams in scoring offense (1.54 goals per game) yet is 12th in goals allowed (1.50). Luciano Emilio tops the club with eight goals. United is undefeated (5-0-5) in MLS home games, outscoring visitors 15-8.

Schedule Congestion

D.C. United has been playing twice weekly since August 15, making the Saturday its 12th outing in 42 days. United, which tied at FC Dallas, 2-2, last Saturday, hosts Kansas City on Wednesday and visits San Juan Jabloteh of Trinidad & Tobago on September 15.

D.C United Connections

D.C. United forward Marc Burch played seven games for Sigi Schmid's Columbus Crew in 2006. Ely Allen, a former University of Washington star, trained with the Sounders FC and played for the PDL Seattle Wolves before signing with United on July 24. Stephen King played his college career at nearby Maryland, where he was a teammate of United's Rodney Wallace. D.C. midfielder Andrew Jacobson played at Cal with Sounders FC defender Tyson Wahl for three seasons (2003-05).

First-Year Clubs to Win Cup Finals

Seattle is the third first-year franchise in the modern era to win the Open Cup. D.C. United did so in 1996 and Chicago, an expansion MLS team, followed in 1998. The only other first-year team to make a final is the 1996 Rochester Rhinos of the A-League.

First Meeting Recap

Seattle Sounders FC-3, DC United-3 June 17th, 2009

A late own goal enabled D.C. United to get a 3-3 draw with the Seattle Sounders FC and on the Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field. The equalizer for Eastern Conference leaders D.C. United came in the 87th minute of the match from an own goal by Sounders FC defender Tyrone Marshall, who deflected a Chris Pontius cross into the net.

Sounders FC had led 3-1 after Fredy Montero's sixth goal of the season in the 57th minute. Seattle's first goal was scored on a 30-yard blast by Osvaldo Alonso, canceling out a strike four minutes earlier by Pontius. Nate Jaqua put the hosts ahead 2-1 at halftime.

D.C. United's Chris Pontius opened the scoring in the 34th minute, converting a long cross by midfielder Santino Quaranta. The visitors began their comeback when Christian Gomez scored in the 67th minute, slotting a shot far post past Kasey Keller.

Seattle finished with a 17-10 advantage in shots.

Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final Recap:

Seattle Sounders FC 2, at D.C. United 1-September 2nd, 2009

Seattle Sounders FC became the second MLS expansion franchise to win the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup title with a 2-1 victory over D.C. United on September 2 at RFK Stadium.

Roger Levesque scored what proved to be the game-winning goal in the 86th minute on an assist by Sebastien Le Toux. Both Le Toux and Levesque played for the USL-1 Sounders last season. It was the second goal in Open Cup play for Levesque.

Fredy Montero had opened the scoring in the 67th minute after a Freddie Ljungberg shot was initially saved by United goalkeeper Josh Wicks. The rebound was converted by Montero, who notched his first goal in Open Cup play.

D.C. United's lone goal came in the 89th minute when a free kick was deflected off the defensive wall to Clyde Simms who booted it into the back of the net.

Seattle created several scoring opportunities in the first half, including a pair of shots which Wicks was forced to save. First came a shot by Montero off of a Steve Zakuani cross in the 11th minute and later, in the 44th minute, a Montero header.

Ljungberg also had a scoring opportunity in the 20th minute when a pass from Le Toux beat the defense, leaving Ljungberg one-on-one with the United keeper who made a kick save.

Wicks was ejected in the aftermath of the game's first goal and United played a man down for the final 23-plus minutes.

Despite 18 shots from D.C. United, Seattle goalkeeper Kasey Keller made six saves to remain undefeated in eight career starts at RFK Stadium. Keller's previous seven visits had been as a starter for the U.S. National Team.

Jhon Kennedy Hurtado missed the Open Cup final after receiving two yellow cards in the semifinal match against Houston Dynamo.

Last Game Recap

Seattle Sounders FC 0, Toronto FC 0-August 29, 2009

Held scoreless for the third consecutive home match, the Sounders FC battled to a 0-0 tie against Toronto FC at Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field on August 29 before a capacity crowd of 32,679.

By splitting points with Toronto and beating the Reds on April 4 Seattle earned its sixth series win in its inaugural season.

The Sounders FC, following a shaky first half, finished strong, and nearly took all three points in added time.

In the first minute of added time, Sebastien Le Toux took a feed from Brad Evans and forced a save from Toronto keeper Stefan Frei. Seattle's final chance was in the 93rd minute, when from close range Osvaldo Alonso forced another save by Frei at the left post.

Despite weathering seven shots against in the first half Seattle outshot Toronto in the second half 8-4. Midfielders Freddie Ljungberg and Alonso led the team with three shots each.

Ljungberg broke free in the 63rd minute of the match from a pass up the middle by forward Nate Jaqua but his shot was tipped over the crossbar by Frei.

Toronto FC's best opportunity came from midfielder Nana Attakora who hit the crossbar in the 23rd minute of the match from a shot just outside the box.

Seattle goalkeeper Kasey Keller only made one save to earn his eighth shutout. However, he came out of the goal box to force a shot wide right by Sam Cronin after a pass up the middle by Dwayne De Rosario split the Sounders defense and put he and Cronin one on one.

Ljungberg received his fifth yellow card of the season and will be suspended from the next MLS match against DC United on September 12th.

Defender Tyrone Marshall exited the game after a collision in the 40th minute with De Rosario and was replaced by Patrick Ianni.

Seattle has drawn two and lost once in the last three at home. The Sounders FC last scored a home goal in the 2-1 win over Houston on July 11.

Leaders of the Pack

Kasey Keller is No. 3 among MLS goalkeepers with a GAA of 0.90. Keller is tied for second in shutouts (8) and tied for 4th in wins (8). Forward Fredy Montero is tied for 2nd in goals (10), 10th in assists (6) and 4th in game-winning goals (3). Montero is No. 3 in shots (66), 10th in shots on goal (23) and 2nd in fouls suffered (48). Nate Jaqua is tied for 6th in assists (7) and 12th in goals (7). He is 5th in fouls committed (39). Freddie Ljungberg is the leader in fouls suffered (52) and is tied for 2nd in game-winning assists (3).

Sounders FC ranks 11th in scoring average (1.21) and tied for 2nd in goals allowed per game (0.96). Its 38 assists are tied for 1st in the league. Seattle is the team with most fouls suffered (303) and 5th in fouls committed (287). The 51 cautions ranks 4th and eight ejections are the most in the league.

Trends to Date

Of Seattle's 29 goals in the first 24 games, 18 have come in the first half and 23 in the first 60 minutes. Five have come from set pieces, all from corner kicks; four by Freddie Ljungberg and one by Peter Vagenas. A goal has yet to be scored from either the penalty spot or free kick. Of the 10 games in which Sounders FC has scored multiple goals, seven have been at home. The defense has not allowed more than one goal in 12 of 13 home games on Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field. Six of the eight shutouts have been at home.

Sigi's Final Countdown

With 121 victories, Sigi Schmid is three career wins shy of Bob Bradley's MLS record total of 124. Schmid is the career leader with 280 games coached, surpassing Bradley (272) this season. New England's Steve Nicol is No. 2 among active coaches in wins (96) and No. 3 overall. Schmid is 13-8-4 against D.C. United (9-4-2 with Los Angeles; 4-4-1 with Columbus; 0-0-1 with Seattle) in the regular season.

Throw-Ins

After the Cup Final, Seattle is 7-1-1 in its eight midweek matches and 3-2-4 in nationally televised games (1-1-2 ESPN; 2-0-1 FSC; 0-1-1 TeleFutura) to date. The final national TV appearance in the regular season comes September 19 at home against Chivas USA... The Sounders FC have played without a key attacking player in each of its road wins in MLS and Open Cup play. Fredy Montero missed the Toronto FC match, Freddie Ljungberg did not play at either Portland or the L.A. Galaxy, and Nate Jaqua did not see action at D.C. United for the Open Cup Final.

Current Training Squad

The following players begin the week training in Seattle: Goalkeepers (4): Terry Boss, Ben Dragavon*, Chris Eylander, Kasey Keller; Defenders (10): Evan Brown, Taylor Graham, Leo Gonzalez, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Patrick Ianni, Tyrone Marshall, James Riley, Zach Scott, Nathan Sturgis, Tyson Wahl; Midfielders (9): Osvaldo Alonso, Brad Evans, Michael Fucito, Stephen King, Sebastien Le Toux, Freddie Ljungberg, Lamar Neagle, Sanna Nyassi, Peter Vagenas; Forwards (4): Nate Jaqua, Roger Levesque, Fredy Montero, Steve Zakuani.

Check out the Seattle Sounders FC Statistics



Major League Soccer Stories from September 8, 2009


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