Least close 1-0 match of the year sends Sounders ahead
Sounders defeat FC Dallas in game 3, move on to semifinal against LAFC
The Seattle Sounders took care of business Friday, easily defeating FC Dallas in front of 33,048 fans. Despite the close score, the Sounders were never in much danger of a loss, as Dallas only kicked one shot during the entire match, suffering from the absence of Jesús Ferreira and from the tough press of Chef JP’s midfield kitchen.
The cadence of the game didn’t shift a whole lot, with the Sounders starting off on the front foot and remaining so for the whole game. The Sounders defense and midfield broke Dallas apart whenever they mounted an attack. In the 12th, for example, Dallas’ offense danced around the box, but the back line held firm and prevented any chances.
The Sounders weren’t completely perfect either, but they kept Dallas from capitalizing on any of their mistakes. And in the later part of the first half, they pressed their attack, creating chances in the 29th and 35th before a JP through ball in the 36th found Rusnák, who then kicked it in for the goal. 1-0 Seattle. Cristian Roldán almost doubled the lead in the 40th, but his shot went too far to the left. The Sounders entered halftime with a one-goal lead.
Despite having a little more possession in the second half, Dallas was still unable to get anything going. Seattle’s back line remained stalwart. Dallas got themselves free kicks in the 64th and 85th that amounted to nothing. Their final assault came as the end of the game neared, with Dallas finally getting a shot on goal in the 89th, but it was a header from Nkosi Tafari that weakly drifted right into Frei’s arms. One final free kick in the 5th minute of stoppage went nowhere, and the final whistle blew.
Sounders win 1-0! Sounders go to the semifinals!
The midfield was cooking the whole game, and their big contribution on Friday was their laser-sharp press. Schmetzer noted that he shifted the center midfield formation slightly from Game 2.
“We had made some adjustments on how they pressed with their front three down in Dallas. We kept Josh and JP a little more narrow, Josh a little bit more disciplined to try and squeeze their forwards again,” Schmetzer said. “We like to be on the front foot, we like to press out of our mid block.”
Although Seattle struggled to finish, as they have all year, the rest of the field kept Dallas in check, and Rusnák’s one goal turned out to be enough. Albert said as much in the postgame interview.
“I feel like, today, we created better chances in the game than the one we scored off,” Rusnák stated. “Ideally, we want to score the second one to kind of calm it down.”
Although, as the saying goes, the two-goal lead is the most dangerous lead, and perhaps the close score kept the players clinical. We’ve certainly had a lot of games this year where the Sounders got up and then stopped playing as well, and that cannot happen in the playoffs.
Especially in the semifinals. Especially against LAFC. That match will be played on Sunday, November 26, at 6:30, at home. The Sounders will need to be as clean as they were on Friday on midfield and defense, and they’ll also have to capitalize on as many chances as they can.
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