Coming off a hard-fought but disappointing Open Cup match midweek, Seattle had an opportunity to go on the road and beat the Portland Timbers for the second time this year, reclaiming some of the good MLS vibes. That didn’t happen. Instead, a Sounders team that had been consistently creating chances ran into a team that sat back and dared them to score on a compact defense, and they refused. Our defense again did its job, but again our offense was unable to break down a team that didn’t want the ball. The 1-0 loss was due to Seattle’s lack of finishing a number of solid chances, plus a deflected shot by Portland, that again created their own luck. Losing in a similar fashion to the early season games is a dreary reminder that this team lacks a consistent personality.
Goalkeeper
Stefan Frei – 5 | Community – 5.7 (off injured 8’ for Thomas)
Frei only had a few minutes to play. An early ball got in behind and he struggled to control a cross and got the wrong end of a charging striker. I hope he’s okay; his bell was rung pretty hard.
Hope: A few stitches get him back to ship shape. Seattle’s problems this year haven’t been due to Frei, who is in the top five in league save percentages again.
Less: This injury came directly from an unclean control of a cross. It’s unfair to blame him for getting crunched in the face, but this was another instance of Frei committing a slight error that points to a degradation of his skills.
Defense
Nouhou – 6 | Community – 5.2 (off 80’ for RBW)
Nouhou was excellent in the first 60 minutes, showing up consistently on defense and doing enough on offense to support Seattle getting into good spots. An over-the-top try to Paul Rothrock didn’t connect in the 37th, but this ability to stay back and hit the release up the left wing set an important precedent. His 88 percent passing included a gorgeous early switching ball to Pedro de la Vega on the right wing, another positive change in distribution. On Portland’s goal, perhaps Nouhou could have closed down the outside back charging up the field a half second earlier, but an unfortunate deflection on the opponent’s 20 yard shot was an unlucky result.
Hope: Being defensively solid and making fewer pushes forward will combine with smart decision making. Nouhou must know when to get into the offense and support and when to admit he’s not the answer and let other teammates have the space to work.
Less: Seattle clearly needs the help on offense so having zero from the left back is suboptimal. “At least he doesn’t get in the way” isn’t really the bar we are chasing, is it?
Jackson Ragen – 6 | Community – 5.9
Ragen and the defense were good, controlling a lot of the match and limiting Portland to few quality chances. He had 92 percent passing, five clearances, and demonstrated a general ease in defending. This defense has been excellent every time they don’t get a red card or play against LAFC.
Hope: Jackson can continue to score. He had a 67th minute carbon copy header of the last one he scored, and although it was saved, Jackson is suddenly a viable target.
Less: The defense is part of the reason Seattle’s offense struggles against compact defenses; they tend to be slow and cautious around the back, limiting opportunities to attack. Safe, backward passing paired with overly aggressive defending way up the field can be a recipe for disaster.
Yeimar – 6 | Community – 5.7
Yeimar was strong against Portland’s attackers, matching up well physically and covering a lot of ground. His wide defense and pressing forward helped keep Portland in their own half for much of the match. He crushed the stat book with a massive seven clearances, three tackles, and two interceptions while again showing his excellent range across the field.
Hope: Yeimar will continue his incredible consistency. He is generally excellent all over the field defensively, and he has cleaned up his passing as well.
Less: The pressure of a lackluster offense means Yeimar and Ragen are constantly forced into overly aggressive dives to deny opponent service to target forwards. These actions do support the flagging offense, but they also expose the back line multiple times each match.
Alex Roldan – 6 | Community – 5.2
Roldan started on the right defense and was able to get forward early. He was almost on the end of a Ragen over-the-top try in the first 15 minutes, but then faded from the match. His defense was excellent, including a clear off the back post before halftime. He was a non-factor on offense, being too slow to get a cross off in the 15th and his 92nd minute “shot” nearly went out for a throw-in.
Hope: Alex is firmly back into the right back role. He appears to have escaped the competition earlier in the season that rightfully had him on the outside looking in.
Less: A big problem when Seattle struggles is the right side creating nothing. Alex did that — nothing — in this match, and has a puny two shots on target all year and a single assist to go with 13 key passes. Our “non-attacking” left back has two shots, no assists, and nine key passes.
Defensive Midfield
Josh Atencio – 6 | Community – 5.2 (off 74’ for Vargas)
Atencio got a surprising start and reminded everyone why he was the starter for much of the stretch run in 2023. His movement covered a lot of ground and paired well with Cristian Roldan, as they brought toughness and connection in the middle. He set up PDLV in the 31st with a perfectly weighted pass, and had a number of excellent switches as he tried to support forward movement. This led to a shot on goal and two key passes. He seemed to tire before subbing, and Portland had their best luck when Roldan and Atencio became split.
Hope: Atencio and Roldan showed improved connectivity through the middle. The combination, until they tired, had better coverage and was able to limit runs through the center.
Less: For all his hustle, Atencio looked best moving off the ball, and Seattle needs more central dribbling to force defenses to collapse.
Cristian Roldan – 6 | Community – 5.3
Roldan was excellent for most of the match, connecting through the middle and getting a high number of touches. Unfortunately, he was unlucky, as his ability to create the killer moment eventually led to a barely offside goal after Cristian flicked it back post. On the Portland goal, Roldan was caught on the wing, and the Timbers ran down the middle to score on the opposite wing.
Hope: Moving Roldan didn’t adversely impact his creation numbers, as he still managed three shots. Importantly, he looked vertical from the central defensive midfield position and combined well with Atencio to cover.
Less: Cristian is a man without a position, and being “pretty good” at four different spots only helps if there are three better options. Seattle doesn’t have that right now, so it’s hard to tell where to play him.
Attacking Midfield
Paul Rothrock – 5 | Community – 5.5 (off 56’ for Minoungou)
Rothrock looked great in a few moments, like a 9th minute cross, and the rest of the time was pretty off. He had 24 touches and did some nifty moves, but a combination of others not capitalizing and poor execution on his part meant he again didn’t add much going forward. Usually a solid positional defensive winger, there was a massive hole behind him as he ran back and watched the outside back on his wing score.
Hope: The idea he’s not technical is somewhat overblown, and Paul combines some nice 1-v-1 moves when isolated. A great glue guy, he will out-effort others and fits best into a high-functioning team when he is allowed to run off multiple other quality performers.
Less: All the nutmegs in the world don’t matter if the immediate payoff is a turnover. Worse than that, it’s the poor passes and bad touches that limit his production, and this zero shot, zero key pass outing is unfortunately another match where he didn’t do enough.
Albert Rusnák – 7 | Community – 5.3 (off 80’ for Leyva)
Rusnák was very strong in this match, but you had to sift through the moments to see that. What was easy to see was a six key pass outing, as Albert set up a shot every seven times he touched the ball. Whether it was finding good service on set pieces or dummying the ball to open up teammates, there was a lot to like from Albert. However, without the payoff, he gets a lot of the blame, especially when he comes off with 10 minutes to play.
Hope: Statistic-wise, Rusnák does a lot that’s under the radar. He’s having as good a year assisting as Seattle may have ever had, and his set pieces are one of the biggest weapons Seattle currently has against overly defensive teams.
Less: Not a classic 10 who is going to create from nothing or break down a packed defense by himself, Rusnák (and Seattle’s offense as a whole) disappears when he has too much of the ball and is matched up with a compact opponent.
Pedro de la Vega – 6 | Community – 5.5 (off 56’ for Ruidíaz)
It was nice to see PDLV start in this match and like other matches he has been in, he showed the skills we expect out of a player of his caliber. Whether it was a beautiful cross to Alex in the 18th minute or a 31st minute shot, Pedro was clean on the ball and connected at times with teammates. When he isn’t on the same page as teammates, it’s readily apparent, with poor passes going awry and turnovers to the center of the field nearly ending in catastrophe.
Hope: Pedro’s creating a big chance every match, either from his offensive push or apt tactical positioning, and there is clear skill evident in the way he approaches the game.
Less: Seattle needs him to be great NOW, and waiting around for a DP to do more than “almost” is frustrating.
Forward
Jordan Morris – 6 | Community – 4.9
Morris was again matched up with multiple defenders and again had a low (15) touches. Still, he led the team with three shots, added a key pass, was a threat on set pieces, even though he missed two big corner attempts in the 33rd minute. His ability to break out and move smartly was a problem for Portland all evening, and they kept him blanketed with multiple defenders, including a desperation block in the 68th as Jordan looked to have the equalizer.
Hope: Morris created Seattle’s best chances in this match and has been the only player on the team who’s scoring. Matching up with multiple defenders, he is incredibly efficient with his touches and has matured his forward play to include more control with his back to the goal.
Less: Jordan isn’t a do-it-all forward, and relies on space and connection with teammates to impact the match. With as impotent as the attack can be against compact defenses, Seattle needs Morris to somehow never miss.
Substitutes
Andrew Thomas – 6 | Community – 5.9 (on 8’ for Frei)
Thomas was forced into the match very early, cold, and likely expecting a nice view of the entire game from the bench. With Frei being injured in the first five minutes, this was a harsh entrance and Andrew did well. There wasn’t much he could do about the eventual goal, and throughout he displayed excellent decision making. Punching out multiple balls wide and far were especially appreciated, although he got lost in the 52nd minute and was lucky Nouhou was at the back post to usher out a dangerous cross.
Hope: Nothing about this performance said Thomas can’t be, at minimum, a solid MLS goalkeeper. Much about this performance says he might be a very good one.
Less: This was a game with a chance for a storybook ending, but a tiny bit of hesitation, a deflection, and a few inches short on a leap meant this was another Sounders loss.
Raúl Ruidíaz – 4 | Community – 4.6 (on 56’ for PDLV)
Raúl came in and was non-existent. In the 68th minute, Georgi Minoungou beat three guys and found him on a perfect cutback pass and Ruidíaz scuffed it. This was better than in the 77th when he came back to midfield to get the ball, then kicked it into the crowd.
Hope: There’s some fading hope that Ruidíaz can be a super-sub late addition. Although he struggled, he did get three shots, including one that took a deflection not unlike Portland’s, but we didn’t get their kind of luck.
Less: The falloff in Raúl’s production has been absolutely catastrophic to the Sounders offensive hopes. It’s time to let anyone else cook.
Georgi Minoungou – 7 (MOTM) | Community – 6.3 (MOTM) (on 56’ for Rothrock)
Playing his first MLS game as a full Sounder, Minoungou didn’t disappoint. Direct, fearless, and most importantly effective, Georgi ran at Portland’s back line in a way no one had done effectively all match. On the left, he beat players and pushed the ball into dangerous areas. On the right, he beat players and crossed into dangerous areas. His 27 touches somehow only had a single key pass but he was the offense for Seattle after subbing in.
Hope: If Seattle had signed a 22-year old from Côte d’Ivoire as a summer transfer who dribbled over, around, and through Portland’s defense in his first full MLS outing, earning MOTM honors, and being legitimately the most dynamic player on the field, fans would be excited. Don’t be less so because he had a stop at Defiance first.
Less: Seattle needs dynamic players, which Minoungu undoubtedly is, but they also need people to produce. All the fancy dribbles in the world only mean so much if they don’t translate into goals. Georgi hasn’t shown the latter yet, and he may need to dribble into the goal at this point.
Obed Vargas – 5 | Community – 4.8 (on 74’ for Atencio)
Obed played and looked fairly immobile, not adding much to the team for the final 15 of the match. He had a nice defensive play on Minoungou in the 90th minute, showing Portland how to do it.
Hope: Even struggling, Vargas had a key pass, and he continues to develop a cultured offensive résumé.
Less: Getting a lot of secondary assists is nice, but he didn’t separate himself from Atencio here. It’s hard to see how he pairs with Cristian in the middle.
Danny Leyva – 5 | Community – 4.8 (on 80’ for Rusnák)
Leyva came in as a Rusnák-lite and did some of those things. A beautiful 82nd minute pass to put RBW in was excellent, and his 92nd minute set piece was on par with expectations.
Hope: Leyva keeps doing small things in displaying his offensive chops that made me Google his age (it’s 21) and remind myself that he’s definitely not washed up yet.
Less: For all his nifty connecting, he also has a ton of turnovers and can’t seem to defend elegantly — both problems for midfielders.
Reed Baker-Whiting – 4 | Community – 4.5 (on 80’ for Nouhou)
The most notable play was a beautiful pass in the 82nd minute that Leyva put into Baker-Whiting’s stride and he completely flubbed. A perfect pass in, the ball needed an early cross, a dribble that would likely earn a penalty, or basically anything other than what Reed did, which was meekly touch the ball out of bounds. Ugh.
Hope: He’s getting into good spots and understands where to be on the offensive end, with his intelligent runs and athleticism shining through in moments.
Less: The lack of assertiveness and polish in the final third ruins the whole point of playing him in attacking areas, and his ineffectiveness at defense is making him a non-option at the fullback spots.
Referee
Lukasz Szpala – 5 | Community – 4.5
Somehow this 25-foul match ended with zero cards given, which is absurd when you consider this was a rivalry.
Hope: The majority of the poor calls and slow advantage plays from this ref ended at halftime, as the second half made more sense from a referee standpoint. Maybe they can learn.
Less: It’s increasingly annoying to be on the wrong side of VAR calls over and over. The team puts itself into poor game states, but it seems there’s a lot of time spent on disqualifying Seattle goals and giving opponents questionable calls via VAR, and that’s frustrating.
Portland Timbers MOTM
Yes, Evander was Portland’s best player on the night, and the deserving winner of the Man of the Match award. He assisted the only goal, put a long free kick on target, forcing Thomas to parry over, and was the hub of Portland’s counters throughout. Still, I can’t help but worry about the Twellmanization of our soccer viewing and analysis. We get it that you like his game (we objectively do, too!) but cálmate, my guy.
Upcoming: Trap game, for the other team.
