9/23 - SEA vs RSL

Seattle Sounders vs Real Salt Lake

Seattle and Salt Lake faced off on Wednesday night in a makeup game between two teams right next to each other in the table. When the game was initially scheduled, it was a battle between the 4th and 5th placed teams in the West. By the time the match was actually played, it was between the 12th and 13th placed teams in the West. Both teams hadn't won a match since the World Cup break, so it was a crucial contest at Lumen Field. The first half was sloppy, but the second frame exploded into life. RSL missed a huge chance just a couple minutes in, and Danny Musovski put the Sounders ahead less than a minute later. Seattle gradually took control over proceedings and saw out a 2-0 result, with Albert Rusnak adding a long distance strike of his own in the 73rd minute. In a must-win matchup, it was the Sounders who prevailed, giving them a potential springboard to turn their season around.

For Seattle, there are lots of positives aside from just result. Rusnak getting on the scoresheet has been rare in league play, so getting him going would be huge for a team that really struggles scoring goals. They are getting healthier as well. Yeimar made the bench, Ragen started for the first time since August 19th, and Cristian Roldan has now gone 90 minutes in his last two matches. Getting Roldan back to full match fitness is key; he's such an important figure for the Sounders with his leadership and positioning. When building out of their own half, Roldan drops into the back line to facilitate with ball progression. In the final third, he stays back, allowing Brunell to release into the attack. This is where Seattle are at their best: when they can circulate possession wide and get runners breaking into the channels and finding the end line. Seattle wasn't able to get their patterns going as much as they would've liked in this match, but Jordan Morris' introduction in the 63rd minute had the Rave Green looking more like the version that won Leagues Cup last summer. His runs in behind are so good at creating opportunities for his teammates and finding dangerous areas for himself, especially when the game is a little stretched.

However, it wasn't all positive for the Sounders. They were not clean in the first half, giving away the ball too easily and lacking the quality in the final third - they did not register a single shot on target in the opening stanza. There were times where Seattle looked stretched in midfield. It's important to make sure there aren't gaps between their midfield and defense, particularly with the age and fitness issues of Sounders defenders this year. They are in no shape to be chasing the game. While not a perfect performance, this result puts them in a decent position. Currently, Seattle are tied on points with bitter rival Portland Timbers for 9th place in the Western Conference standings, and they still have a game in hand on most teams. Their next 2 fixtures will be at home against Minnesota United and Sporting Kansas City, the bottom two teams in the West. This marks a terrific opportunity for the Sounders to build on their win and rise up the table. In fact, if they win their 2 games in hand, they would be just 3 points away from LAFC in 6th. With some of their best players getting healthier, the Sounders will look to end the season strong and make a run up the Western Conference.

Real Salt Lake’s struggles continued in this game. For the third consecutive game, they were held scoreless and lost by a multi-goal deficit. This demonstrates just how poor RSL is on both sides of the ball. In attack, they haven't recovered from the departure of starlet Zavier Gozo. Under Mastroeni, Real Salt Lake has always specialized in switching the point of the attack. This season is no different. With Juan Manuel Sanabria at left wingback and  Gozo on the right, any time that they could quickly get the  ball wide it would lead to a dangerous opportunity. But RSL haven’t found a replacement for Gozo, especially after Zach Booth’s hamstring injury, meaning they can’t create as much from wide spaces. Luna’s season ending injury only exacerbated the issue. Not only do they not get his ingenuity on the ball, but it means that there is one less star attacker for opposing defenses to worry about. This has limited Solans’ production. After an incredible start to the season, he hasn’t scored in his last 6 games across all competitions. Without Luna’s playmaking in the center of midfield, he gets less chances each game and more of the attention shifts to him. This brings us to the last piece of RSL’s attack: Morgan Guilavogui. The Guinean designated player hasn’t necessarily been bad. In fact, his tidiness and combination play in the middle third is remarkable. Most of RSL’s best moments in this game came when they were able to get Guilavogui on the ball so he could open up the game for others. But, Guilavogui simply isn’t goal dangerous. He only has 2 non-penalty goals all season, which isn’t good enough for a high leverage attacker. With Luna and Gozo unavailable, he needs to be the one to step up. So far, his production in the final third has been underwhelming at best, exemplified by a moment in the second half. Following a high turnover, he was played behind the Sounders back line. Instead of shooting the ball, he was indecisive, taking too many touches and taking the ball to the end line, where he ultimately ran out of space and failed to create anything from the opportunity. For RSL’s attack, it’s either Solans or bust.

Defensively, Real Salt Lake have also been struggling. They’ve allowed 2 or more goals in the last 5 MLS games. Individually, it’s not that their defenders are playing poorly. In fact, Kobi Henry had some crucial interventions in this one and Yedlin has been solid all year long. The problem is that there is too much space in between the lines and too much space in midfield. Mastroeni tried to fix that in this match by dropping a little lower out of possession. He also played Luca Moisa, typically a more defensive midfielder, as one of the 10's. Even with these moves, Salt Lake was far too easy to play through. The positioning of RSL's wingbacks is passive, leaving a lot of ground for the two central midfielders to cover. Another reason RSL are so open is their rest defense. When Salt Lake have the ball in the opponent's half, they second their wingbacks high and wide, and the strong side center midfielder joins in the attack as well. It's imperative that RSL is secure with the ball, as they are vulnerable if the ball is turned over. This is what happened in Seattle's second goal. A turnover in midfield sent the Sounders on their way in transition, against just Caliskan and and the 3 center backs. One pass took Caliskan out of the game, and Rusnak was able to drive 20 yards uncontested before beating Cabral from range. It's simply too easy for teams to get at Real Salt Lake's back line. These are the kinds of issues that plague MLS teams that do not make the playoffs. And that's exactly what RSL looks like right now: a team that will miss the playoffs. They’ve been shut out in their last 3, Solans has slowed down, and they have no other contributors. It's the worst that RSL have looked under Mastroeni. RSL always plays with a lot of fight but this season it seems like they’ve been knocked out.