A far greater fall was coming the next match in Los Angeles against Chivas USA. Keller was unavailable due to the red card, Chris Eylander started in goal, and Seattle badly missed him. Although starting well, almost scoring in the first ten minutes, the Sounders did not look good. The back line was not as organized or coordinated in defense and it was probably appropriate that the first Chivas goal was actually an own goal on Sounder defender James Riley who gets in the record books as scoring the Sounders first own goal as some sort of conciliation prize.
The Sounders spent too much time sitting back and waiting for Chivas to make the first move. That is not what got them victories in the first three matches. The Sounders attacked the ball from everywhere and by everyone. Part of the problem is that the two Freddies, Ljungberg and Montero, have not played well together yet. They seem uncomfortable with their roles since Ljungberg has come into the starting lineup.
I am an Arsenal fan and Ljungberg has not developed his game since leaving the Arsenal. I felt in his last year there that he had lost a step and was not the attacking force he once was although he still delivered quality ball from the midfield. He needs to stop going into contact and start distributing the ball to the front line more.
Montero, for all his dazzling talent, seems to want the long overhead ball delivered to him too much. He needs to get back more, play more defense up front and do more work period.
Look for the Sounders to focus on getting the roles sorted out this week as they play host to San Jose on Saturday night.
In the other football arena, the Seahawks have the fourth pick in the 2009 draft on Saturday. There has been much too much discussion on taking a QB at that spot. Let me go on record now as saying I don’t want to take Mark Sanchez. I don’t have anything against him as a quarterback and he definitely has the possibility to become a good player in the NFL. Who the team takes depends greatly on who is still available, of course, but there are options no matter who is still on the board.
I feel that Seattle needs to decide exactly what their course is. If they are trying to win right now, they need to take Michael Crabtree. He is one of the few immediate impact players in the draft this year and Seattle’s wide receiver core has not been strength of the team in awhile. They are currently depending on Deion Branch and Nate Burleson, both out last year with injuries, and TJ Houshmandzadeh who will need some time to fit into the Bobby Engram role.
Article comments
1 - Glen Boyd
The Seattle suck. Yeah, that pretty well sums up sports in our town, doesn't it?
-Glen
2 - Douglas Mays
The Seattle suck.... hhhmmm...I do have theories about that phenom, and it actually has less to do with the teams itself as opposed to some of the whiney crybabies that live in this town...
Seahawks, drafting a linebacker. Man, they have the awesome linebacking crew for next season.
Sounders FC. hhhmmm... they actually are a very good team that I think have the potential to compete on world levels, give them some development time. Ljunberg needs time to heal and gel with his team. He will come to life. Did you see that end to end run he made with the ball last Saturday? Plus his ability really shows when he even gets near the ball. Just a matter of tweeking.
They looked very good vs. San Jose last Saturday. That first goal was very creative showing good awareness and anticipation by players. Anyway, Sounders FC are the flagship team of the MLS.
Mariners? Doing OK at the moment, leading the division by a couple of games. Well, Griffey is back, and actually being useful, putting up some numbers. Hopefully his presence will help the team from pulling the handle to flush the toilet at the end of the season.
back to you, Russ....
3 - Douglas Mays
Oh yeah, Sounders FC, Keller is awesome. He had a million dollar save last Saturday. And Ljundberg did a few things that made him worth the money. Montero was solid with some crafty moves. Contributed well to the show. 4-2 early in the season, they will get better.
Oh yeah, Seahawks under Mora? Could be a good thing.
Mariners are sure solid in the first 3 pitchers of rotation. the last two get kinda shakey...
blah, blah, blah....
4 - Douglas Mays
The Seattle suck.... hhhmmm...I do have theories about that phenom, and it actually has less to do with the teams itself as opposed to some of the whiney crybabies that live in this town...
Seahawks, drafting a linebacker. Man, they have the awesome linebacking crew for next season.
Sounders FC. hhhmmm... they actually are a very good team that I think have the potential to compete on world levels, give them some development time. Ljunberg needs time to heal and gel with his team. He will come to life. Did you see that end to end run he made with the ball last Saturday? Plus his ability really shows when he even gets near the ball. Just a matter of tweeking.
They looked very good vs. San Jose last Saturday. That first goal was very creative showing good awareness and anticipation by players. Anyway, Sounders FC are the flagship team of the MLS.
Mariners? Doing OK at the moment, leading the division by a couple of games. Well, Griffey is back, and actually being useful, putting up some numbers. Hopefully his presence will help keep the team from pulling the handle to flush the toilet at the end of the season.
back to you, Russ....