Hold tight Sounders fans! The rain is coming, and it’s in the form of the Houston Dynamo. After flying through May, June and most of July, the team has dropped the last two matches, both against Western Conference teams who are fighting for playoff spots. True, the schedule has been a little odd over the last few weeks, and with the All-Star game falling on a Wednesday and matches this upcoming weekend it’s not going to get any better. But the future looks bright, and a match against the Houston Dynamo on Sunday could be just what the doctor ordered.
Sounders Slump
The game against the LA Galaxy was horrible, offensively and defensively. But the Sounders showed they could bounce back and correct their deficiencies. Against LA the back line was entirely lost, but in their game against San Jose they were much more organized other than the gaff by Zach Scott that led to the game’s only goal. The Galaxy successfully pressed high and quickly closed down Ozzie Alonso and Gonzalo Pineda, stifling any offense that they tried to create. But against San Jose, the Sounders were able to get a few more attempts on goal, even if none of them panned out.
In the end though they still lost, and the gap between the Sounders and the rest of the Western Conference is beginning to diminish. Sigi Schmid has shown he isn’t afraid to tweak the system in place to correct for issues that arise. Lamar Neagle’s lack of defensive help against LA led to Brad Evans being summoned for the Earthquakes match. Leo Gonzalez was back to his old self at left back after what had seemed like a season long absence. Corrections were made to bring in more defensive stability after the embarrassing loss at home to LA, but in a way they sacrificed any offensive prowess they had. Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins didn’t look nearly as potent in the goal mouth, so you can bet that Sigi isn’t quite done tweaking the lineup.
Houston is a dangerous opponent right now with the addition of DeMarcus Beasley at left back, and having four players represented at the All-Star Game this year is great exposure for the team, but could make the game on Sunday more challenging than it needs to be. Seattle will have to ensure that it can get its midfield ironed out to provide both a presence on attack and support when defending or it could be a dry summer. The pairing of DeAndre Yedlin and Evans on the right side could be potent against the offensive focused Brad Davis and newcomer Beasley, and it wouldn’t surprise this writer if that is where most of the attack comes from. Yedlin will get to do what he loves, bomb up the flank and whip in dangerous balls to two goal hungry forwards. And with Gonzalez back in the mix at left back, I would guess that Neagle will once again get the start at left mid.
Two straight losses isn’t something to get too worked up about, but Sounders fans have seen how quickly two losses can turn into a downward spiral like last season. If Seattle can settle into this next match against the Dynamo then they can right the ship before it lists too far. With U.S. Open Cup matches against Chicago right around the corner, the Sounders know they will have to continue to get positive results when they can. And if they can get the win they so desperately seek on Sunday, look for this rough patch to be in the rear view mirror.
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