Chester, Pennsylvania (May 20, 2019) — The Seattle Sounders FC took a trip to the East Coast on Saturday, facing off with the Philadelphia Union. Meanwhile, the Sounders are riding a bit of an unbeaten streak. Seattle has only lost one match this year. The single loss of 2019 came against Los Angeles FC on April 21.

As for the Union, Philadelphia has an unbeaten streak of their own. The most recent loss for Philadelphia came against the LA Galaxy on April 13.

Seattle Sounders, Philadelphia split the points in scoreless draw

In a battle of two strong teams in two separate conferences, the Sounders and Union battled to a scoreless draw. At Talen Energy Stadium the home side had the advantage. Philadelphia took 20 total shots compared to Seattle’s six shots.

However, for the Union, six of the shots rang on target.

Stefan Frei was a brick wall in goal for the Sounders, once again. Frei made six saves to deny four different attacking options for Philadelphia. The Union had three shots on goal from midfielder Jamiro Monteiro. Meanwhile, the Sounders saw only one shot on goal from forward Will Bruin.

After the match, Frei said the Sounders put a lot of energy into the game.

“We were OK in the first half, all things considered with us changing tactics” Frei said. “We still stuck with playing out of the back and maintaining possession at times. As the game went on, we kind of started to give the ball away at times, which led us to chasing the ball. That’s where a lot of work came in, unfortunately, a lot of defensive work. But, everyone was willing to put it in.”

Seattle made various lineup changes, moving to a five-man backline. Jonathan Campbell and Alex Roldan made their first Sounders starts of the season. Meanwhile, Bruin started up top to give Raúl Ruidíaz some rest. Nouhou started in place of Brad Smith and Saad Abdul-Salaam started for Kelvin Leerdam.

We are not worthy 👑 pic.twitter.com/j5HdvAgTmz

— Seattle Sounders FC (@SoundersFC) May 19, 2019

Three Takeaways

1. Lineup changes were needed: The battle in Philadelphia was the Sounders’ third match in the span of eight days. Now, Seattle has a little bit of a break before suiting up against Sporting Kansas City. Seeing Campbell and Roldan get starts is a good sign. However, it’s surprising to not see Handwalla Bwana earn the start up top after a strong performance on Wednesday against Orlando City SC.
2. Jordy Delem still delivers: With Gustav Svensson out another week due to injury, Jordy Delem filled his shoes. The midfielder is holding up well this season for the Sounders. He likely won’t retain the job when Svensson comes back. However, he has certainly garnered himself more minutes.
3. The Roldan Brothers start Together: Who doesn’t love a family reunion? Alex and Cristian Roldan are one of the best sibling stories in MLS. Plus, Sounders fans love a happy “Mama Roldan.”

What’s Next?

Seattle earns an extra day of rest with a contest on Sunday against Sporting Kansas City. The match will be held at Children’s Mercy Park at 6 p.m. ET.

This weekend, Sporting Kansas City featured in a 1-1 draw against the Vancouver Whitecaps. Sporting forward Krisztián Németh was given a red card and will miss the match.

"Stef had his work cut out for him tonight, but he’s done that in many, many games for us."

— Head Coach Brian Schmetzer following #PHIvSEA pic.twitter.com/i1YGTFMjFx

— Seattle Sounders FC (@SoundersFC) May 19, 2019

PHOTO: Seattle Sounders FC defender Kim Kee-hee dribbles the ball against Philadelphia Union midfielder Alejandro Bedoya. Photo courtesy of Morgan Tencza/Seattle Sounders FC.