Super Bowl Update

By Money Mike


The Seattle Sounders have inched closer to a second straight CONCACAF Champions League Quarterfinal birth. Last night, the Sounders defeated Caledonia AIA 3-1 and are only one win away from clinching a place in the Quarterfinal stage of the Champions League. The Sounders next Champions League match won't be until September 19th when they travel to Honduras to take on C.D. Marathon. Both these teams have faced eachother twice in the group stage of the 2010-11 Champions League. The first meeting was in Honduras with Marathon coming out on top 2-1. The second match was here in Seattle with the Sounders returning the favor and winning 2-0.

In the 10th minute of the match, the Sounders should've been a goal up. Mario Martinez was making his first competitive start for the Sounders and he whipped in a great cross to the far post for a free header from Sammy Ochoa, but his header was saved by Glenroy Samuel as it bounced off his face.

In the 25th minute, Caledonia failed to clear the danger and they gave the ball away in their own area as Ozzie Alonso stepped in and from about 19 yards away fired his shot low and hard with his left foot, but it didn't trouble the goalkeeper and it was an easy save for Samuel.

In the 36th minute, Michael Gspurning found himself under a bit of pressure. Kareem Joseph whipped in a high lofted ball to the far post which started to dip as it came down, and Gspurning had to punch the ball away because there was a player ready to head the ball into the goal or at least put home the rebound if he had any chance.

A few minutes later, Alex Caskey took the corner kick for the Sounders. Glenroy Samuel came out and tried to punch the ball away and the ball bounced to Marc Burch at the far post. Burch looked to take advantage of the goalkeeping mistake but his shot was blocked as Caledonia had four guys on the line to clear the ball away.

In the 45th minute, the Sounders found the breakthrough. Zach Scott made a run forward from his right back position and worked a give and go with Sammy Ochoa, although it was nearly broken up after Ochoa nearly had trouble controlling the ball. Scott got the return as squared the ball across to the near post for Alex Caskey to tap it in for his third goal in all competitions this season and the Sounders took the lead in Trinidad 1-0.

About five minutes into the second half, Caledonia should've pulled level. There was nice through ball played into the area. I don't know who played that ball, I think it might have been Stephan David. Anyway, there was a ball played through and Cornelius Stewart got onto it, but somehow he put it wide.

In the 60th minute, the Sounders doubled their lead and looked to be walking away with all three points. Fredy Montero picked up the ball from Ozzie Alonso and made a nice cut to get past Radanfah Abu Bakr before laying the ball off to Sammy Ochoa. Ochoa received the ball, settled and from the top of the penalty area ripped his shot into the top left hand corner to make it 2-0 in favor of the visitors.

That was until the 67th minute when Caledonia were awarded a penalty. There was a chip into the penalty area that was intended for Jamaal Gay and Zach Scott appeared to have pulled him down in the area. Referee Javier Santos pointed to the spot immediately, but I didn't think there was enough for that to be a penalty. I thought Gay went down rather easily there. Much like in MLS, CCL officiating has been controversial to say the least. And just like the first Champions League match, Kareem Joseph stepped up to the spot and took the honors for Caledonia AIA and he put his kick inside the left post to cut the Sounders lead in half.

The Sounders responded quickly however and in the 69th minute, they would add a third goal. Alex Caskey made a nice move to get away from Aubrey David and squared the ball across toward the near and Fredy Montero was right there once again to add to his goalscoring tally in all competitions this season and that was the decisive goal for the Sounders as they defeated Caledonia 3-1.

The Sounders turn their attention back to MLS play on Sunday as they head to Frisco to take on FC Dallas.  The Sounders have come away victorious in their last two visits and will look to make it three in a row at FC Dallas Stadium as they chase the San Jose Earthquakes for the Supporters Shield.  Kickoff time is 4pm and will be televised on KONG-TV.


Scoring summary:

Seattle Sounders FC - Alex Caskey (Zach Scott, Sammy Ochoa) 45'

Seattle Sounders FC - Sammy Ochoa (Fredy Montero) 60'

Caledonia AIA - Kareem Joseph (penalty kick) 67'

Seattle Sounders FC - Fredy Montero (Alex Caskey) 69'


Misconduct summary:

Caledonia AIA - Walter Moore (caution; foul) 17'

Caledonia AIA - Densil Theobald (caution; foul) 29'

Caledonia AIA - Jamaal Gay (caution; foul) 71'

Caledonia AIA - Radanfah Abu Bakr (caution; foul) 87'


Lineups:

Seattle Sounders FC - Michael Gspurning; Zach Scott, Patrick Ianni, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Marc Burch; Mario Martinez (Cordell Cato 29'), Osvaldo Alonso, Brad Evans, Alex Caskey; Sammy Ochoa (Christian Tiffert 86'), Fredy Montero (Leonardo Gonzalez 74')

Caledonia AIA - Glenroy Samuel; Aubrey David, Nuru Abdullah Muhammad, Radanfah Abu Bakr, Walter Moore; Kareem Joseph, Densil Theobald, Stephan David, Cornelius Stewart (Conrad Smith 72'); Jamaal Gay (Abdallah Phillipsa 84'), Kerlon Ferguson (Trevin Caesar 63')

By Money Mike


The Seattle Sounders kicked off another big month on a good note. Last night, the Sounders kicked off CONCACAF Champions League group play on a winning note as they defeated Caledonia AIA of Trinidad and Tobago 3-1 at home. With a huge home match on Sunday against the Los Angeles Galaxy and an Open Cup final match next Wednesday at Sporting Kansas City, that win should boost the teams confidence as we near the late stages of the 2012 MLS season.

In the opening minute of the match, the Sounders nearly scored on a set piece opportunity. Alex Caskey took the corner kick from the far side and found Andy Rose at the near post, but his header just sailed high. A few minutes later, the Sounders had another corner and Caskey this time found Jeff Parke at the near post, but again the header was a little too high.

In the 19th minute, the Sounders opened up their 2012-13 Champions League account. Cordell Cato on the far side was looking to play the ball into the box, but he put too much under his cross and it went through the box. However, Alex Caskey was over on the near side to pick the ball up and he played the ball back into the mixer which rolls to Sammy Ochoa just outside the six yard box and Ochoa sides the ball inside the near post with his left foot to put the Sounders ahead 1-0.

A couple minutes later, Caledonia had a chance to pull level. Jamaal Gay slid the ball across to Kareem Joseph who had plenty of space on the left side of the box. With Marc Burch backtracking, Joseph hesitated before cutting to his right foot and shooting for the far corner, but Andrew Weber got a piece of it to keep it out.

In the 30th minute, the Sounders doubled their lead. Cordell Cato made a nice cut inside and sent Andy Rose away down the right hand side with a brilliant through ball and Rose slid the ball right across to the six yard area where Fredy Montero was there for an easy tap in for his eighth goal in all competitions this season and more importantly to put the Sounders ahead 2-0. Seconds later, Ozzie Alonso took the ball away and had a go from distance which forced a save from Glenroy Samuel.

With just over two minutes to go till halftime, Seattle would add a third goal. Ozzie Alonso slid the ball into the box, Alex Caskey let the ball roll to Fredy Montero who turned and tried to curl his shot into the far side which forced a save from Samuel, but right there were both Andy Rose and Sammy Ochoa going for the same ball. Originally I thought Ochoa got a touch to it, but the replay showed that it was Andy Rose who got the goal to put the Sounders ahead 3-0.

Five minutes into the second half, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado got whistled for a foul in the box and Caledonia were awarded a PK. A long throw in was intended for Jamaal Gay in the box and Hurtado had his arms around him as he tried the clear the ball away. Normally the officials don't see those in the box so I was a little surprised that the referee saw that, but he saw it and he pointed to the spot which I believe was the correct decision. Kareem Joseph stepped up to take the PK and he went top right as Andrew Weber guessed incorrectly and Caledonia got on the board in this match. However they couldn't create any real chances in the second half and the Sounders walk away 3-1 winners in the Champions League Group opener.


Observations:

Despite his little creativity here and there during the match, I don't think Cordell Cato had the best of matches as a Seattle Sounder. I can think of at least 30 times Cato went up against former Charlotte Eagle Walter Moore down the right hand side. In the early minutes of the match Cato quickly opened the flood gates and outperformed Walter Moore, but as the game progressed Moore got his number and began to shut him down, not letting him get a shot on goal, not letting him play in an easy cross. In the Champions League, no matter how good or bad you are, how much potential you have or how good or bad the opposition is, you got play with a bit of consistency and I didn't see that from Cato.

I did see it from rookie Andy Rose however. The former UCLA Bruin on his Champions League debut looked to be the best player in this match. From the start of kickoff to the final whistle, this guy brought it 120% in this game, never looked back and he gets awarded with a goal and two assists. This guy has gone from a Supplemental Draft selection to possibly to candidate for MLS Rookie of the Year. He has a great future ahead of him.

With the change of the format for the 2012-13 CONCACAF Champions League, with eight groups of three and the winner of each group advancing, the pressure in the first match of group play is usually on the home team.Seattle took it to their opponents and got a much deserved win to kick off the month of August. The question is can they play with that same enthusiasm against an LA Galaxy side that has been on a roll lately? That's for everybody to find out on Sunday.


Scoring summary:

Seattle Sounders FC - Sammy Ochoa (Andy Rose, Alex Caskey) 19'

Seattle Sounders FC - Fredy Montero (Andy Rose, Cordell Cato) 30'

Seattle Sounders FC - Andy Rose (unassisted) 43'

Caledonia AIA - Kareem Joseph (penalty kick) 50'


Misconduct summary:

Caledonia AIA - Keyon Edwards (caution; foul) 39'

Seattle Sounders FC - Fredy Montero (caution; dive) 56'


Lineups:

Caledonia AIA - Glenroy Samuel; Aubrey David, Radanfah Abu Bakr, Nuru Abdullah Muhammad, Walter Moore; Kareem Joseph, Stephan David, Keyon Edwards, Trayon Bobb (Trevin Caesar 58'); Jamaal Gay (Sheldon Holder 83'), Conrad Smith (Cornelius Stewart 58')

Seattle Sounders FC - Andrew Weber; Brad Evans, Jeff Parke, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Marc Burch; Cordell Cato, Osvaldo Alonso (Servando Carrasco 46'), Andy Rose, Alex Caskey (Leo Gonzalez 75'); Sammy Ochoa, Fredy Montero (Adam Johansson 92'+)

By Money Mike


The Seattle Sounders were up 2-1 on aggregate going into the away leg against Santos Laguna, but Santos came right back and knocked the Sounders out of the Champions League. Not only did the Sounders get eliminated, they got owned. Santos won the second leg by a final count of 6-1 and won the series 7-3 on aggregate. I know this was not going to be easy. I know that Santos were the favorites to move on, but did I think that it would end like this? Well, no I didn't. Seattle kicks off their 2012 MLS campaign this Saturday at home against Toronto FC, who by the way, just knocked the Los Angeles Galaxy out of the Champions League.

Santos got things going early in the match. In the 8th minute, Cristian Suarez looked like he was well defended at first, but he fired a low left foot drive past Michael Gspurning and into the low left corner. Two minutes later, Santos struck again. This time it was Oribe Peralta fighting off Jhon Kennedy Hurtado and slotting it home for the goal to make it 2-0 Santos in the second leg and 3-2 Santos on aggregate. It was Peralta's 5th goal of the tournament. Seattle did manage to regroup though. Doing a better job at keeping possession and creating a couple of chances to pull level in the series and in the 37th minute, they did just that. Fredy Montero's curling ball found Alvaro Fernandez for the goal that leveled the series up at 3-3. The momentum looked like it shifted Seattle's way after that goal.

Unfortunately, the momentum was lost and things got ugly for the Sounders in the second half. In the second half, it was Herculez Gomez off a feed from Cristian Suarez to put Santos back up on aggregate. Gomez would add another one in the 68th minute. Cristian Suarez would then add his second goal in the 76th minute. And then Santos would add one more in the 81st minute from Carlos Ochoa. The Sounders 2011-12 Champions League campaign is over, tough way to start the 2012 season.


Observations:

Again, it's a tough way for Sigi Schmid and his team to end your Champions League run. I'd still give the Sounders credit. In their first season in the Champions League in 2010-11, they finished last place in group play, only finishing with three points. In 2011-12, I just wondered how far they could go, if they're good enough to compete in their group and looking at their group prior to their first match against Comunicaciones, I thought maybe they do have a chance here and they ended up finishing second in the group with 10 points. I wasn't too pleased with the result, but like I said, I'm impressed with their performance overall in the Champions League and I'm looking forward to watching them compete in MLS this season.

On my last preview, I said that the altitude could play a factor here in the second leg and I have to say, it really got to the Sounders in this game. The defense got caught on a few breaks. Fredy Montero, really struggled this series despite picking up two assists. Mauro Rosales and Alvaro Fernandez were the only ones who looked alive in this game. Soccer players in America are taught to play under a low altitude, not high altitude and a 90 degree temperature. That's why I'd prefer playing in a cold environment.

This team's going to get better at this stage as they continue to progress. Will this loss effect their confidence? No. We have a team that can compete and will compete for the Championship and it's easy to believe that with the Sounders right now than it was with the Mariners about a couple of years ago. You would have to be a stupid ignorant moron to deny the fact that the Sounders are one of the teams to beat in Major League Soccer.


Scoring summary:

Santos Laguna - Cristian Suarez (unassisted) 8'

Santos Laguna - Oribe Peralta (Daniel Luduena) 10'

Seattle Sounders FC - Alvaro Fernandez (Fredy Montero) 37'

Santos Laguna - Herculez Gomez (Cristian Suarez) 49'

Santos Laguna - Herculez Gomez (Oribe Peralta, Jorge Estrada) 68'

Santos Laguna - Cristian Suarez (Jorge Estrada) 76'

Santos Laguna - Carlos Ochoa (unassisted) 81'

* Santos Laguna advances 7-3 on aggregate.


Misconduct summary:

Seattle Sounders FC - Leonardo Gonzalez (caution; foul) 14'

Seattle Sounders FC - Fredy Montero (caution; handball) 30'

Santos Laguna - Oribe Peralta (caution; dissent) 41'

Santos Laguna - Felipe Baloy (caution; fight) 45'

Santos Laguna - Juan Pablo Rodriguez (caution; foul) 80'


Lineups:

Seattle Sounders FC - Michael Gspurning; Adam Johansson, Jeff Parke, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Leonardo Gonzalez (Christian Sivebaek 77'); Mauro Rosales, Osvaldo Alonso, Brad Evans, Alvaro Fernandez; David Estrada (Eddie Johnson 62', Roger Levesque 81'), Fredy Montero

Santos Laguna - Oswaldo Sanchez; Jorge Estrada, Aaron Galindo, Felipe Baloy, Osmar Mares; Marc Crosas (Rodolfo Salinas 33'), Juan Pablo Rodriguez, Daniel Luduena (Candido Ramirez 63'); Cristian Suarez, Herculez Gomez (Carlos Ochoa 69'), Oribe Peralta

By Money Mike


The Seattle Sounders got back to business and picked up where they left off last season, scoring goals. The Sounders came away with a 2-1 victory over a talented Santos Laguna side in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League Quarterfinal. The second leg will be next wednesday on Santos's home ground before Seattle opens up MLS play at home against Toronto FC on March 17. One thing that's going to stand out heading into the second leg is the away goal by Santos. I just hope that it doesn't come back to bite Seattle and that they would ease their way through to the semifinal where they would have the home field advantage in the second leg.

Seattle got things going early in the match. In the 5th minute, Mauro Rosales had a go from outside the penalty area, but there wasn't much on it and Oswaldo Sanchez made an easy save in the center of the goal. Two minutes later, Fredy Montero got on the end of an Adam Johansson cross, but again it came to nothing.

In the 12th minute, first blood went to Seattle. Fredy Montero sent in a beautiful curling ball to the far post for a free header from David Estrada and he made no mistake, a downward header past the keeper Oswaldo Sanchez and in the back of the net to give the Sounders a 1-0 lead. Estrada, who hasn't seen much playing time in his first two seasons here and looked ready to leave the club, got the start today over Eddie Johnson and he delivered by scoring his first professional goal. Seattle had another opportunity in the 18th minute. Adam Johansson once again whipped in a good cross for Fredy Montero. This time the header was on target, but Sanchez got his hand to it to force it wide. Santos started creating opportunities in the last 15 minutes of the first half but failed to find the back of the net. Seattle's last real opportunity in the first half came from Alvaro Fernandez. A curler to the far post from just outside the area that just sailed over the bar.

Things went pretty quiet in the first 15 minutes of the second half in terms of creating chances, but then in the 61st minute, Santos Laguna struck back. Marc Crosas sent in a little chip into the penalty area and found Herculez Gomez making a diagonal run in front of Sounders left back Leonardo Gonzalez. Gomez turned and slotted the ball past Michael Gspurning and into the far corner of the net to tie this match up at a goal a peice. I don't know if Gspurning got a touch on that, but that was poor defending though by Gonzalez. That is a vital away goal for Santos Laguna because that puts a little pressure on the Sounders heading into the second leg on their home ground which is really a difficult place to play. However, it didn't take long for Seattle to hit back and re gain the lead.

In the 63rd minute, Mauro Rosales sent in a free kick from the far side of the pitch, an inswinger into the six yard box where Brad Evans battled off a Santos defender and headed it over Oswaldo Sanchez and into the bottom left corner of the net to restore Seattle's one goal lead. From there, Seattle looked content to hold the lead in their first competitive match of the year 2012 and they nearly got a third goal as Eddie Johnson, who entered the match for Alvaro Fernandez in the 78th minute, nearly made an immediate impact and his header in the 80th minute missed wide of goal. That was just about the last scoring chance as Seattle hold's on for a 2-1 win.


Observations:

I tell you what from what I've seen, Oribe Peralta sure had a rough ass time out there for Santos Laguna. He did have a couple of looks at goal in this match, but both center backs Jeff Parke and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado did very well to shut him down and keep him off the score sheet in this match. I had Peralta as one of the players to watch on my match preview, saying that if the center backs get caught sleeping, Peralta would make them pay big time. So I think the backline did a pretty good job defensively in this match, not to mention the goal by Herculez Gomez. Personally though, I think these guys need to tighten up a bit defensively in the second leg because there were some openings that Santos found, but fortunately for the Sounders they were unable to take advantage of that.

We had a lot of pushing and shoving from the players in this match and the referee did a poor job in this one. Seven yellow cards were isssued in this game and the referee did a poor job keeping the players under control and that will just piss every soccer fan off, including me. It's just rediculous when you have a lot of brawls in a match as well as cards that should've been issued to players and haven't. This happened in the preliminary match here at home against San Francisco F.C. Every a match turns into a bitch fight between both teams and the referee's don't do anything about it, then it's pretty obvious they shouldn't be officiating any matches at all. Not even friendlies.

It was really an exciting night for Seattle and the Sounders. I was at the match, I enjoyed it. I was hoping for a better result in this match, but I'll take the 2-1 win. Right now, the away goal by Herculez Gomez could be the factor in this series. Hopefully, Seattle can hang on and advance to the Champions League semifinal.


Scoring summary:

Seattle Sounders FC - David Estrada (Fredy Montero, Leonardo Gonzalez) 12'

Santos Laguna - Herculez Gomez (Marc Crosas) 61'

Seattle Sounders FC - Brad Evans (Mauro Rosales) 63'


Misconduct summary:

Santos Laguna - Juan Pablo Rodriguez (caution; Dangerous play) 28'

Santos Laguna - Osmar Mares (caution; Dissent) 29'

Seattle Sounders FC - Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (caution; Foul) 33'

Seattle Sounders FC - Leonardo Gonzalez (caution; Foul) 58'

Santos Laguna - Oswaldo Sanchez (caution; Dissent) 65'

Santos Laguna - Santiago Hoyos (caution; Dissent) 80'

Seattle Sounders FC - David Estrada (caution; Dangerous play) 89'


Lineups:

Santos Laguna - Oswaldo Sanchez; Ivan Estrada, Aaron Galindo, Santiago Hoyos, Osmar Mares; Marc Crosas, Juan Pablo Rodriguez (Rodolfo Salines 84'), Daniel Luduena (Candido Ramirez 74'); Cristian Suarez, Herculez Gomez (Carlos Ochoa 84'), Oribe Peralta

Seattle Sounders FC - Michael Gspurning; Adam Johansson, Jeff Parke, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Leonardo Gonzalez; Mauro Rosales, Osvaldo Alonso, Brad Evans, Alvaro Fernandez (Eddie Johnson 78'); David Estrada (Marc Burch 89'), Fredy Montero

By Money Mike



The Seattle Sounders have spent almost two months preparing for what is already considered their biggest match of the season. There are times for friendlies. This sure as hell is not one of them. The Seattle Sounders take on Santos Laguna in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League Quarter final at home this Wednesday at 7pm. Santos recently just fell short of the Primera Division de Mexico Apatura title, falling to Tigres de la UANL in the Championship and right now they're halfway through their Clasura campaign, currently sitting in forth place. The Sounders, coming off three straight first round exits in the MLS Cup playoffs, have made some big moves during the offseason to avoid a forth straight early exit from the playoffs. Odds are going to be against the Sounders for this matchup with Santos, but this team looks stronger right now than they were in the playoffs last season.

It's a tough thing for any MLS club. Having to go through the quarterfinal stage of the Champions League before kicking off league play. Columbus and Real Salt Lake faced eachother in the quarterfinal round last year with RSL winning that one 4-1 on aggregate, but what's different though is that RSL had a Champions League semifinal match before kicking off their MLS campaign. Fortunately for them, they managed to advance to the final before coming up short to Monterrey.

The chances of an MLS club making it to the Champions League final this year are about a 3/4 chance because the winner of this match will face the winner of the LA Galaxy and Toronto FC who will also face eachother on Wednesday in the first leg at the Rogers Centre in Toronto which is of course where the Toronto Blue Jays play, and I heard that match has been sold out. I don't expect a big crowd at CenturyLink Field for the Sounders first leg match, but what I will tell you guys is that I will be there to catch the match in person.


Players to watch:

Santos Laguna:

Oswaldo Sanchez - If you're a U.S. soccer fan, you should remember this guy. He's played for the Mexican national team in so many big match against the U.S. At 38-years of age, this guy still hasn't missed a beat. Every match whether it's a preseason match or a Primera Division match, the Champions League, the Copa Libertadores, etc. He's got one thing on his mind and that is to keep his team in matches. No mistakes here for the Sounders, they need to test him early. For a guy at such a high caliber, make him work early in the match and put your opponents under a lot of pressure.

Oribe Peralta - Now this team had a bit of a blow losing striker Carlos Quintero to a thigh injury, but let's not forget about Peralta. Normally, he would play midfield and score around five to seven goals in a season, but this year, he is absolutely killing it. This season, he is leading his team in goals scored, including four goals in this years Champions League campaign. So this was an easy pick right here as one of the players to watch. Quintero would've been a threat in this series, but I see Peralta as a much bigger threat to the Sounders back line. The centerbacks better be ready because if they get caught napping, he's going to make them pay.

Seattle Sounders FC:

Adam Johansson - Here's another easy one, our new right back. Not that James Riley was bad during his tenure at right back with the Sounders, but Johansson is much better defensively in that position. He can also provide a good attacking option for the Sounders. In the last preseason match, he made a lot of good attacking runs, his passing has been good, he assisted on the first goal and defensively with his speed, he can shut down the wide midfield players/wingers. I like his quickness getting up and down the pitch. That's what he did all preseason and that's basically what the Sounders have been searching for during the offseason. Now he just needs to continue that trend here in the Champions League all the way through the MLS season.

Fredy Montero - There are games where this guy struggles but Seattle still ends up winning those games, but in this one, I personally think Montero needs to have a good game from start to finish and that goes for the 2nd leg down in Mexico on March 14th. As good as he's been here in Seattle, there have been times when he's made some silly mistakes. If Montero can limit the mistakes and pick up where he left off late in the 2011 season, then I think Seattle would have a better shot a pulling off the victory in the series.

Again, Santos will be without Carlos Quintero for at least the first leg of this series. Some reports are saying he'll be out for about three weeks which would mean he would miss the second leg as well. With him out, I'm expecting Herculez Gomez, who played for the Sounders when they were a USL club in 2003, to get the start up front alongside Oribe Peralta. However, they also have Ecuadorian international Cristian Suarez who they can put up front as well.

The Sounders starting 11 will have three new faces. One of the three of course is our new goalkeeper Michael Gspurning, who has had a solid career and will be our starting goalkeeper for a long time. Then you have Eddie Johnson partnering up front with Fredy Montero. Again, people have been bitching about the Sounders acquiring him for Mike Fucito and Lamar Neagle and seriously, they all need to shut the hell up because we all know Johnson is going to proove them wrong this season and Sigi Schmid did have a legit reason for acqiring Johnson. And of course it's great to have Mauro Rosales back after a late season injury last season that ruled him out for at least the RSL series, but that ended up hurting us because we were missing the veteran presence, the leadership, everything that he brought, we had to try to make it through without him and unfortunately we were unsuccessful.

All in all, I'm really excited about the match on Wednesday, it's going to be a great game but more importantly, I'm really excited about the new season. This team is ready to compete with the LA Galaxy and Real Salt Lake for the West. The fans are gonna arrive in full voice every game and proove, just as always, that Seattle is the #1 Soccer City in America. It's going to be an exciting year and I'll be talking more about that within the next few days.

By Money Mike


The CONCACAF Champions League knockout round draw took place earlier today at the CONCACAF Headquarters in New York City and after all the quarterfinal pairings and the possible matchups for the Semifinals and the Championship, the knockout stages is all set and ready to go for the month of March. The Seattle Sounders who finished second in Group D have been drawn against Mexican club Santos Laguna finished on top of Group B. The first leg will be somewhere between March 6-8 at CenturyLink Field and the second leg will be a week from that time between March 13-15 south of the border in Mexico. Each round is played over two legs, with away goals rule taking effect in this tournament, so the chances of a series being decided by two 15 minute extra time periods are very little. Remember our preliminary series against San Francisco F.C. went to extra time because San Francisco won the first match on their home soil 1-0 and then Seattle originally won the 2nd leg 1-0 at home, so that's where extra time had to come into place. The Sounders went on and scored another goal in extra-time and was able to hold ground the rest of the way in the 2nd leg and win 2-1 on aggregate. The winner of this series will take on the winner of the LA Galaxy/Toronto FC series.


CONCACAF Champions League
(Home teams listed first)

Quarterfinals

First leg (March 6-8 2012):*

Seattle Sounders FC vs Santos Laguna (Mexico)
Isidro Metapan (El Salvador) vs Pumas UANM (Mexico)
Toronto FC vs Los Angeles Galaxy
Morelia (Mexico) vs Monterrey (Mexico)

Second leg (March 13-15 2012):*

Santos Laguna (Mexico) vs Seattle Sounders FC
Pumas UANM (Mexico) vs Isidro Metapan (El Salvador)
Los Angeles Galaxy vs Toronto FC
Monterrey (Mexico) vs Morelia (Mexico)

Semifinals

First leg (March 27-29 2012):*

Semifinal 1 - Toronto FC/LA Galaxy vs Seattle Sounders/Santos Laguna
Semifinal 2 - Morelia/Monterrey vs Isidro Metapan/Pumas UANM

Second leg (April 3-5 2012):*

Semifinal 1 - Seattle Sounders/Santos Laguna vs Toronto FC/LA Galaxy
Semifinal 2 - Isidro Metapan/Pumas UANM vs Morelia/Monterrey

Finals

First leg (April 17-19 2012):*

Winner of Semifinal 2 vs Winner of Semifinal 1

Second leg (April 24-26 2012):*

Winner of Semifinal 1 vs Winner of Semifinal 2


*Dates to be determined

By Money Mike



The Seattle Sounders fell to Monterrey 2-1 in the final Group match of the 2011-12 CONCACAF Champions League, however the Sounders have already qualified for the Champions League quarterfinal after their 2-2 draw at Comunicaciones a couple of weeks ago. With the result, not only do Monterrey qualify for the Quarterfinals, they also clinch the top spot in Group D which would guarantee home field advantage in the second leg of the Champions League Quarterfinal. Seattle is three points ahead of Comunicaciones who play host to Herediano tomorrow night. Because of the fact that Seattle holds the first tiebreaker (the greater number of points earned in matches between the teams), no matter what happens in their match, Comunicaciones are eliminated from the Champions League.

Rookie Bryan Meredith made his professional debut on goal and right away in the third minute, some miscommunication resulted in an opening goal for Monterrey. Humberto Suazo sent a perfectly timmed long ball forward for Abraham Dario Carreno who was kept onside by defender Jeff Parke. Carreno tapped the ball easily past Meredith to put the visitors in front.

In the 42nd minute, the Sounders struck right back and tied the match up. Fredy Montero, after drawing a foul six yards away from the penalty area, stepped up to take the free kick. Montero snuck the ball inside the post from 25 yards away for his 18th goal this season in all compititions.

In the 61st minute, Monterrey re-took the lead. Humberto Suazo operated a give-and-go with Carreno before having his shot blocked. The ball redirected to Cesar Delgado who thumped one past Bryan Meredith to put Monterrey up for good as they clinch Group D.

Now that the U.S. Open Cup is out of the way and qualifying for the Champions League quarterfinal is out of the way, it's time now to turn our focus to the MLS Cup. The Sounders close out regular season play saturday in Los Angeles as they take on Chivas USA. Following that they will head to Salt Lake or Dallas for the first leg of the MLS Cup Quarterfinals.


Scoring summary:

Monterrey - Abraham Dario Carreno (Humberto Suazo) 3'

Seattle Sounders FC - Fredy Montero (unassisted) 42'

Monterrey - Cesar Delgado (unassisted) 61'


Misconduct summary:

Monterrey - Luiz Perez (caution; Reckless foul) 41'

Seattle Sounders FC - Zach Scott (caution; Reckless foul) 58'

Monterrey - Severo Meza (caution; Delaying a restart) 75'

Monterrey - Humberto Suazo (caution; Delaying a restart) 82'

Monterrey - Miguel Morales (caution; Delaying a restart) 94'+


Lineups:

Monterrey - Jonathan Orozco (Juan de Dios Ibarra 73'); Severo Meza, Ricardo Osorio, Miguel Morales, Jose Basanta; Luiz Perez, Cesar Delgado (Neri Cardozo 80'), Sergio Perez; Abraham Dario Carreno, Sergio Santana, Humberto Suazo

Seattle Sounders FC - Bryan Meredith; James Riley, Jeff Parke (Patrick Ianni 67'), Zach Scott, Tyson Wahl; David Estrada (Lamar Neagle 79'), Osvaldo Alonso, Erik Friberg, Roger Levesque; Sammy Ochoa (Mike Fucito 74'), Fredy Montero

By Money Mike


The Seattle Sounders close out CONCACAF Champions League Group play Tuesday night at CenturyLink Field as they will play host to Mexican club C.F. Monterrey. Last time these two met down at Estadio Tecnologico in Monterrey, the Sounders pulled off a huge upset against the CONCACAF Champions. Alvaro Fernandez's 38th minute goal prooved to be the difference as Seattle came away with a 1-0 win. I've said this so many times now, it's been a crazy ride for the Seattle Sounders in MLS, the U.S. Open Cup and the CONCACAF Champions League, I'm already looking forward to watching them in the playoffs and also looking forward to watching them in the Champions League Quarterfinal in early March. Monterrey need at least a draw to secure a spot in the Quarterfinal. A win would also clinch first place in the group and home field advantage in the 2nd leg of the Quarterfinal round. If they don't want to suffer a loss that would put them in danger of elimination, every single player on that team, including Aldo de Nigris, Humberto Suazo and Neri Cardozo is gonna have to play perfect almost all game.


What to look out for in this game:

- We won't have a giant crowd like we did Saturday night so don't even try to get your hopes up on that part.

- Lately since Terry Boss suffered that concussion I've been keeping an eye on the goalkeeping situation with the Sounders, and that's what I'm going to do again for this match. Wondering if it will be Kasey Keller, if it will be Josh Ford, or if it will be Bryan Meredith getting the start in goal for the Sounders.

- I, as a matter of fact, will be keeping an eye on the entire lineup for this game and for Saturdays final regular season game against Chivas USA because you want your best team out there in the playoffs if you want to win the big prize. I'm not expecting this, but I'm hoping we see the young players like Michael Tetteh, David Estrada, Amadou Sanyang and Servando Carrasco out on the pitch.

- A win or a draw by the Seattle Sounders and they will clinch the top spot in Group D and get home field advantage in the second leg of the Champions League Quarterfinals.

- If Monterrey wins, they will get the top spot in Group D. A draw would clinch them second place (Unless Comunicaciones defeat Herediano by at least 8). If they lose, but Comunicaciones fail to defeat Herediano, Monterrey will still clinch a spot in the Quarterfinals. However, if they lose and Comunicaciones defeats Herediano, Comunicaciones will clinch a spot in the Champions League Quarterfinals and Monterrey would be eliminated.

By Money Mike

Scoring summary:

Comunicaciones - Transito Montepeque (Carlos Mejia) 7'

Seattle Sounders FC - Osvaldo Alonso (unassisted) 44'

Comunicaciones - Rafael Morales (unassisted) 64'

Seattle Sounders FC - Osvaldo Alonso (unassisted) 89'


Misconduct summary:

Comunicaciones - Erwin Morales (caution; Reckless tackle) 75'

Seattle Sounders FC - Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (caution; Foul) 87'


Lineups:

Seattle Sounders FC - Kasey Keller; Zach Scott, Jeff Parke, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Tyson Wahl; Alvaro Fernandez, Osvaldo Alonso, Erik Friberg (Servando Carrasco 74'), Lamar Neagle (Nate Jaqua 92'+), Fredy Montero, Mike Fucito (Sammy Ochoa 66')

Comunicaciones - Juan Paredes; Dagoberto Arriola, Edgar Martinez, Rafael Morales, Edwin Morales, Carlos Mejia; Fredy Thompson, Rigoberto Gomez (Jose Del Aguila 45'), Brayan Ordonez (Abner Tigueros 77'), Carlos Ramirez; Transito Montepeque (Marvin Ceballos 57')


Highlights:

By Money Mike



The Seattle Sounders head over to the Central American continent yet again. This time to Guatemala for matchday 5 of the CONCACAF Champions League against Comunicaciones. Kickoff time is 7pm and will be televised on FOX Soccer and streamed live online at concacaf.com. The Sounders with a point in this match will book their place in the CONCACAF Champions League Quarterfinals next March. A win would put them closer to clinching the top spot in the group stage which would mean that they would get a much needed home field advantage in the 2nd leg of the Quarterfinal stage.


Last meeting (August 16, 2011):
CenturyLink Field, Seattle, WA
Seattle Sounders FC 4 - 1 Comunicaciones

Scoring summary:

Comunicaciones - Jairo Arreola (Bryan Ordonez) 2'

Seattle Sounders FC - Brad Evans (Michael Fucito) 35'

Seattle Sounders FC - Michael Fucito (Fredy Montero, Alvaro Fernandez) 61'

Seattle Sounders FC - Michael Fucito (Alvaro Fernandez, Brad Evans) 67'

Seattle Sounders FC - Own Goal (Alvaro Fernandez) 87'


Misconduct summary:

Comunicaciones - Jairo Arreloa (caution; Dissent) 9'

Seattle Sounders FC - Patrick Ianni (caution; Tactical foul) 16'

Seattle Sounders FC - James Riley (caution; Reckless tackle) 47'+

Comunicaciones - Carlos Castrillo (caution; Reckless tackle) 50'

Seattle Sounders FC - Leonardo Gonzalez (caution; Tactical foul) 54'

Seattle Sounders FC - Lamar Neagle (ejection; Violent conduct) 55'

Comunicaciones - Adolfo Machado (caution; Reckless tackle) 60'

Comunicaciones - Carlos Ramirez (caution; Unsporting behavior) 69'

Seattle Sounders FC - Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (caution; Unsporting behavior) 69'

Comunicaciones - Edgard Martinez (ejection; Abusive Language) 80'

Comunicaciones - Fredy Thompson (caution; Reckless tackle) 91'+


Lineups:

Comunicaciones - Juan Jose Peredas; Adolfo Machado, Edgard Martinez, Carlos Castrillo, Erwin Morales; Carlos Ramirez, Juan Marquez (Rigoberto Gomez 77'), Fredy Thompson, Jairo Arreloa, Bryan Ordonez (Carlos Mejia 70'); Transito Montepeque (Hernan Sandoval 78')

Seattle Sounders FC - Terry Boss; James Riley, Patrick Ianni (Roger Levesque 84'), Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Leonardo Gonzalez (Zach Scott 75'); Lamar Neagle, Servando Carrasco, Brad Evans, Alvaro Fernandez; Fredy Montero (Mauro Rosales 63'), Michael Fucito


What to keep our eyes on for this game:

- The big focus is who will head coach Sigi Schmid partner up front this time. Last week against Herediano, Sigi decided to start Pat Noonan along side Nate Jaqua. That didn't come close to working. Fredy Montero has made big plays for the Sounders, I'd start him, and I also want to see Josh Ford make his debut in goal.

By Money Mike

By Money Mike



The Seattle Sounders head to Heredia, Costa Rica for matchday 3 of the CONCACAF Champions League as they take on C.S. Herediano on Wednesday, looking to go 3-0 in Champions League Group play. The Sounders are coming off a 2-1 defeat at home to Real Salt Lake in MLS play, snapping an 8 game unbeaten streak in all competitions. They have off very very well in the Group stage of the Champions League, defeating Comunicaciones 4-1 at home and then upsetting CONCACAF Champions Monterrey 1-0 on their home ground. Kickoff time on Wednesday is at 7pm and will be Televised on FOX Soccer and streamed live on concacaf.com.


Who are C.S. Herediano?

This team was formed on June 7, 1921 when three local Heredian football clubs, Club Sport Renacimiento, Club Sport Juan J. Flores and Club Sport Cristobal Colon decided to incorporate themselves to form Club Sport Herediano. Native Heredian football players such as Jose Juaquin "Toquita" Gutierrez, Eladio Rosabal Cordero, Victor Manuel Ruiz, Gilberto & Claudio Arguedas, and Luis Valerio (who all played in various clubs such as La Libertad and Gimnastica Espanola) united to sign the official constitution of Club Sport Herediano in June of 1921.

In 1925, Herediano embarked on its first international match when it had a six game tour in Jamaica in which they won four, tied and lost one. In 1928, Herediano travelled to El Salvador to play several international matches against local clubs. They beat Cuscatlan twice, once by a score of 11-0 and then again 11-1. They also beat C.D. FAS in Santa Ana by a score of 4-0, and beat Sonsonate 8-0. The club's most historic victory came in 1932 in Costa Rica's National Stadium in La Sabana, when Herediano beat the Argentinian National team by a score of 3-1. In its first decade of existence Herediano won 6 National Titles, four of them consecutively. Herediano is considered the Costa Rican club team with the most international experience.

Herediano have won the Primera Division de Costa Rica 21 times in their history, including one in their very first year of existence in 1921. Their most recent one came in the 1992-93 season.


What to keep an eye on in this game

- Backup goalkeeper Terry Boss normally gets the start in goal for the Seattle Sounders in this tournament, but because he's out for the rest of the season, you wonder if Sigi Schmid will give starter Kasey Keller the nod' or if he will turn to rookie Josh Ford.

- Lamar Neagle should be back in the lineup in the third match after he was suspended for the Monterrey trip having picked up a red card on matchday one against Comunicaciones.

- The weather conditions are going to be...... ABSOLUTELY..... NASTY. They're expecting scattered Thunderstorms in the afternoon on Wednesday that will continue throughout the match. I just hope that they can get a full game in. I swear, every time we head south of the United States for a Champions League game, there are ugly weather conditions.

By Money Mike









The Seattle Sounders became the second MLS team to beat a Mexican team on Mexican soil in over a week. The Sounders upset defending CONCACAF Champions, Monterrey 1-0 to move into first place in the Group Stage. There were a couple of nervous moments in the second half when Monterrey came right at them, but the Sounders were able to hang on and get the full 3 points. People need to start taking this tournament seriously, especially with the Sounders off to a 2-0 start in Group play. I mean, winning the Champions League is as big as winning the MLS Cup. Even out of all of that, America is just too freakin stupid to understand that. If this wasn't a big win, I don't know what the hell is. Sigi Schmid left Kasey Keller, Mauro Rosales and Fredy Montero out of the 18 man squad and partnered Nate Jaqua up front with Pat Noonan. Terry Boss, as expected, got the start in goal. Josh Ford was on the squad as a backup goalkeeper behind Boss. And also, Amadou Sanyang made his Sounders debut, coming on in the 84th minute of the match.



The Sounders ceded most of the possession early opted to play counter attacking football and in the 38th minute, Seattle was on the move as Pat Noonan fed Alvaro Fernandez with a pinpoint ball. Flacco split defenders Darvin Chavez and Miguel Morales and calmly roofed the ball past Goalkeeper Jonathan Orozco to give Seattle a 1-0 lead.



In the second half, Monterrey came out strong. In the 66th minute, the Sounders dodged a huge bullet. Terry Boss lost the ball to Aldo de Nigris as he was trying to clear it. He then nearly took him down which would've resulted in a penalty and possibly a straight red card. de Nigris laid the ball back to Humberto Suazo who ripped the ball wide of goal. That would've been a disastrous moment for Terry Boss and the Seattle Sounders. Despite Monterrey finishing with 11 shots on goal, it was Seattle who came away with a full three points over the CONCACAF Champions.



The Sounders return home to Seattle as they get set to host the Columbus Crew on Saturday at CenturyLink Field. Then they host FC Dallas in the semifinals of the U.S. Open Cup next Tuesday at the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila.





Scoring summary:



Seattle Sounders FC - Alvaro Fernandez (Pat Noonan) 38'





Misconduct summary:



Seattle Sounders FC - Nate Jaqua (caution; Reckless tackle) 48'





Lineups:



Seattle Sounders FC - Terry Boss; James Riley, Zach Scott, Jeff Parke, Tyson Wahl; Roger Levesque (Amadou Sanyang 84'), Brad Evans, Servando Carrasco, Alvaro Fernandez (Leonardo Gonzalez 76'); Nate Jaqua (Osvaldo Alonso 65'), Pat Noonan



Monterrey - Jonathan Orozco; Darvin Chavez, Hiram Mier, Severo Meza (Ricardo Osorio 83'); Jesus Manuel Corona (Abraham Carreno 73'), Neri Cardozo, Luis Ernesto Perez, Hector Morales (Walter Ayovi 62'); Aldo de Nigris, Jesus Eduardo Zavala, Humberto Suazo





Now here's a look at the highlights:

By Money Mike







Following their big win over FC Dallas in league play, the Seattle Sounders head south of the border to Mexico for Champions League play as they take on Monterrey tonight at 5pm. The match will of course be televised live on Fox Soccer Channel and also streamed live on concacaf.com. Last year, these two sides faced each other in Group play, the first match was at CenturyLink Field where Monterrey came away with a 2-0 win on goals by Nery Cardozo and Aldo de Nigres. In their second meeting down in Mexico, the Sounders took a 2-0 lead into the locker room at halftime. In the second half Monterrey stormed back with 3 goals in a string of 10 minutes to win 3-2. Both teams are coming off impressive wins in their first match of this years group stage.





Who are C.F. Monterrey?



Monterrey were founded just after World War II ended. June 28, 1945, was the year the team was formed. A group of industrial businessmen led by Ramon Cardenas Coronado, Enrique Ayala Medina, Paul C. Probert, Rogelio Cantu Gomez and Miguel Margain Zozaya, decided to create the Club de Futbol Monterrey (That's the real name of the club).



They played their first professional game on August 19, 1945 against San Sebastian de Leon and came away with a 1-0 win. That joy quickly came to an end when Monterrey lost 6-0 to Montezuma, and then having the club's traveling bus involved in a tragic accident in the San Juan de los Lagos roads that would take the life's of many of the clubs players and would have a big impact on the surviving players. Some of the Mexican clubs loaned their players to Monterrey in order for them to continue on with their history, but the club struggled, losing 21 games in a row, conceding 121 goals and finishing dead last in the league. In 1946, after only one season, the club decided to fold in honor to the players passing.



It was until 1952 when the club resumed action thanks to Dr. Carlos Conseco. Monterrey enrolled in the second division four years later and would earn promotion in the top division. However, the joy was short lived when Monterrey finished dead last and were relegated into the second division. It didn't seem to bother them because they once again earn promotion to the top flight for the 1959-60 season which they have holed till date.



The club started the 1960s in bad shape, just avoiding relegation with 3 more points than Club Celaya. But a lot of people can tell they were getting better after finishing with a record 7 wins, 12 losses and 7 draws for a total of 21 points (I don't know what the point scale was, normally that record would equal 28 points on the current point scale). The next four seasons, Monterrey finished in the top 3, the top 5 but the rest of the way in the 60's they struggled again.



I wasn't until 1986 when Monterrey won their first league title in their history. Defeating Tampico-Madero on aggregate 3-2. They would add 3 more titles to their history later on. Winning the Clausura in 2003 and the Apatura in 2009 and 2010. And oh by the way, they're the defending CONCACAF Champions. Remember? They were able to get past Real Salt Lake in last years Champions League final. So while they're trying to defend their Apatura crown, they're also looking to defend their Champions League title.





What to look out for in this game:



- Due to the red card in the Sounders home match against Comunicaciones, Lamar Neagle will not play in tonight's match. Osvaldo Alonso is eligible to return though after serving a suspension in the first group stage match.



- With a lot of matches in these late stages of the season, fatigue will be a major factor for the Sounders. Expect Sigi to make a lot of changes in tonight's lineup. I'm hoping Kasey Keller gets the start tonight, but I think Sigi will go with backup goalkeeper Terry Boss. We'll see who he puts out there. Mike Fucito will definitely get the start tonight up front.



- I would also keep an eye on the field conditions. Most of the time the Sounders have been south of the border, the weather has been absolutely shitty and the field conditions have been god awful. Mexico gets a lot of warm weather. Lately about 100 degrees. But the weather and the conditions are always a big focus for me. Today the weather channel is saying 98 degrees with a chance of isolated thunder storms, so I think the Sounders will be dealing with more bad weather.

By Money Mike







In the Champions League Group stage opener at CenturyLink Field, the Sounders gave up an early goal, but bounced back with four unanswered goals to beat Comunicaciones 4-1. Michael Fucito scored two goals and assisted on another. The Sounders didn't seem to lose any focus, even after going down a man when Lamar Neagle was shown a Red Card. You could tell by this teams performance last night, they could play anybody in this region.



In the second minute, Comunicaciones got on the board early. Brayan Ordonez tracked a long ball in the corner, sending in a hopeful cross. When Sounders goalkeeper Terry Boss was unable to cut down the service, Jairo Arreola beat defender James Riley to the far post for an early lead.



In the 35th minute, Seattle answered. Mike Fucito's corner found Brad Evans from point blank range, and Evans headed the ball off the crossbar and over the goal line for the equalizer.



In the 61st minute, Fucito would this time find the back of the net. Fucito ran onto a pass from Fredy Montero, cut the ball inside the penalty area and finished with his left foot to give the Sounders a 2-1 advantage. He wasn't done though. Six minutes later, he would tack on another one. After making another good run on the ball, this time from Alvaro Fernandez, Fucito took one touch the curled the ball around the goalkeeper and in for his second of the match. Seattle would tack on one more on an own goal and maximum points in the first match.





Scoring summary:



Comunicaciones - Jairo Arreola (Bryan Ordonez) 2'



Seattle Sounders FC - Brad Evans (Michael Fucito) 35'



Seattle Sounders FC - Michael Fucito (Fredy Montero, Alvaro Fernandez) 61'



Seattle Sounders FC - Michael Fucito (Alvaro Fernandez, Brad Evans) 67'



Seattle Sounders FC - Own Goal (Alvaro Fernandez) 87'





Misconduct summary:



Comunicaciones - Jairo Arreloa (caution; Dissent) 9'



Seattle Sounders FC - Patrick Ianni (caution; Tactical foul) 16'



Seattle Sounders FC - James Riley (caution; Reckless tackle) 47'+



Comunicaciones - Carlos Castrillo (caution; Reckless tackle) 50'



Seattle Sounders FC - Leonardo Gonzalez (caution; Tactical foul) 54'



Seattle Sounders FC - Lamar Neagle (ejection; Violent conduct) 55'



Comunicaciones - Adolfo Machado (caution; Reckless tackle) 60'



Comunicaciones - Carlos Ramirez (caution; Unsporting behavior) 69'



Seattle Sounders FC - Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (caution; Unsporting behavior) 69'



Comunicaciones - Edgard Martinez (ejection; Abusive Language) 80'



Comunicaciones - Fredy Thompson (caution; Reckless tackle) 91'+





Lineups:



Comunicaciones - Juan Jose Peredas; Adolfo Machado, Edgard Martinez, Carlos Castrillo, Erwin Morales; Carlos Ramirez, Juan Marquez (Rigoberto Gomez 77'), Fredy Thompson, Jairo Arreloa, Bryan Ordonez (Carlos Mejia 70'); Transito Montepeque (Hernan Sandoval 78')



Seattle Sounders FC - Terry Boss; James Riley, Patrick Ianni (Roger Levesque 84'), Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Leonardo Gonzalez (Zach Scott 75'); Lamar Neagle, Servando Carrasco, Brad Evans, Alvaro Fernandez; Fredy Montero (Mauro Rosales 63'), Michael Fucito

By Money Mike







The Seattle Sounders open up Group D of the 2011-2012 CONCACAF Champions League at home against Guatemalan side Comunicaciones. The Sounders qualified for the Group Stage having knocked out San Francisco F.C. 2-1 on aggregate in the Preliminary Round. Last year in Group play, the Sounders finished 1-5 with their only win coming against Marathon on Matchday 5. I think Seattle will do a lot better this year than they did last year. As a matter of fact, they have a good shot at finishing 2nd and earning a spot in the quarterfinals, which will take place in February. The match tomorrow kicks off at 7pm and will be televised on Fox Soccer Channel and streamed online at concacaf.com. If you don't have Fox Soccer and are just too damn lazy to watch the game online, then you can listen to it on 97.3 KIRO fm.





Who are Comunicaciones?



Founded in 1949, Comunicaciones are a team from Guatemala City, Guatemala. But even though they haven't existed for that long, they have won 24 league titles. In the 1990's they've enjoyed some great success, bringing in players like Costa Rican's Maurico Wright and Rolando Fonseca, Milton Nunez from Honduras, and they brought in some highly-esteemed local players like Martin Machon, Edgar Estrada, Jorge Rudas and Julio Rudas.



I tell you what, this investment paid off as Comunicaciones won four league titles in a row, starting in 1996-97. So this team has quite a bit of history.





What to look out for in this game:



- We're gonna have clear skies tomorrow and the temperature is going to be around 73° F which is perfect weather for soccer. This will help with the speed and the tempo of this match, especially since we are playing on turf.



- Osvaldo Alonso will be suspended for the opener because he picked up two yellow cards in the Preliminary series against San Francisco, which is the max. in club football tournaments as well as country.



- Again, we've had some injury problems, not only with Steve Zakuani and O'Brian White but also Brad Evans and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado. Evans has been suffering from a strained hamstring and Hurtado sprained his MCL in the Cascadia derby against the Portland Timbers. Both players are expected to play tomorrow in the opener. As for O'Brian White, well I don't know what's been going on, he's still not 100%. This guy's a big big loss, we need him up top.