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In order to salvage a win and go through to the Western Conference semi-finals, the Seattle Sounders need to find two goals against the Los Angeles Galaxy.
For a preview, match card and in-game chatter, visit SB Nation's Seattle Sounder blog, Sounder at Heart.
Seattle Sounders have pulled one back against Los Angeles Galaxy, with Steve Zakuani scoring the Sounders' first ever MLS playoff goal.
Nate Jaqua, who came in for Patrick Ianni in the 76th minute, held off two Galaxy defenders to pass the ball on to Zakuani. The Seattle midfielder performed a deft piece of footwork to spin around Omar Gonzalez and send the ball toward the Galaxy goal. Donovan Ricketts, the MLS Goalkeeper Of The Year, got his hands on the ball, but allowed it to fly through his fingers.
Minutes later, Nate Jaqua pushing the ball just wide of the post, very nearly scoring an equalizer for the visitors. Seattle have threatened constantly in the second half, but almost everything has been just wide of goal.
While it may have been too little, too late for the Sounders, the Rave Green will at least be happy to have finally managed to find a goal in post-season play.
Omar Gonzalez puts another on the board for Los Angeles Galaxy, putting the home side up 3-0 over both legs.
Sanna Nyassi fouled Landon Donovan about thirty yards from goal, conceding yet another set piece opportunity for the Galaxy. David Beckham stepped up to take advantage, sending the free kick over Seattle's two-man wall. This time it was Patrick Ianni who was caught off-guard, unable to do anything to stop Gonzalez's header.
The Sounders are still relying on booted balls up the pitch. Their best effort so far was a long range shot from Osvaldo Alonso, but it was easily pushed away by Donovan Ricketts. The rebound fell just outside the goal, but no Seattle player was there to take advantage. Still, that's what Seattle need to be doing more-keeping the ball on the ground rather than up in the air.
The battle is lost for Seattle, and they know it. It's just time to keep face, perhaps scoring their first goal in MLS playoffs matches.
Galaxy pressure pays off with another goal from Edson Buddle.
Los Angeles earned a corner kick off the left side of the goal, but for some reason the corner was taken on the right side (update:it is up to the discretion of the official), giving David Beckham the opportunity to swing in one of his famous corner kicks. Buddle jumped and got the better of the Seattle defense, catching Tyrone Marshall flat footed. Buddle's header left Keller scrambling as well, and he just couldn't get a touch on it.
The Sounders have been practically anonymous in the first twenty minutes, unable to string more than a few passes together. The team is once again relying on the long pass upfield, almost guaranteeing the Galaxy the opportunity to collect the ball and send it back toward the Seattle goal. Los Angeles are being smart and attacking down their left side, exposing the weakness of both Sanna Nyassi and James Riley, with the latter already having been caught out of position at least three times, allowing Landon Donovan plenty of room in which to play.
The starting lineups for the match between Los Angeles Galaxy and Seattle Sounders have been announced. Sigi Schmid has made one change for Seattle, replacing the injured Jeff Parke with Tyrone Marshall in central defense:
Seattle Sounders Starting XI: GK Kasey Keller, D James Riley, D Tyrone Marshall, D Patrick Ianni, D Leo Gonzalez, M Osvaldo Alonso, M Nathan Sturgis, M Sanna Nyassi, M Steve Zakuani, F Fredy Montero, F Blaise Nkufo
Bench:Terry Boss, Mike Fucito, Tyson Wahl, Alvaro Fernandez, Nate Jaqua, Roger Levesque, Taylor Graham.
Meanwhile, Bruce Arena has made no changes to the side that beat the Sounders 1-0 last Sunday:
Los Angeles Galaxy Starting XI: GK Donovan Ricketts, D Eddie Lewis, D Omar Gonzalez, D A.J. DeLaGarza, D Bryan Jordan, M Juninho, M Dema Kovalenko, M David Beckham, M Landon Donovan, F Mike Magee, F Edson Buddle
Bench :Josh Saunders, Todd Dunivant, Jovan Kirovski, Chris Birchall, Gregg Berhalter, Tristan Bowen, Alex Cazumba.
The Seattle Sounders are in Los Angeles this weekend for their second game in the MLS playoffs. That sentence sounds so inoffensive when written outside of context, so it's time to paint the bigger picture. The Sounders face the Galaxy on their own turf, while the home team is carrying a 1-0 lead. If Seattle doesn't get a goal, they'll be knocked out of the playoffs for the second straight season. Even if Seattle get that goal, they'll have to shut down the Galaxy, and if they don't score more than once they'll be looking at thirty minutes of extra time before a penalty shootout.
Oh, and did I mention they're missing the man who has arguably been their best defender for the second half of the season? Jeff Parke will be replaced by Tyrone Marshall, who was a stalwart last year but ineffective this season.In other words, the odds aren't great for the Sounders. Overcoming a deficit in a hostile environment with an injured player is not exactly easy to do. The key for Seattle in the second leg will be finding space in which to create chances.
In the first leg, the Galaxy closed down the Seattle offense, neutralizing the speed of Steve Zakuani and Sanna Nyassi and preventing service to Blaise Nkufo and Fredy Montero. While Alvaro Fernandez's substitute play brought greater precision and creativity, it is almost certain that Sigi Schmid will not give the Uruguayan the start on Sunday, preferring to stick with the devil he knows. For Seattle to be effective, Nyassi will need to have learned that he cannot take the ball through the Galaxy midfield-the Los Angeles players will almost immediately win possession, as they did again and again last week.
As for the Galaxy, they're likely to stick with the more defensive style they exhibited in Seattle. If they simply keep the visitors from scoring, they're through to the next round. Los Angeles played both Landon Donovan and David Beckham in more defensive positions, creating a counter-attack reliant on long balls. Which, of course, worked out just fine for the Galaxy, with a long pass to Edson Buddle resulting in his beautiful goal.
Seattle obviously have no reason to sit back and defend. They'll be throwing everything that they have at the Galaxy, but they either need to be less reliant on their wing play or find a way through the center of the field. The Sounders need to take more chances on Sunday night. Rather than sending through long passes in the hopes of getting a shot from close range, Seattle should try their luck on long-distance shots. Fredy Montero can certainly score those, and Osvaldo Alonso also has a great shot from distance. It was his first-minute strike that rattled the Galaxy, allowing Zakuani to score off the rebound. That goal was ruled offside, but it's that sort of play that will wear down Los Angeles and expose their vulnerabilities.
Los Angeles 2-1 Seattle: The Galaxy Advance To Western Conference Final
Los Angeles Galaxy beat Seattle Sounders 2-1 tonight, and 3-1 on aggregate, to advance in the MLS playoffs. The Galaxy will face FC Dallas in the Western Conference final, with the winner of that match moving on to the final.
Edson Buddle opened the scoring for Los Angeles, heading on a David Beckham corner kick. Just eight minutes later, a foul from Sanna Nyassi earned the Galaxy a free kick, and this time it was Omar Gonzalez who headed David Beckham's delivery past Kasey Keller and into the net.
Seattle still looked lifeless in the last twenty minutes of the half, although they were at least able to generate a bit of pressure. After the break, however, the Sounders looked a different team entirely. Helped by the replacement of Nyassi with Alvaro Fernandez, the visiting side quickly applied pressure on the Galaxy, pressure that had been entirely absent for the first 135 minutes of play. Rather than simply booting the ball upfield, Seattle attacked the Los Angeles goal again and again, exploiting in particular the right side of the pitch, where Fernandez was able to control the ball before directing perfectly placed shots to the center.
Seattle's pressure paid off with just four minutes of time left. Nate Jaqua held off the Galaxy defense long enough to slip the ball through to Steve Zakuani, who neatly turned around Omar Gonzalez to take a shot on goal. Although Los Angeles keeper Donovan Ricketts, who was awarded MLS Goalkeeper Of The Year earlier this week, managed to get his hands on the ball, it flew through his fingers and into the net.
Too little, too late for the Sounders, though, as their season once again comes to an end after just one round of MLS playoffs. While Seattle likely needs to take a hard look at the way its squad played for the first three halves of the matches against L.A., both the team and supporters should find solace in the last 45 minutes. That's when the Sounders showed what they are truly capable of, and that they have a solid foundation to build upon for next season.
Nov 07 8:35p by Kirsten Schlewitz - 0 comments