Steve Zakuani rejoins O'Brian White as the Seattle Sounders' leading scorer after putting the home side 2-1 ahead of the Chicago Fire in the 24th minute. After both sides traded goals in the opening spell, Zakuani was given the ball with the angle tight against Sean Johnson, but he finished superbly to give the Sounders a crucial lead against the Fire.
To be honest, the Sounders should have been up by a goal even before Zakuani's strike. Erik Friberg, fielded as the right prong in Sigi Schmid's attacking trident, was faced with an open goal only to deflect the ball well over the crossbar shortly before Zakuani broke the deadlock. Friberg should be embarrassed not to have scored there - it was comparable to Brad Evans' now legendary miss last season.
Although the Sounders claim to be lined up in a 4-3-3, they're certainly not playing like it. Ostensible central midfielder Mauro Rosales is routinely further up the pitch than both Friberg and Zakuani, and Seattle are looking much more like a 4-5-1 than anything else. Whatever the shape is, it seems to be working - Seattle look irresistible going forward if rather weak in the back.