It took a great goal from Davy Arnaud to mark what was otherwise a very forgettable game. However the season has started and an evening watching football, and enjoying good beer with friends will always time well spent.
RBP pregame
ECS tifo prior to kick off
Last night was the Sounders first league game, another big night under the lights against a decent team. Midweek tonight’s opponents Toronto booked a place in the Champions League last four. They did this by doing something Seattle has yet to manage, beating LA at the Home Depot Center.
Coming off a 6-1 hammering in Mexico Wednesday night there were questions about what Seattle Sounders we would see. We need not have worried; this team was over the Champions League elimination and opened their league season in style.
Last week David Estrada scored against Santos, tonight he got his first league goal. And quickly followed that with two more tonight to complete the routing of Toronto 3-1. It was a very solid performance from Seattle.
The Alonso-Evans-Fernandez-Rosales midfield looked extremely confident and was in control all night. This team played a great game all over the field, at the back JKH was back to his usual steady self after a horrible game in Mexico.
It’s difficult to find any real issues, Montero was perhaps a little quiet and struggled to find space. With Zakuani and Eddie Johnson still to come back from injury, this team really could be special this year. I’m just not sure who moves aside to make way for them.
It was a very solid team performance, play like every week and there is no team they should be scared off. Next up is Houston Friday night.
Some games are bigger than others, and some losses mean a little more. Seattle getting hammered by a good Santos side feels like a big loss. It was the quarterfinal of a huge tournament, it was big game and Seattle were well beaten on the night.
There is no real way to put a positive spin on the result. JKH had a bad night, Leo Gonzales had no answer for those running at him on the left and they never had any control in the middle of the field.
Coming into the game 2-1 up after the home leg the Sounders lost two early goals, came back and going in at half time the game was level on aggregate. Then Seattle gave up 4 goals in the second half and we saw just how big the gulf between Mexican and MLS sides are.
On any given day MLS teams can compete and win, but when it comes to overall quality there is a huge gulf to overcome. When an MLS team goes to Mexico it’s not a foregone conclusion any more, but it’s still an upset when they win down there. We still expect the good Mexican teams to win, and for good reason, they typically do.
So what were the highlights? Fernandez getting on the end of a perfect cross by Montero shortly before the half is the only obvious one. Coming out at half time Seattle were still in this game, they still had a chance.
Herculez Gomez (somewhat inevitably) grabbed back the lead for Santos shortly after the restart and that was it. The Sounders were forced to look for an equalizer, and left space at the back. Santos was given too much space and they did not miss much.
They were a good side and put away the Sounders with ease.
Seattle now face Toronto at RBP. The visitors have momentum coming into this game, they beat LA over two legs and move into the last four in the Champions League.
Saturday will be a big night under the lights. The noise, a full house and a chance to start the domestic season off in the right way and put the Santos game behind them.
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For the last few months there has been the twitter hashtag going around “#isitmarchyet”. It’s now march and that means it’s time for a couple of IPA in the Pyramid, a Diablo burger and a lot of laughing at friends wearing the fluorescent third kit (every bit as bad in real life as the photos). Then 15 minutes before kickoff, the walk to the stadium.
Opening day is special, and a quarter final of the awkwardly named CONCACAF Champions League made this one a little different.
I’ve taken part in plenty of opening days and I think what we have is real. This was a special night and what we share here in Seattle is authentic, every bit as authentic as Highfield Road, Rec Ground, San Siro or White Heart Lane. Really, the atmosphere here is as good as any other stadium in the world.
It can’t be faked.
I love the feeling of walking into the bowl of the stadium. Looking up at the lights, checking out my new seats and on my left the Emerald City Supporters are already pogoing away. Its match day at RBP, and the atmosphere is as good as any other stadium in the world.
Last night was a big game, and the Sounders played to match the occasion. I thought Seattle could come away with a win, but always felt Santos Laguna were favorites.
The result was a credit to the club and staff. Seattle clearly prepared well during the pre-season and from the kickoff too the game to the visitors. The 2-1 win at RBP sets up the second leg wonderfully, everything to play for and clearly Santos Laguna will have to look for the win. It should be a great night and I can hardly wait.
The links at the bottom of the page tell the story of the game better than I can.
I liked what I saw, they were a club able to play a good possession game, hold the ball and then attack quickly. If this is how they play all year, there is no one they should be scared of in MLS.
This could be a special year, and I know every fan talks like that on opening day, but it really could be.
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I got sent a like to this today on YouTube. , it’s the game highlights of the Boxing day fixture of Woking hosting Farnborough Town. It’s not the beautiful game at it’s finest, but pretty typical of non-league football in England.
I got sent a link to Joshua Mayers Sounders FC blog (excelent reading by the way) and this video. It was done at Century Link Field (also known as Royal Brougham Park) by Bodega Studios. I thought it was rather cool and interesting.
The 2012 MLS schedule was published this morning. A couple of nice surprises, a little disappointment, but over all I think it’s a good schedule for Seattle.
Prior to the MLS schedule we have the Champions League quarter final home and away legs. That has the potential to really open the season up in a big way. Win over the two games and it’s into the last four and that is a big deal. additionally, in August through October there is the group stages for the 2012-2013 Champions League that the Sounders have already qualified for, no play-in game this year. and somewhere in this there will be open cup. A fourth US Open cup in a row would be tough, but they are holders until someone knocks them out.
The league has given us a schedule that supports Seattle being successful in this competition, and that’s huge. They have a bye weekend between the two quarter final legs, and no east coast travel after the NYRB game in July.
What else do I see as good.
Disappointments are few.
A few games got circled on the calendar today and other than the Cascadia games, I think this is a great schedule for Seattle.
i got sent a link to this. Galic Football is an entertaining game to watch, this is an Ireland (home of the game) Australia game where a dog not only gets loose on the pitch, but joins in the game. The commentators are having fun, worth 4 minutes of your time.
At 1.40ish, “The dog has been the best defender for Ireland in this game!” I was amused.
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2012 is a big year in football, Euro2012 in Poland and the Ukraine is the big international tournament. So my big question is what sort of summer is it going to be for England and Capello? Redemption for the humiliation against the Germans in Bloemfontein, or will we have it confirmed that the idea of the foreign mercenary manager, however good their resume, is over.
For Fabio Capello and the FA the answer will be known by the beginning of July, and there will be little interpretation required.
South Africa in 2010 was a disaster, Capello said he learned from what went wrong and that Euro 2012 will be approached in a different way. Unfortunately, the legacy of the lackluster world cup campaign is that I don’t think the country believes in Capello or this team.
Will anything other than glory in Kiev see Capello considered a failure?
I hope that’s not how it’s measured, as piling on more unrealistic expectations is not going to help anyone. Managing England is called “the impossible job” for good reason, but Capello knew that before taking on the challenge.
I think we need to see progress from where we were two years ago. I want to know lessons have been learned and the last two years (and around $40 million of the FAs money) have not been wasted.
Progress is not only where the team finishes, but the style in which they play. You sense that this is a team that does not have a lot of confidence, and I get why. The expectations are huge, unreasonably so, but that’s the burden of playing for and managing England.
But it’s not only Capello at fault, England were stagnant long before Capello arrived on the scene. Capello was given free range to do what ever he needed to achieve one thing, win. That was the expectation set when he was given the job, and it’s not changed.
As bad as South Africa was, the decade prior was not exactly glory filled.
There is always something special about walking into a football ground shortly before kick-off. At Woking FC Kingfield Stadium this was a mix of the usual anticipation augmented by the wonderful smell of meat pies ready for half time.
Woking (red/white) defend a Farnborough (yellow) free kick
Woking play in Blue Square South, that’s five leagues bellow the Premiership and obviously a gulf in football terms. Teams are mostly made up of part time players with one or two full time coaches. Going into the game Woking were top of the Conference South, leading Welling United by 10 points. They are on a nice run with 16 wins, 6 draws and a solitary loss so far this season.
Woking are the closest club to my parents house and it’s been at least 25 years since I was last there for game. But it’s Boxing day, and that means a full slate of games across the country and time to revisit Woking for a game. Traditionally Boxing day (day after Christmas) games are local derbies, and this is no exception as they are playing probably the closest team to them; Farnborough. The away supporters travelled maybe 6 or 7 miles to be there today.
It’s a long way between the top divisions and Woking, and that was clear by the style of football played. Today was mostly route-1 “long ball down the middle” stuff. No one is going to mistake it for the beautiful game played else where, but that lack of subtlety was still entertaining.
While Woking walked away with a 1-0 win, I think even they will admit they were lucky to get away with the points. Farnborough has a majority of the possession, the best of the chances, but were let down by some really poor keeping. Every time Woking went forward there was no telling what would happen.
The only goal came early. On eleven minutes a cross from the left was allowed to somehow race across the penalty area untouched an put away with a diving header for
Farnborough had decent pace up front, Woking countered that by having two big centre backs and a couple of great saves from their kepper. Both sides played a very physical game, but that’s to be expected at this level. It was a good, fun afternoon of football and a very respectable crowd of just over 3000.
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