Fredy Montero Delivers Again; Seattle Sounders Nip Chicago Fire, 2-1

As the MLS playoffs loom increasingly closer it was imperative to establish momentum during this crucial stage. Saturday night two teams hovering at the five hundred mark sought to move a leg up toward playoff competition as the Chicago Fire with recent acquisition Freddie Ljungberg visited Seattle to face the Sounders before an Xbox pitch Qwest Field throng of 36,386.It was only befitting that Colombia Comet Fredy Montero, the team leader in goals and assists, surge forward to take control when the game was on the line and make the difference.  Montero scored his second of two goals on the night during stoppage time to break a 1-1 regulation time deadlock and commandeer a nail-biting 2-1 triumph that set off an instant celebration on the Sounders bench as well as throughout the stadium.Earlier in the season Montero set a high bench mark for himself for 2010 after an impressive All-Star beginning last year.  “Since the MLS season is longer than that in Colombia where I set my goal of 15 goals,” he explained, “I set a goal of 20 goals here.”Montero was asked if he had a goal for number of assists this season.  “Yes, I have a goal of 10 ...

Seattle Sounders FC Hosts Chicago Fire As Playoffs Loom Closer

Players of Seattle Sounders FC and the visiting Chicago Fire are well aware that the MLS playoffs are beckoning ever more closely and that Saturday night’s matchup is crucial to their post-season prospects. The match’s potential playoff significance is sufficient reason to build interest in the Emerald City for the confrontation. However, another element emerges as well.  Seattle’s two time All-star, the charismatic Swede Freddie Ljungberg, an international star who is one of the most popular players ever to play for Arsenal in the English Premier League, is making his first appearance in the city since he was recently traded.Seattle Coach Sigi Schmid earlier this week recognized the significance of Ljungberg’s team involvement by asserting that obtaining the internationally known star was a major factor in building a successful franchise.  Ljungberg was one of two leading international names initially on the Sounders, the other being former U.S. national team player Kasey Keller.Seattle Sounders FC aim to reestablish its midseason momentum in the second of three home matches over an eight-day span of great significance in separate competitions when it resumes MLS play against Chicago on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Chicago stands at 6-6-6 with 24 points.Still without points in the group stage of ...

Sigi Schmid Talks About Freddie Ljungberg

Ljungberg will be making his first appearance at the Xbox pitch of Qwest Field since his recent trade from Seattle on Saturday night when his new team the Chicago Fire faces the Sounders in an important MLS match.Seattle Sounders Coach Sigi Schmid talked about the team’s former all-star midfielder Freddie Ljungberg following Thursday’s training session at the team’s facility in the Seattle suburb of Tukwila. “It’s emotional, for sure, because he was a member of this team and he was a very important member of this team and helped us get off to a tremendous start,” Shmid said regarding Ljungberg’s return. “But, at the end of the day, he is not on our team right now and he is with Chicago. We need to worry about our team and about winning the game and he is going to be worried about winning the game for his side.”Much has been written lately about how the Sounders changed as a team after the Ljungberg trade, a period that saw Seattle acquire two major players on the international market, Blaise Nkufo and Alvaro Fernandez. Schmid addressed the question of Seattle performance following Ljungberg’s departure.“We stepped into a good run right after he left,” Schmid ...

Seattle Sounders Drop 2-0 CONCACAF Contest to CF Monterrey

Some nights you get plenty of good looks, but it all comes down to putting the ball in the net. This was one of those evenings for Seattle Sounders FC, who dropped a 2-0 contest to Mexico's CF Monterrey in round two of the CONCACAF Champions League group stage in front of 22,513 on the Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field Wednesday night. On the plus side, the Sounders, benefiting from a solid fan base, set an unofficial record. Although no official attendance records are kept for Champions League, and previously Champions Cup matches, the aforementioned attendance has been confirmed by CONCACAF officials as the second largest for a Champions League/Champions Cup match played in the U.S. The top mark is 26,528 for D.C. United v Chivas de Guadalajara March 15, 2007. The previous number two crowd was 21,185 for D.C. United v Pumas April 6, 2005. Both aforementioned matches were played at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. As for the Sounders’ cumulative frustration Wednesday night, when the team held a decisive edge in shots taken but came up short in the all-important scoring effort, ace striker Fredy Montero struck the perfect note after the match. "We ...

Seattle Sounders to Face Chivas De Guadalajara October 12th

Seattle Sounders FC will host Chivas de Guadalajara, an 11-time champion, one of Mexico's most popular teams and the 2010 Copa Libertadores runner-up, on Tuesday, October 12, on the Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field, it was announced Wednesday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. PT and the match will be televised live on TeleFutura. "Chivas Guadalajara is arguably the best supported team in Mexico, and as evidenced by their run to the final stage of the Copa Libertadores they are an outstanding side," said Sounders Owner Joe Roth. "Given the loyalty and devotion of both teams' supporters, the atmosphere that evening will be electric."Chivas de Guadalajara is Mexico's most successful club with 11 league championships. It is famous for using only Mexican players and features many of the country's top performers. They include Jonny Magallón, Adolfo "Bofo" Bautista, Alberto "Venado" Medina, and Luis Michel, who all represented Mexico at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Other stars on the team include Omar Bravo, Edgar Mejia, Patricio "Pato" Araujo, and Héctor Reynoso.This is the first visit to Seattle by Chivas de Guadalajara. In 1985 Universidad de Guadalajara faced FC Seattle at Memorial Stadium.Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com

Seattle Sounders Face Monterrey To Open Crucial Homestand

Seattle Sounders FC returns home for an important three-game stand beginning Wednesday night at the Xbox pitch of Qwest Field against Monterrey in the CONCACAF Champions League competition.This is a second-round match competition.  The Sounders suffered a 2-1 setback last week on the road against CD Marathon of Honduras on a controversial penalty call against defender Tyrone Marshall.On Saturday night, the Sounders play host to the Chicago Fire in an MLS match.  Chicago comes in with a league mark full of sixes at 6-6-6 and 24 points.  Last week the Fire saw a three-game win streak halted with a 4-3 loss at Houston.Saturday’s match marks the first Seattle appearance of Freddie Ljungberg since his trade.  Ironically, the two time All-Star Sounders midfielder was ejected only once with the Green Rave.  That came against the same Chicago Fire last year in Seattle.The homestand concludes Sept. 1 with the Sounders facing Chivas USA in an Open Cup semifinal.  This contest occurs at Tukwila, Washington’s Starfire Sports Stadium.  The Sounders, who are unbeaten on the Starfire pitch, will be seeking their first-ever goal against Chivas USA in the history of the franchise.After Monday’s training session Seattle coach Sigi Schmid commented on the fact ...

Seattle Sounders’ Loss Demonstrates Need For Video Replay Technology

The Seattle Sounders were deadlocked 1-1 with host CD Marathon in the group stage opener of CONCACAF Champions League play Thursday night at Estadio Olimpico Metropolitano in San Pedro Sula, Honduras when the deciding play of the evening occurred in the 45th minute.    Sounders veteran defender Tyrone Marshall had been tenaciously battling Marathon’s Nicolas Cardozo all evening when the two players collided on the Sounders edge of the pitch.  Marshall sought to clear the area with a kick. What followed was Marshall receiving a yellow card and Cardozo coolly delivering a penalty kick from the box that gave the home team a hard fought 2-1 victory. The most experienced player on the field, Sounders two time All-Star goalkeeper Kasey Keller, sized up his view of the collision with the expertise of an international professional soccer veteran of 40: "The ball came over the top and it took a bad bounce. I didn't expect it to bounce that way. I called for Tyrone [Marshall] to head it to me but it didn't get there. I don't know how it was a penalty.” The seasoned veteran then tackled the essence of the issue, stating, “ I haven't seen the tape but it didn't look like a ...

Seattle Sounders Honduras-Bound To Face CD Marathon

The next two matches for the Rave Green focus on the international landscape. During its league bye week, the Sounders visit Honduras for the group stage opener of the CONCACAF Champions League on Thursday against CD Marathón. First kick is 7 p.m. PT.Seattle hosts CF Monterrey of Mexico August 25 on the Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field to begin a three-match home stand across all competitions. League play resumes August 28 as the Chicago Fire and former Sounder Freddie Ljungberg come to town.  Seattle Sounders FC is in a shifting competitive mode with activity being balanced between the Major League Soccer race along with that of international competition. Meanwhile, the U.S. Open Cup semifinal with Chivas USA occurs September 1 at Starfire Sports Stadium in the Seattle suburb of Tukwila. Unbeaten in nine matches with a 6-0-3 mark and allowing only three goals since July 7, Sounders FC had its four game MLS win streak snapped with a scoreless road draw at Chivas USA last week. Seattle is 10-8-7 overall and fourth in the Western Conference at 8-8-5  with 29 points. This week’s foray marks the second trip to Central America this month. Sounders FC secured a place in Group C ...

Seattle Sounders, Chivas USA Battle To Scoreless Tie

The good news was that American goalkeeping legend Kasey Keller had another clean sheet and his eighth shutout of the season.  He had three saves on the evening. The good news was that the Seattle Sounders kept their MLS unbeaten skein alive, extending it to six games. The good news was that the Sounders’ FC defense has conceded but one goal in the last 450 minutes of MLS play, dating back to July 15. The good news was that the Sounders went on the road and achieved one point, which enabled them to hopscotch into fourth spot in the Western Conference.There was conflicting news of a different nature as well, leaving the Sounders’ Saturday night venture into Home Depot Center in Carson, California before a crowd of 13,839 one of mixed results with a 0-0 deadlock with host Chivas USA.The tie left the Sounders at 8-8-5 with 29 points and in fourth place.  The team is unbeaten against all competition for its last nine matches.Seattle came into action hoping for more, considering that the host Chivas USA squad approached Saturday’s action in last place.  They remained there at the match’s conclusion, one point behind the Houston Dynamo with 19 points and a ...

Seattle Sounders Place Evans on Injured Reserve List, Remove Fucito

Seattle Sounders FC announced Friday that midfielder Brad Evans has been placed on the Disabled List due to a left patellar tendon injury. As a result, Evans is required to miss the next six MLS games. He is eligible to return to league play for the October 2 match versus Toronto FC on the Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field. Evans, 25, is entering his fourth season in MLS. He started 11 of 12 appearances this season.  He scored one goal and achieved three assists. His last appearance was June 10. Evans started 25 of 27 appearances in 2009, recording three goals and two assists. Sounders FC midfielder/forward Mike Fucito has been removed from the club's Disabled List.  The move, also taken on Friday, makes Fucito immediately eligible to participate in MLS games.Fucito, 24, was placed on the Disabled List May 7. He has appeared in two Major League Soccer games, both as a reserve, with Seattle this season. Fucito, playing in his second MLS season, scored the game winner in extra time of a 1-0 win over Kansas City in Seattle on April 17, which also turned out to be his last game.  Saturday night at 8 p.m PT the Sounders play at ...