Wizards try to stay alive against Sounders FC
Kansas City must win to keep postseason hopes in play
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COMMUNITYAMERICA BALLPARK, Kansas City, Kan.
Oct. 17, 2009 (WEEK 31) / MLS Game #214
7:30 p.m. CT (MetroSports; KONG)
Seattle Sounders FC are aiming to become the first MLS expansion team since the Chicago Fire in 1998 to reach the MLS Cup Playoffs in their inaugural season when they take on the Kansas City Wizards at CommunityAmerica Ballpark. Sounders FC need only to win to claim a spot in the top eight; a draw could do it as well, depending on other results. But the Wizards have postseason aspirations of their own, facing two must-win games over their final two matches of the regular season to have any hope, though they must also hope for results to go their way around the league.
REFEREE: Mark Geiger. SAR (bench): Kermit Quisenberry; JAR (opposite): Cyril Madukanya; 4th: Chris Penso
MLS Career: 61 games; FC/gm: 28.2; Y/gm: 4.0; R: 11; pens: 22
INJURY REPORT: KANSAS CITY WIZARDS - OUT: GK Eric Kronberg (shoulder surgery); MF Kevin Souter (sports hernia surgery); FW Adam Cristman (abdominal strain); PROBABLE: FW Josh Wolff (hamstring strain); FW Davy Arnaud (hip flexor strain) ... SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC - OUT: GK Chris Eylander (L medial knee bone bruise); MF Michael Fucito (R foot sesamoiditis); DF Taylor Graham (R foot pain)
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
SUSPENDED: none
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: KC: Davy Arnaud, Michael Harrington, Kei Kamara, Claudio Lopez, Lance Watson ... SEA: Osvaldo Alonso, Tyrone Marshall, James Riley
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: KC: Roger Espinoza, Herculez Gomez, Santiago Hirsig, Jonathan Leathers ... SEA: Brad Evans, Patrick Ianni, Peter Vagenas
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (1 meeting): Wizards 1 win, 1 goal ... Sounders FC 0 wins, 0 goals ... Ties 0
• The teams are meeting for the second time in league play, and third time this season. In the first meeting, April 11 at Qwest Field, the Wizards claimed a 1-0 victory in MLS league play.
• Then on July 8, Sounders FC defeated the Kansas City Wizards 1-0 at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Wash. in a U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal. Wizards 'keeper Kevin Hartman was ruled to have tripped up Fredy Montero in the box in the 88th minute, and Sebastian Le Toux converted the resulting penalty for the victory.
• Coaches record: Peter Vermes vs. SEA: first game ... Sigi Schmid v KC: P33 W13 L15 D5
LAST MEETING (MLS)
4/11: SEA 0, KC 1 (Arnaud 80)
• Seattle Sounders FC lost for the first time and allowed a goal for the first time in club history, falling 1-0 to the Kansas City Wizards on April 11 at Qwest Field.
• The game turned in the 29th minute. Herculez Gomez was freed behind the Sounders FC on a long ball and Keller came racing out of the area. He parried Gomez's shot with his hands and referee Abbey Okulaja sent off the long-time U.S. international with a straight red.
• Forced to call upon league pool backup goalkeeper Ben Dragavon, Sounders FC nearly saw out the match. But 10 minutes from time, Arnaud let fly with a blast from well outside the box that Dragavon got his hands to but could not keep out, the first goal ever allowed by Seattle, after 350 minutes.
• Here's Schmid's team (4-3-1-2): Kasey Keller - James Riley, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Tyrone Marshall, Zach Scott (Sanna Nyassi 86) - Sebastien Le Toux (Ben Dragavon 31), Osvaldo Alonso, Brad Evans - Freddie Ljungberg (Steve Zakuani 81) - Fredy Montero, Nate Jaqua. Substitutes Not Used: Patrick Ianni, Roger Levesque, Nathan Sturgis, Tyson Wahl
• Here's Onalfo's team (4-4-2): Kevin Hartman - Lance Watson, Jimmy Conrad, Aaron Hohlbein, Matt Besler - Jack Jewsbury - Herculez Gomez (Michael Harrington 77), Santiago Hirsig (Michael Kraus 64), Josh Wolff - Davy Arnaud, Claudio Lopez (Roger Espinoza 82). Substitutes Not Used: Rauwshan McKenzie, Boris Pardo, Kevin Souter, Abe Thompson
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS
The Kansas City Wizards saw their undefeated streak come to an end at four games, falling 2-0 to Chivas USA on Saturday evening at The Home Depot Center. The Wizards have 32 points from 28 matches, sitting in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, 17 points behind first-place Columbus.LAST MATCH
• Chivas USA extended their unbeaten streak to four games and kept their hopes alive for top spot in the Western Conference with a crucial 2-0 win at D.C. United the week before. The Wizards also extended their unbeaten run to four games, yet saw their playoff dreams dwindle with a 1-1 draw against a 10-man Houston Dynamo.
• The game's two goals came in a three-minute period late in the second half. In the 72nd minute, Sacha Kljestan hammered a free kick goalward from some 25 yards out, and Kevin Hartman pushed it aside at full stretch. But defender Yamith Cuesta chased down the rebound and sent back into the six, where Justin Braun hooked into the roof of the goal for his second on the season.
• Chivas doubled the lead in the 74th minute. Eduardo Lillingston clipped a short pass to Kljestan, who wove through a pair of Kansas City defenders into the area before slotting home past Hartman for his fifth goal of the season, all since Aug. 22.
• Chivas goalkeeper Zach Thornton was credited with two saves in recording his league-leading 12th clean sheet of the season.
• Wizards interim head coach Peter Vermes made two changes to the team that came back for a 1-1 draw with the Houston Dynamo the Sunday before. With Jimmy Conrad on international duty and Santiago Hirsig suspended, Aaron Hohlbein and Graham Zusi came into the team.
• Here's Vermes' team (4-4-2): Kevin Hartman - Jonathan Leathers, Matt Besler, Aaron Hohlbein, Michael Harrington - Davy Arnaud, Jack Jewsbury, Graham Zusi (Chance Myers 78), Claudio Lopez (Roger Espinoza 75) - Kei Kamara, Josh Wolff (Zoltan Hercegfalvi 62). Substitutes Not Used: Herculez Gomez, Rauwshan McKenzie, Kurt Morsink, Boris Pardo
• "I would say for 65 minutes we were pretty good. I thought in the first half we actually took it to them a little bit and had some very good chances, but physically, from a fitness perspective, we died out around the 65th minute and they really started taking a lot of the play. That sort of let us down today at the end of the game," Vermes said.
TEAM NEWS
• For the Wizards, the loss at Chivas USA made the mathematics very simple: Anything but a victory against Seattle Sounders FC - or any point won by the New England Revolution vs. Chicago - and they will be eliminated from playoff consideration.
• "I wouldn't say it would change it at all. We had the exact same mindset coming into this game and we saw this as a must-win situation. If there is an opportunity for us to get six points, it's almost a godsend at this point and we look forward to trying to get home and get points and put forth an effort that the fans, the players, and the guys on the staff can be proud of," said goalkeeper Kevin Hartman.
• The Wizards have their final two games of the 2009 regular season at CommunityAmerica Ballpark. However, they've won just four times in 13 starts there this season - equaling Chicago and New York for the fewest home wins.
• "It's pretty simple. We know we have to win those games. But more importantly, we have to be sure our performance is good. If our performance is good, and we can hold onto something for 90 minutes and play and know how to manage the game, then we give ourselves a good chance to gain those points," Vermes said. "If we go out there and just try to let it all hang out in the first half and not understand what the game requires, then we'll struggle. Again, we'll just take it one game at a time and see how it goes."
• With Santiago Hirsig suspended, Vermes gave a start in central midfield to rookie Graham Zusi. Zusi started the first two games of the season - his first two professional games - and then had not started since.
• "We had Graham Zusi in the lineup who hasn't been in the lineup for quite some time ... he only played the first two games of the year. He had an excellent performance, said Vermes. Said Zusi: "Center midfield has been my natural position prior to joining the team, so obviously it felt good to get back into the middle of the pitch. Performance-wise I thought I did decent."
SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC
Seattle Sounders FC won for the second time in four games, handing the Columbus Crew a defeat in Ohio for the first time in 16 months with a 1-0 result on Oct. 3. Sounders FC have 41 points from 28 matches, in fourth place in the Western Conference, three points behind the division-leading Houston Dynamo, LA Galaxy and Chivas USA.LAST MATCH
• The Crew were on a three-game unbeaten streak and had won seven times in their last nine league games dating back to mid-July. Sounders FC had just one win in their last six contests, but that was a first defeat of D.C. United on their home ground in league play this season.
• The game's only goal came in the 36th minute. Running onto a through ball, Seattle forward Fredy Montero saw his effort blocked by a sliding William Hesmer as he raced off his line. But Roger Levesque was quickest to the rebound, slamming it back into the unguarded goal from the top of the box for his first career MLS goal.
• The Crew had a glorious chance for an equalizer in the 81st minute when Sounders FC defender Jhon Kennedy Hurtado bundled over the Crew's Eddie Gaven in the area. But Guillermo Barros Schelotto -- who was 8-for-8 on penalty kicks in MLS to that point -- pulled his effort wide. It was the first MLS loss for Columbus at Crew Stadium since losing to San Jose on June 7, 2008.
• Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid made one change to the team that lost 2-1 to the New England Revolution at Gillette Stadium the week before. Roger Levesque came into the first team, in place of Nate Jaqua.
• Here's Schmid's team (4-1-3-2): Kasey Keller - James Riley, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Tyrone Marshall, Leo Gonzalez - Osvaldo Alonso - Freddie Ljungberg, Brad Evans, Steve Zakuani (Sebastien Le Toux 64) - Fredy Montero (Peter Vagenas 89), Roger Levesque (Patrick Ianni 69). Substitutes Not Used: Terry Boss, Stephen King, Nathan Sturgis, Tyson Wahl
TEAM NEWS
• Since back-to-back wins on June 28 and July 11, Sounders FC have won just three of 11 games and scored just seven goals in that span. But they got their fifth shutout during that stretch and made the lone goal count in the win at Columbus.
• "The game of soccer is a strange thing. Last week in New England (a 2-1 loss) we thought we were a little bit unlucky," Schmid said. "We had good fortune on our side. ... We had to dig down a little bit. The Crew is the best team in the league and for us to come in here and win 1-0 is something we're very proud of."
• A victory in Kansas City will guarantee Sounders FC will become the second club in MLS history to clinch a playoff spot in their expansion season, after the Chicago Fire did it in 1998. A draw - and even a loss - could still see Seattle holding a guaranteed place in the top eight overall, but it will take a number of other results going its way.
• "Our main goal is to make the playoffs right now and we need every point we can get, so it started with tonight and these three points are unbelievably important," said Roger Levesque. "It'll be the same thing in Kansas City in two weeks; those points are going to be just as important as these were."
• For the 28-year-old Levesque, his goal was his first in MLS, and came after a long road. A draft pick by the San Jose Earthquakes in 2003, he had played just four career MLS games - and spent the last three years with the USL-1 Sounders - before signing with the MLS club this year.
• "The hardest part of it for someone at Roger's age is to go from being a starter in the USL to being a player coming off the bench in MLS," said Schmid. "A lot of guys at his age don't want to do that anymore. They'd rather start and just play USL and forget about MLS. It's really a tribute to Roger's character, and I think it gives you insight into the kind of person he is."
• Schmid had continued to tinker with his team's attack, trying to find the right roles for players such as Freddie Ljungberg and Nate Jaqua. Jaqua could return to a right midfield role - he played there against New England - that he was featured in with the Chicago Fire in 2006.
• "It's definitely an adjustment because since I haven't played there in a while, but it's something I played a little earlier in my career with Chicago and L.A.," Jaqua said. "It's a different type of role, but you're facing the field a little bit more so it's a little bit easier than playing with your back to goal."
