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MLS Playoffs: Sounders vs. Galaxy (Match Night Commentary)

Much like the Houston Dynamo, the LA Galaxy hold an advantage on aggregate goals going into the second leg on the road. And just like Houston, they will be looking to make a return trip to the MLS Cup final in two weeks for the second consecutive season.

They will be doing so, however, with a much different squad than the one they sent out onto Home Depot Center last weekend, as Landon Donovan will be held out of tonight’s match. Juninho will also not be featured in the starting lineup, but he will be eligible to come off the bench as a substitute.

Meanwhile, Seattle will welcome Eddie Johnson back to the starting lineup, as he will start up top with Fredy Montero, who is still looking for his first career MLS playoff goal. Midfielder and captain Mauro Rosales will not be in the starting lineup, but has been added to the Sounders bench so he could make an appearance tonight.

SBI will be providing live commentary on today’s match, so please feel free to follow along with the action here. As always, you are welcome to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.

Enjoy the action (Live Commentary is after the jump):

Comments

  1. By the way, only if seattle could have gotten drogba, ballack, seedorf, del piero. Drogba could have gotten them in the cup easily or even ballack. Mls teams need to get into the new era of mls, teams like galaxy and red bull will dominate in the coming years and seattle is trying to set a different Standard that will not work, due to teams now will try to copy galaxy. For example dc united with their new owners, skc have cash, cosmos in 2016, tfc,montreal, vancouver, might all look for top dps from europe. Who will end up with terry, drogba, anelka, ronaldinho, tevez, kaka, and many more.

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  2. At the end of the day seattle did not win because they played terrible in the first gameand bad calls were also made. In the second game seattle could not finish the game and they lack a killer DP with experience, not just one but 3. How can alonso be your captain, a cuban who runs away from his national team and who lacks skills. Let’s be honest seattle needs a new coach, new players, new dps, new blood. However galaxy have everything, experience, top dps, smart coach, smart owners and when u have power, that means results will go your way, just like in world cup games and super bowl games.

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      • Its the truth, so many soccer players know this and sigi is out of his mind. Alonso ran away from cuba during the gold cup and now is the captain. So your saying real madrid or man city would do that? I don’t think so…….

      • Man you clearly know NOTHING about that Alonso situation. I for one am very happy for him taking a huge risk in leaving everything he knew and had to essentially start all over in a foreign country and do something worthwhile with his life. Not only that but he escaped a horrible situation in Cuba and probably gets to help out his family with money he makes in MLS.

  3. Am I the only one who saw the hand ball by Montero during the run of play that set up the Johnson not-goal? Zakuani was off on the play and moved toward the ball. Still a tough call, but far from a robbery.

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  4. the MLS needs LA in final to avoid more TV ratings embarrassment. But even with LA in the final it will be pretty hard to avoid poor TV ratings.

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  5. Geiger was just a top 10 trending topic on Twitter. Double red card retaliation at players after the game?

    League taking a HUGE black eye for Mark Geiger.

    Kasey Keller and Moreno clearly upset with officiating. Can’t recall a time commentators were that visibly angry.

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    • What exactly did he do that he shouldn’t have?
      The linesmen called the offside.
      The first handball stopped a shot on goal by magee and he let it slide.
      The second handball hit BOTH ARMS and stopped a cross into the box. It had to be called.
      I can understand players being angry, but if you approach a ref in a threatening way after in a game and you’ll be lucky if you don’t get Fined and suspended.

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      • players do it all the time and get away with it, whether that is right or wrong it is how it is. he let keane get away with it all game and he then decides suddenly to issue two reds to seattle? get real

      • players do get away with it and he let it slide once. but, after the 3rd hand on a ball you have to call it.
        If a galaxy player would have hit the ball with both hands in the box there would have been a riot. It’s a total double standard. The offside is at least up for debate. But the handball was a penalty.

  6. Yay! LA in the final! As y’all have seen tonight, just give us the trophy baby! If I were houston I wouldn’t even bother showing up…

    No but seriously, LA is gonna win MLS cup.

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    • Well yeah, cuz Garber wants you to win.
      Easy to do when every questionable call during an enture playoff run benefits the ‘superstars’. MLS is turning into the NBA (and no, I don’t watch the NBA anymore).

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  7. honestly as a seattle fan i did not think going into the game that we were going to be able to get the result we needed but to have any chance of that taken away because of poor officiating is so frustrating. i shouldnt be surprised, the MLS refs are terrible and have robbed us multiple times this year. i will be estatic hte day the MLS gets real officials and some consistency.

    also stay classy geiger, second yellow to alonso after the whistely. thin skin much? that happens all the time. you are terrible, turn in your whistle, go home, get a new job, and never ref another game

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  8. This is honestly ridiculous from Geiger at this point and the pro-LA bias is getting out of control.

    You can read his lips saying to Keane, “one more foul and it’s a yellow.” Minute later Keane commits another foul and not even a talking to.

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    • love how the Galaxy folks got the heck outta dodge. the confetti was barely outta the cannons and they’re like – right let’s go. get in the bus, now. NOW.

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  9. I hope the AEG check has cleared in Geiger’s account by the end of the game. Wouldn’t want this clown missing out on his well earned fix.

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  10. Sean Franklin did that exact same thing in the first leg and it wasn’t called a penalty.

    Now Seattle has had a goal called back and that exact same play called for a penalty.

    Mark Geiger should be removed from this league and never allowed to officiating another professional league. He is not fit for the job.

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  11. The experience of Keane and Beckham, how they are controlling the areas that they CAN control, and imposing their will out there is something to behold. All credit to Seattle, they are playing some great ball but wow, those two are showing their class.

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  12. I mean, what was that Seattle defender supposed to do when the ball was struck so close to him? Doesn’t seem right. TT is convinced it doesn’t matter cuz his arms were not by his side, but I’m not so sure. Ball to hand, hand to ball comes into play here too.

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      • have seen it called and not called

        but the cracks in Geiger’s control of the game were present pretty early on. unfortunately he lived up to my doubts after I saw his name as tonight’s ref

    • Harsh call, there was absolutely no intent, but he’s just asking for trouble by flapping his arms all over the place… too loose in the box.

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  13. seattle did not get that exact same call in leg one, MLS get some consistency with your refs please. notting like getting jobbed by the refs.

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      • ok how about the goal falsely called back? we can do this all day, that was a very soft penalty and i would prefer it to never be given.

      • Will be the first to admit I don’t know every rule of the sport, but doesn’t that justify blocking a goal from going in with your hand but not intending to do it because it was close even though you arm is extended? Seems like a bad standard.

      • You mean the one where it hit Hurtado in the ribs? Yeah, I can see where Galaxy fans would think it’s unfair that wasn’t called.

      • there was absolutely in no way any intent at all whatsoever. Yes it’s a “by the book” call, but no way does a seasoned ref call that. It’s a correct call, but there are lots of “correct” calls that good refs don’t make, especially where there has already been a blown call that cost the same team a goal earlier on. a correct call, but a bad call.

        and twellman is a schwanz.

  14. Franklin comes in to stop a break and kicks the ball out of bounds… and it’s a goal kick? When Taylor “I can’t remember my own name” Twellman is criticizing the officials it’s ugly.

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      • Ok, so this is rather cool. I didn’t know GAM was an acronym for Grown-A$$-man so I went to Urban Dicitionary to look it up. Definition #5 is the one. The example: Eddie Johnson is a Grown A$$ man.

        Did you submit that one?

      • Haha, no.

        He called himself a GAM in an interview years and years ago when asked if he played video games and it’s become his unofficial nickname in USMNT circles and AO and Don’t Tread.

  15. Not a reffing expert by any means, but the guy next to Meyer was offside, he was probably 5 yards away from Johnson, foot in front of him. Probably not passive offside, but makes sense why ref called it.

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  16. Stadium + crowd are amazing. ive been there. it’s AWESOME.

    so far the rain is falling, seattle is attacking non-stop, and we have an exciting game! still, galaxy will pull a goal or two out of it to keep seattle at bay.

    you know this one is going the full 90, down to the last second.

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  17. Sounders fans will definitely point to the incorrectly called offside goal: but 1-0 is still the fair scoring right now and not 2-0 ( right now). Because if EJ’s first goal does stand there is no way of knowing if that second goal ever develops. It probably doesn’t because game resets.

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