Top Stories

Sounders rally late to earn historic CONCACAF Champions League win over Tigres

EddieJohnsonCCLWinner (JaneGPhotos)

Photo by Jane Gershovich/JaneG.Photography

By JASON MITCHELL

SEATTLE, Wash. – Eddie Johnson came close time and again. In the season-opener against the Montreal Impact. In the first leg of this CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal against Tigres UANL last week. Even in the first half at CenturyLink Field Tuesday night. He had missed the frame high, wide left, wide right, even hit the crossbar.

But when it mattered most he finally converted, deftly slipping a shot between Tigres goalkeeper Jorge Diaz de Leon and the left post in the 75th minute, putting his Seattle Sounders up 3-1 on the night, 3-2 on aggregate, and into the tournament’s semifinals for the first time.

Seattle also became the first MLS team to bounce a Mexican side from the tournament’s knockout rounds.

The Sounders will face either the Houston Dynamo or Santos Laguna in the semifinals. Houston leads Santos 1-0 with the second leg scheduled for Wednesday night in Mexico.

Santos knocked Seattle out of the tournament a year ago with a 6-1 thrashing in the second leg, a fact the Sounders seem not to have forgotten.

While saying he doesn’t care who Seattle plays in the next round, Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid nonetheless added, “We’ve got a score to settle with Santos if Santos is the representative.”

Johnson only had the chance to make history thanks to memorable second-half strikes from newcomers DeAndre Yedlin and Djimi Traore against a reserve-laden Tigres team playing the final 45 minutes down a man.

With his team trailing 1-0 in the 53rd minute, the 19-year-old Yedlin strode into a cleared corner and fired a skipping one-touch volley from 25 yards out that grazed a defender, evened the score, and electrified a stadium.

“I saw the ball floating up and I just tried to get the right timing on it,” said Yedlin, “Luckily I got a good hit and it took a deflection and went in.”

A beautiful strike to be sure, but nothing compared to what came seven minutes later.

In the 60th minute, defender Djimi Traore stepped up to what seemed to be a harmlessly cleared ball, took a touch to bring the ball down, and unleashed a thunderous volley from 30 yards out that scraped the crossbar before finding the back of the net.

“It topped mine, so I wasn’t too happy about that,” quipped Yedlin.

The Sounders still needed a goal, but at that point Johnson’s eventual score seemed all but inevitable.

It was all a far cry from a first half that looked dire and left the Sounders fans among the 20,520 in attendance more than a little antsy. Despite trailing 1-0 on aggregate coming into the night, Seattle looked flat for most of the first half, plagued by suspect defense, wasted chances, and questionable energy.

Tigres punished Seattle for those shortcomings in the 23rd minute, when Jonathan Bornstein initiated a counter that ended with Elias Hernandez finding the end of an Alberto Acosta far-post cross to easily beat goalkeeper Michael Gspurning.

While the goal seemed to nudge the Sounders awake, the game-changing moment perhaps came in the 45th minute, when Salvadoran referee Elmer Bonilla handed Tigres midfielder Manuel Viniegra his second yellow, leaving the Mexican side that much more vulnerable to Seattle’s second-half onslaught.

Although perhaps something else inspired the Sounders as well.

Asked what he said to his team at halftime, Schmid replied, “A lot of words that I can’t repeat here. I wasn’t too happy with how we played in the first half. I wasn’t too happy in terms of some individual efforts, which we sort of identified at halftime very directly.”

Seattle stepped onto the pitch Tuesday night knowing a win by two goals or more pushed them through to their first tournament semifinals. A 1-0 win forced overtime and a suspension, at least, of the dreaded away-goals tiebreaker.

Anything less bounced them from the quarterfinals for the second straight year. The last thing they wanted to do was come out flat and give up an early goal.

They did the last thing they wanted to do, and still they made history.

“It’s amazing,” said Yedlin, “It’s the kind of story you can pass on to your kids and grandkids and it makes the city proud. It’s good for us.”

Comments

  1. seattle was mediocre first 60 minutes but the best thing to come out of this game was the fact Deandre can play and he has a bright future with seattle and the USA. his give aways were high on the pitch and due to bad positioning by his teammates. Treore looks solid for Seattle and adding obafemi will sure help. seattle will make it to semifinals of the MLS cup but LA has the edge.

    Reply
  2. Great win, but ugh.

    The first half was an embarrassment. The Sounders gave the ball away too many times in the final third, their finishing was awful, they gave Tigres two or three opportunities, Rosales, Rose, Zakauani, EJ and Ochoa had wooden feet in the first half.

    Second half better, but was that just due to having the extra guy?

    They are a better team than that, but didn’t show it in my opinion. Tigres is a very good team if those were their reserves.

    Reply
    • Totally agree. The red card helped immensely. Before the semifinals Seattle needs to find somebody who can deliver a corner kick that gets past the first defender at the near post and a forward who can really hold the ball to bring the midfield into the game. Prior to scoring his deflected goal, I would have been wondering what all the buzz about Yedlin was. He got roasted on Tigres’ goal in the first half and was held quiet by Jonathan Bornstein of all people. With the extra space in the second half, he was more effective, but he has a ways to go to master the pro game. The Sounders staying alive in this tournament and more regular playing time should make him a bit tougher before Tab Ramos selects the U-20 roster though.

      Reply
      • I think you had to be there to see how bad that foul was, on the replay it didn’t look like one, much less a blatent miss by the ref.

      • Diavid,

        It is funny the guy arguing for a 19 year old’s greatness is saying the other guy needs to put things into persepective…..

        He is 19 and has played two games. Sure he made mistakes and could have been better, but at times he was the best player on the field for two teams that could win CONCACAF…a few key players missing….but still.

      • Greatness? No. I never said greatness. I said he was more effective after Tigres went down to 10 men, because he had much less defending to do. Like any young player, he’s going to have flashes of brilliance and make mistakes. Here and elsewhere on the web there has been massive hype for him due in some part to the U-20 team not having a natural right back on its qualifying roster and this kid being a right back who made an MLS roster and starting due to the regular starter being injured. I’m not saying he’s a bad player at all. After 2 games, he’s got a ways to go before hype and reality are actually in line. And, I don’t think that at any point other than the moment he scored was he the best player on the field, or even for the Sounders.

      • For those of us who actually pay attention to the youth in our country he’s not a surprise. He was a two year starter, and probably the best right back in the country, at Akron. None of this is surprising to anyone who knew anything about him before he was signed.

  3. We made history, we looked good out there, we missed a lot of chances even before the Tigres red card that should have been goals but lets not start comparing Liga MX and MLS…
    1. Tigres had Bornstein on their team…lol
    2. They played a man down
    3. They played with their B team (and still looked good)
    4. Mexican National team comprises of mostly Liga MX players and they are 15th in the world rankings (imagine the USMNT with mostly home based players….disaster!!!!!)
    5. Salary cap for us is to keep teams from just buying the best players and to force them to groom local talent coming up in the pipeline (college, USL etc), in Mexico even without the salary cap they don’t need to go out looking for a Beckham or Henry etc…..because they are dedicated to developing their players and harvesting their talent in their country (and biased about it too)

    this still doesn’t take away from the win by the Sounders…..the message here is “give MLS the respect we deserve and bring your A game or we will send you packing!!!!”

    Reply
    • yeah, look at Omar Salgado. Foregoing college worked wonders for him. That awesome MLS reserve league has been so successful at bringing our teenagers along.

      Reply
    • Yedlin became the player he is now because of college.

      For every youth player out there I have one suggestion:

      GO. TO. AKRON.

      Reply
      • I think you’re overlooking the value of recruiting in college soccer. Even if I buy your theory, people who signed up for Porter are not necessarily going to know what Embick means to the team, or hang around for a no-name coach who happens to be good at his job. Bear in mind you are asking kids to sign for Akron (!) when UNC, Indiana, UVa, etc. may all be calling. All some kids will see is the marquee name has walked, and you’re recruiting me to play at…..Akron???

        And then it spirals because Akron is no longer the destination for youth NT players, at which point you can’t use the last signing to sell the next one, etc.

      • hmmm this isnt a discussion on how good Akron is or who they can recruit. It’s about the development that takes place once there. Thus, the entire conversation is predicated on the kid attending Akron and has zero to do with recruiting.

      • No, someone said Go to Akron, someone else said the coach had left, you responded that the replacement was the brains of the outfit. I think we’d wandered off the development discussion to a Do you go to Akron now? discussion before I got here. I can’t jack a pre-jacked thread and I should be able to jump in at the point I find the thread.

        Since the question is Do I go to Akron now? the question of whether Akron was a figment of recruiting — and whether Akron will suffer without Porter as a magnet — are a propos. While some kids go for complicated substance, personal experience, a lot of kids either want to be at a winner or want to be associated with certain name schools or coaches. If the coach leaves, and the replacement can’t draw the same type of kids, it might not matter if he’s a better coach, because he’ll start with lesser players. You’re understating how big a recruiting phenomenon Porter-era Akron was. A lot of the people at Akron were pre-identified as youth NTers. I don’t buy that the team will be as good in his absence, even if it is better coached.

        I responded below about the relative virtues of attending college, and the punchline is essentially that in the present day many of the U20 and U23 NTers have at least some college, and a limited amount remain college players. The growth of academy influence is a big change since say the 90s, but there is enough of a hit and miss reality to it all, with both college and pro signings getting their chance, where both paths are viable. But there is enough risk in turning pro early, and a weak enough development structure here, where I’d do at least a year or two of college to grow as a player and perhaps even command a bigger salary.

    • All due respect if you look at rookies of the year in MLS, last year’s finalists were two Louisville players plus an Akron player. Historically speaking the only ROY with no college at all was Najar, in over 16 years dating back to 1996.

      This arguably reflects the fact that top end college players are prized for talent, get PT and a place to mature as players, and show up ready to contribute. Where if you take some 16-18 year old kid he has to mature mentally, emotionally, physically — in the context of being thrown in the deep end with adults in the current MLS structure — and so ironically they spend what would have been college years playing catchup anyway. Occasionally a Gil or Donovan catches traction immediately but ironically you have only set the table for us to show that MLS has an 18-22 problem IMO that in Europe often gets addressed byeither a separate B team or further age group teams beyond U18. MLS is trying to address this with the USL linkup but to act like this hole they are trying to fill, does not exist, is a tad too credulous.

      Reply
      • College rookies tend to be 20-22, whereas rookies from academies are 17/18. Big mental difference. The academt system will be better long-term.

        And Salgado is an example of why our draft system works against youth. Our best players get drafted to poor teams.

      • With a few 16-17 exceptions, people are either turning pro or going to college at the same 18 age of HS graduation, in which case I think it’s relatively “constant” as opposed to variable.

        I recognize what you’re saying about college kids coming out at 20-22, but that merely reflects the choice. What matters is the relative value of the choice at 18 in those 1-4 years of pro or college play after 18.

        Yes, the college kid comes out older, but he still has to do the growing to have a superior outcome. I quite a few cases I think the college kid is doing the growing while the pro signee does not. It mirrors my personal experience that the kids who play in college — anywhere — tend to surpass the ones who sit, unless the sitters are at some incredible program and being trained into machines that activate in years 2 or 3. If you read the pro game into the same argument, I think you can see where going pro but sitting is not necessarily as good as going to UNC and playing. I don’t think it matters if the coach is theoretically better and the playing level higher in the pros if you rarely experience it. Meanwhile, even though the kids in college are playing college ball, and people complain about the season length, those players do get 20-30 games (even if some wish it was more), which is more than the pro washouts get, they work on their games, and they may be able to supplement with youth NT, PDL, academy, and men’s league. I was always busy in the offseason. Everyone wants college players on their teams.

        Poor teams shouldn’t have anything to do with it, because in theory they offer a better PT opportunity. You can walk right in and start or at least sub. The Dynamo draft many decent kids who barely dress or play and wash out in 1-3 years. There is a high hurdle to PT here and limited USOC/reserve opportunities given that the coach doesn’t like to risk MLS games on non-vets, including Stuart Holden and Geoff Cameron, who began here off the bench just the same.

        Now, the ideal is you go to a team that really needs your position — Salgado got caught in a numbers game on a team that may not have really needed him — but I think a draft could be as close a proxy as possible because teams pick players they want, and if they have their heads on right they aren’t stocking a pre-stocked spot. I don’t know if some kid would necessarily be able to identify teams in need any better if he was an absolute free agent.

  4. Another point, great game from Bornstein and that assist Bornstein shows he still has something left, just need go to a team where he could start.

    Reply
      • +2. Bornstein played well and is a good experienced and athletic left back. The Bornstein hate needle has gone way past reasonable on here. For example Bornstein would be a huge upgrade at LB for Sounders over Leo/Burch.

      • I was really surprised to see Portland sell his rights — thought he would have fit perfectly in that system.

  5. The red card was massive. Speaking of that (and I realize I have very limited info to base this on), it seems to me that the Mexican under 23ish are very petulant… Kicking the ball away here and some incidents in the recent youth tournaments. Anyway, Tigres youth just crumpled under the Sounders pressure in the second half. I wonder if the manager is second guessing his decision to field the team he did? Big props to Seattle! Historic win for them and the MLS

    Reply
  6. It’s still amazing to see how in some respects Mexican club systems are so far ahead. Those boys were disciplined and on the same page and ran their counters like football routes. every cross had a man far post, every run had a second runner, ever pass had proper weight and foresight. That was their B team a man down and you could still see that quality of training. Without a ref willing to red card for time wasting that was game over 30 minutes in. I am happy for Seattle and for MLS for rising the the occasion, but the planets won’t always align so perfectly. I’m happy that MLS academy’s are starting to produce, but until we can field 11 Yedlin-like players we’re playing catch up.

    Reply
    • In fairness Seattle looked very technical and good on the ball. However, in the 2nd half Seattle only had 3 Americans on the field Johnson, Yeldin and Ochoa.

      Reply
      • I don’t know man Seattle was playing a lot of long ball in the first half, at least what i saw. Did not catch the second half but, hopefully like you said, they were technical in the second half and kept possession. More importantly scored with that possession.

    • Yeah, Houston is a pretty good deadball team and it drives me up a wall every time a ball is too deep and there is no garbageman in sight.

      But the night of a rare US win is probably not the night to be making the “catching-up” argument because at least for this night they have in fact caught and passed Tigres.

      Reply
      • Absolutely, but I do think a big part of growth is recognizing how much growth you have yet to make… Celebrating is in order though!

    • It wasn’t a “red card” so much as a “second yellow” and yeah, the guy did kick the ball away after the ref blew the whistle and all players know that could be a yellow card, so why do it? Blame the player man.

      That said, I do agree that Tigres’ B squad had some quality. They seemed to get tired there at the end and let Seattle put some tremendous pressure on them for much of the 2nd half, but they didn’t quit. I hope the day comes soon when the MLS B squads can show the same quality.

      Reply
    • “Without a ref willing to red card for time wasting that was game over 30 minutes in.”

      With a competent ref, that goal that took place 30 minutes in would have never been allowed, as it was set up by an obvious foul.

      One team came to play. Another team brought backups. The game was over 1 minute into the match, if you want to be really be honest.

      Reply
  7. Yedlin was such a special surprise.. You can just tell he has ‘it’. His key attributes are speed an ball skills, but he played some very dangerous longballs/crosses, and seems to be a smart player also. If the guy works hard he’s going to be a star.

    Congrats to Seattle, it was nice to see the game turn out the way it did. Usually its the Mexican team making the inevitable comeback to win these CCL games.

    Reply
    • Every once in a while, a young US player puts life & excitement back into the aspirations of winning a world cup. The kid is another one in the line!

      Reply
    • A friend told me 2 years…he got married to a US gal, so he should be in the 2018 cycle for sure….maybe we get lucky and he gets to play in the Gold Cup…2015 Gold Cup will be the one that qualifies a team from Concacaf to the Confederations Cup in 2017….

      Reply
    • I’d assume he has plans for it but let’s not forget he has been capped for the DR Congo, has a brother on that team still. I’d not count that chicken til it hatches.

      Reply
      • I think it was a friendly. He’s not tied yet. If he regains form the leg-break could be a blessing in disguise for the USMNT.

    • If your definition of consistently is 20% of the time then I agree. The issue is that Mexican teams take their domestic league so much more important than the Libertadores or CCL. It will take an MLS team to win it to change the thinking of Liga MX teams.

      Reply
    • I think you’re right. And a woefully underfunded RSL came within a goal of taking down CCL heavyweights Monterrey two years ago. I think Tigres coach was serious about CCL but due to their schedule and undefeated streak in league he had to compromise on his player selection. And he has a few dumbasses on his bench like the dude who gets a yellow and then follows it up by booting the ball into the stands after a foul.

      Reply
    • Its possible, however MLS teams would beat Mexican sides with foreign not American players. Consider MLS teams have about 12 foreigner per team. Mexican teams only have 5 foreigners per team. If MLS lifted the salary cap teams like LA, Seattle, Toronto and Red Bulls would sign better foreigners.

      Reply
      • What does “foreign” talent have to do with the statement?

        If we’re throwing out facts, let’s compare how old these clubs are in comparison. More specifically, let’s compare how long they’ve had academies to develop native talent.

        The fact that MLS is even competing with Mexican League clubs on that basis alone says a lot about MLS.

      • MLS teams don’t have 12 foreigners per team. Each team starts with 8 international slots, which are tradeable. However, there is a maximum of 152 international slots available league wide. Some teams trade for these slots and thus have more than 8 international players on their roster, however, this isn’t, nor could it be, the norm.

        The salary cap will rise over time (as it is right now) and the league is making a bigger and bigger push to sign more and younger DPs. Teams like LA and NY already have total budgets approaching $15mln and with Television and sponsor money on the rise you can expect teams to loosen the purse strings and close the gap on FMF in terms of spending.

      • LA and NYRB spend $15 mil a year but they aren’t allowed to spread that $15 mil around the team. If they were they would field much better sides.

        The reason MLS sides don’t win in the CCL is because of depth.

        If you replaced the salary cap with FFP then you would see MLS clubs like LA, Seattle, NY with better overall teams balanced with talent at every position.

    • I think you could say, “Without the salary cap, US sides would be more competitive.” We are still far behind their grassroots development and I would argue they are far better at farming the Central and South American teams for players than we are. But we’re doing better on both.

      Reply
    • We definetly care about this tournament, and I’d be surprised if he doesn’t play his starters for the match tonight. On top of that, I believe Villarreal is back and could def start either on the right wing or up top.

      Reply
    • From what orifice did you pull that comment? Bruce trotted out almost all starting XI guys last week, save for Jimenez and Stephens – who are darn capable in their own right. And he’ll do the same tonight.

      Reply
    • I think the issue with LA has been as much about timing as anything else. The CCL calendar just hasn’t been kind to LA. First, they’ve had guys like Donovan and Beckham out on loan during several offseasons, which has made it tough to rely on those guys during the quarters. In addition, LA has brought in a few major summer transfers over the years to strengthen their side during the stretch run. We’re kind of seeing that right now. Donovan is away and they’ve yet to replace Beckham with another impact DP. I’m guessing LA will, once again, be quite a bit stronger in the 2nd half of the season than they are right now.

      Reply
  8. After each goal I watched go in, I couldn’t help but think:

    “Hi Mexico. Love and respect your technical ability but you’re still light years behind in goal keeping.”

    -USA

    Reply
    • LOL. You do know that was the backup goalkeeper right? And Tigres were playing with the full B team and 1 man down. If they really cared about this tournament and put its first team out there Seattle would not be advancing. But good for them to beat the team put in front of them.

      Reply
      • I’m aware of all the points you made and it still doesn’t change the fact that Mexico can’t produce a competent GK to match the quality in their the remaining 10 starters.

        National team or club level.

  9. Interesting to note that you could see a real difference in athleticism in the second half. It was apparent which side had players going 90 minutes game time on a regular basis and which club was only seeing practice minutes.

    The technical ability of Tigres really contained the athleticism of the Sounders attack, but once fatigue set in the superior fitness allowed Seattle to run them into the ground.

    Reply
  10. As an MLS supporter, thank you for handling the business and putting them in their place, Seattle.

    If you aren’t coming to play, you’re going to lose 3-1. Take care Tigres…head back home now. Buh-bye.

    Reply
    • Did Tigres rest so many guys because of overconfidence, because this was the middle game of 3 in 7 days for them, or because, since they’re in 1st in Mexico, they were far more concerned about league games than CCL knockout round games? All the above?

      Reply
  11. Yedlin was a stud. I’m not into hyperbole, but I wonder (assuming he maintains his level of play of the last 10 days) how soon he might get national team looks? That was the best fullback performance I have seen since the 2010 WC even if it was against a B team.

    Reply
    • Good comment. Yedlin is a player to watch in the future. Horrible, racist, bigoted Jeremy. We all make mistakes in what we say. God Bless!

      Reply
    • Awhile. RB is set for now. Plus he got destroyed for the first goal. He needs to learn how to get physical if he wants to be a RB at the national level. Otherwise, his best option may be as a winger.

      Reply
      • Another comment that makes zero sense. It was a foul that wasn’t called. I don’t give a flying you know what how long you’ve been playing soccer, getting lined up from BEHIND while running full speed will put anyone on their ass. Watch a replay, it’s clear as day.

      • I saw shoulder to shoulder, and for better or worse, that’s going to happen a lot during qualifying in Central America. He has to man up to those challenges. Notice how he didn’t look for the foul, he realized he got bumped off lightly.

      • Umm…that wasn’t a light bump. They Tigres attacker threw his arm straight out and shoved Yedlin over. You may want to try looking at multiple replay angles.

  12. American Neymar was amazing tonight in the second half. American Neymar has swagger.

    American Neymar should move up to right wing and terrorize people coming inside.

    Reply
    • Wait for houston to win tomorrow

      The one touch passing in the center of field is the key to beating these mexican teams. Houston demonstrated that nicely in the first game

      Reply
  13. Great second half comeback.

    There were a few talented Mexico U-20/U-23 players out on the field tonight, but DeAndre Yedlin was the best young player/U-20 player on that field.

    Really excited to watch Yedlins continued development, and watch him tear it up for the US U-20’s this summer at the U-20 WC.

    Yedlin is just the first of many talented MLS academy players that will grace MLS fields this year and the years to come.

    MLS will rise with the coming academy talent.

    Reply
    • First time I’d seen Yedlin play, and he was absolutely fantastic out there. He looked to be the only one alive for most of the first half. Scared to be seeing him in the MLS for a few years

      Reply
    • I think more than anything complimentary I’ve heard about him in recent weeks/latter part of last year is his sheer gumption/balls/tenacity to have a go from that far out.

      We, as Americans, don’t have enough players that are feerless like that. That’s a HUGE attribute and immediately made me a fan. That kind of fearlessness will make him continue to excel.

      Excited to watch this kid develop now.

      Reply
    • I love this kid too. But please guys, let’s not smother him with hype. He’s clearly playing himself onto the U-20 squad. But he still needs to develop and will have his ups and downs. (see the Tigres goal, and several other dangerous giveaways). Also like many MLS rookies he will probably hit a wall as the grind of the season wears on.

      Reply
      • Several other dangerous giveaways? The kid was the best player on the field for either team. Sounders should probably have scored twice off balls he played (one to Rose camped out on the penalty spot, and one of the four balls he played to EJ/Ochoa/Zakuani that they biffed)

      • Agreed. He has good speed, good shot and good crossing however also gives the ball away too much when he’s in tight spots. Unfortunately we have too many players that don’t pass well out of tight spots.

      • I think the people here are the best people to have get excited about him. The problem would be when you get somebody like ESPN on him. This board understands not everybody will be a Messi at age 16, whereas ESPN needs to push guys like Adu into the spotlight where the pressure gets to them.

  14. Congrats to Seattle for pulling off a great comeback. I saw Tigres’ goal in the first half and thought it was over and went to bed. Oops.
    Go MLS!!

    Reply
    • Me too! That red card apparently happened right after I turned off the TV. Needed that extra hour of sleep anyways, but regret missing the 2nd half. If Houston wins their QF, then MLS is guaranteed a spot in the Final, cause they would face Seattle in the Semis. Go MLS!

      Reply
      • I didn’t go to bed but I turned over to the world baseball classic thinking there was no way Seattle was getting 3 goals, then I turned back and it was 2-1 and game on.

  15. What a comeback by Seattle. There were a bunch of losers on the Running Commentary post hatin’ hardcore on the Sounders in the first half, but like true losers, they were nowhere to be found after EJ put Seattle up for good.

    Reply
    • Great Win by Seattle. I’m an fanboy, but it sucks that they needed a Tigres red card to get them going. I thought they were done after they gave up that goal. Who do these guys think they are San Jose.

      At least the MLS team didn’t get the red card.

      Reply
      • Tigres was getting chippy and resorting to delaying tactics and got what they deserved. It certainly wasn’t an outrageous red card by any means.

        As for Seattle needing it…well, sure. But Tigres needed a little bit of luck on both the goals they scored (luck last night in that Seattle’s MotM made his one mistake leading up to it). Seattle also had some bad luck along the way. (I also felt like if Zukuani was available for the first leg, they might have pulled it out.)

        My point is the red card tarnishes nothing. Plenty of teams go down a man without giving up three goals. The red card helped…but Seattle earned the win.

      • I’ll go further. Tigers thought they had wrapped up after scoring, lost focus and started acting stupid, and paid the price

      • Other than the fact there wasn’t a single u20 eligible player on the field besides the one from the Sounders, you’re 100% correct.

    • I crashed at half time and though they were done but i don’t troll Seattle in CCL. I am glad they came back to advance. It serves Tigres’ right for fielding a B team. Good comeback. Good thing the rest of the teams left take CCL serious. Again, good job.

      Reply

Leave a Comment