“We are going to rue some of the misses we had and some of the half-chances we didn’t quite get to full chances to get the game out of reach.” -Brian Schmetzer
SUMMARY
Seattle Sounders FC 1 - Houston Dynamo 0
Saturday, May 11, 2019
Venue: CenturyLink Field
Referee: Alex Chilowicz
Assistants: Eduardo Mariscal, Chris Elliott
Fourth Official: Elvis Osmanovic
VAR: Alejandro Mariscal
Attendance: 39,232
Weather: 76 degrees and mostly sunny
SCORING SUMMARY
SEA - Cristian Roldan 5’
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
HOU - Darwin Ceren (caution) 28’
HOU - A.J. DeLaGarza (caution) 59’
SEA - Will Bruin (caution) 78’
HOU - Alejandro Fuenmayor (caution) 90’+2’
LINEUPS & STATS
Seattle Sounders FC - Stefan Frei; Kelvin Leerdam, Román Torres, Kim Kee-hee, Brad Smith; Jordy Delem, Cristian Roldan, Jordan Morris (Nouhou 85’), Nicolás Lodeiro - captain, Víctor Rodríguez (Harry Shipp 15’); Raúl Ruidíaz (Will Bruin 73’)
Substitutes not used: Bryan Meredith, Jonathan Campbell, Saad Abdul-Salaam, Handwalla Bwana
Total shots: 16 (Morris/Ruidíaz, 4)
Shots on goal: 4 (Four players, 1)
Fouls: 14 (Bruin/Leerdam, 3)
Offside: 0
Corner-kicks: 8 (Lodeiro, 8)
Saves: 1 (Frei, 1)
Houston Dynamo - Joe Willis; A.J. DeLaGarza, Alejandro Fuenmayor, Maynor Figueroa, Adam Lundkvist; Matias Vera, Darwin Ceren (Boniek Garcia 86’), Tomas Martinez (Tommy McNamara 72’); Alberth Elis, Mauro Manotas, Memo Rodriguez (Romell Quioto 80’)
Substitutes not used: Tyler Deric, Juan David Cabezas, Chris Duvall, Kevin Garcia
Total shots: 11 (Elis/Manotas, 3)
Shots on goal: 1 (Elis, 1)
Fouls: 14 (Ceren, 3)
Offside: 3 (Three players, 1)
Corner-kicks: 4 (Rodriguez, 2)
Saves: 3 (Willis, 3)
SOUNDERS FC HEAD COACH BRIAN SCHMETZER
On overall thoughts of the game:
“My guys had to work hard to get a shutout. It looked like the game started off in our favor, we were playing pretty well. I think the injury kind of caught us. The guys dug deep there to secure three points. The reason why they had to dig deep was because [Houston] does a good job. That’s going to be a team that’s right up in the Western Conference throughout this season. Some of their guys are going to rue some of the misses that they had. Now again, back to my team. We are going to rue some of the misses we had and some of the half chances we didn’t quite get to full chances to get the game out of reach in a three game week.”
On the defensive effort:
“Not just the back four, but Jordy Delem sliding in with some good blocks. There was some good defending but again there’s four shots inside the box, there were some crosses that were halfway dangerous. Again, credit to them, credit to my guys for digging deep. And in the second half when we made some adjustments defensively, I think some of those worked and again it’s just a testament to a commitment to defend as a team. Raúl was a little frustrated he didn’t get the ball in the first half, he still did everything he could to help the team. I expect that out of every player.”
On the large amount of crosses:
“18 open play crosses - that’s not too bad. I mean Kelvin [Leerdam] had that one that Ruidíaz almost got his head on. There were a couple of close calls, I would say. I can’t remember. I didn’t think we were overly wing dominant. I thought we had some good transition moments. You could say there was a little lack of combination play in our game tonight, but we will take a look at that.”
SOUNDERS FC GOALKEEPER STEFAN FREI
Overall thoughts on the game:
“I think we played alright defensively. [Houston] incorporates more possession in their game. They are transition-based. They still have that. We still have to be very careful with their explosiveness. For the most part I think we did well defensively as a unit. I wish we could have maybe scored another goal to make it easier on ourselves.”
On the play of Jordy Delem:
“Yeah, I’m really happy. We need to have depth in all positions to keep the train rolling when someone goes down. He’s done well, he can showcase what he’s made of and what he can do. I’ve been working with him in trainings and trying to play out of the back. My centerbacks split out. I need a guy in the middle. I’m happy to see his success there. His work rate is second to none.”
On the second half sliding save:
“I wanted to see what happens with Brad [Smith] first. At that point I couldn’t really judge when the pass was struck if I was going to go. From that point on, I figured I was going to be able to get there or at least get there to the point where [the ball] is going to have a hard time getting around me. I’m glad that he didn’t score.”
SOUNDERS FC MIDFIELDER CRISTIAN ROLDAN
On which goal was tougher, Minnesota or Houston:
“First time is always more tough. Kicking the ball first time, on the volley, luckily that was bouncing perfectly. Also taking the ball out of the air, for how high it was, puts some pressure on you. First time volley away from home is always tough.”
On if the goal against Minnesota helped him taking the shot today:
“Totally. When I saw the ball in the air my first thought was ‘I’m going to shoot this ball.’ And then there was a second play where Brad [Smith] passed me the ball and I immediately thought ‘I’m going to shoot the ball.’ You feel pretty lucky and then you feel like you’re on a roll. Maybe next game I shoot two more. It gives me a lot of confidence, a lot of leeway, especially with my teammates. They think I can score outside the box all the time now. They are going to be ok with me shooting.”
On how it feels to contribute:
“I always think I do my part for the team. But it is interesting because goals don’t come very often. It is really a moment for me and for the team. My job, first and foremost, is to keep possession and keep the ball around. You score a few goals, you feel like you’re helping the team.”
SOUNDERS FC MIDFIELDER JORDY DELEM
Overall thoughts on the game:
“It was good to get the start, to get the win in front of the fans. It was a perfect night. It was time for us to get some points. We are trying to get back to the top of the table. We need to start winning, especially at home, because we know home games should be eaiser.”
On what Houston did that was so difficult:
“They have a great attack. They have four guys who are moving a lot. They are very technical guys, they know each other. We have to shut them down. When we scored that goal it gave us the win tonight so we are happy.”
On communication with Cristian [Roldan]:
“With Crisitan we are very good friends…It always feels great to play with him. I help him defensively. He scored a goal tonight, perfect for him. He is good, a very good player. He is working very hard at training.”
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HOUSTON DYNAMO HEAD COACH WILMER CABRERA
On tonight’s game:
“It was a good performance by the players. It is sad when you come over here, to a very difficult stadium with a very, very good team and you played the way we played. We played well. I think we had three unbelievable chances. It is sad that we didn’t put at least one away. But this is the game, this is the game and now we have to look for what is coming on Wednesday. We have to start our recovery, to start thinking about Portland. It is important to show that, that is the game. If we continue playing well not only at home but also away, it’s more possibilities that we are going to get better results.”
On playing at home on Wednesday:
“Yes it is good. That is our schedule and we are ready. We are ready to go back home and to take those two games in front of us. We continue working. As I said, we only have had 10 games so far. We have a lot of games in front of us. The most important [thing] is to try to keep everyone healthy and we expect that when we make changes. The players can bring things to the team the way Darwin [Ceren] and Alejandro [Fuenmayor], they did very well and now we have to start thinking about Portland at home.”
HOUSTON DYNAMO MIDFIELDER DARWIN CEREN
On tonight’s game:
“We knew it was a tough place to play. I think we did a good job. They had one chance and they made it. We missed too many chances and that is soccer. If you don’t make it, the other team has a chance and if they score they are the more important team.”
On moving onto Wednesdays match with Portland:
“Yeah, now we thinking about Portland. It is another important game, especially because we are returning home. We are looking forward. I think we did a good job today, but it was soccer. You know it is crazy sometimes. Now we focus on Portland and maybe we can come back to the house and play better - very well - and get three points again.”
