Here at Backheeled, we’re launching a new column this season. We’re taking a weekly journey around the world of MLS, looking at five things every week that tell the story of the week; players, teams, stats, videos, and the weird, wacky, and wonderful moments that make MLS unique.
Lets go on this magical journey together. Onward!
We’re not talking about this team enough: Seattle Sounders
We talk about how deep the Sounders are all the time, but seeing it in action is something else.
With Pedro De La Vega already out until mid-spring, things got worse quickly for Seattle in their season opener on Sunday evening against the Colorado Rapids. Jordan Morris hobbled off just a few minutes into the first half, a sad sight for a player who has had the worst luck with injuries. Head coach Brian Schmetzer later called Morris’ injury a quad issue. Later in the half, new central midfield signing Hassani Dotson went off with a potential concussion, though Schmetzer said postgame that Dotson was feeling “good” but that “safety is the number one priority.”
Without missing a beat, Schmetzer went to the deep bench.
He subbed in Paul Rothrock, a top-end complementary piece who had the chance to leave the club in free agency this winter but stayed because his “heart has always been here”, in Morris’ place and Snyder Brunell, one of the more exciting young midfielders in MLS, in Dotson’s. Rothrock balled out, scoring a goal and notching an assist to give the Sounders a comprehensive 2-0 win over the Rapids.
