Chivas Fortunate to Tie Seattle at CenturyLink Field (0-0)

Seattle Setup:

     It was clear that Seattle’s goal was to control the possession and that they felt that by doing that they would be able to score a few goals. They created a plethora of chances, but unfortunately for them their finishing was lacking and they were unable to find the back of the net.

     Seattle set up in their usual 4-4-2 with a diamond midfield. Alonso played in the holding role with Friberg in front of him. Alonso made several dangerous runs forward, while Friberg did not play a major role in the Sounders’ attack and maybe Carrasco would have been a better option for Coach Sigi Schmid. Rosales was wide right and Fernandez was wide left. They were Seattle’s two most dangerous players in the match, and had Fernandez not hit his penalty kick off of the post, Seattle would have earned 3 points. Noonan joined Montero up top, with Montero having his usual freedom to roam to receive the ball. Riley at right back and Wahl at left back both got plenty forward and supplied lots of service into the box. Scott and Parke partnered at center back.

Chivas USA Setup:

     Chivas set up in a 4-4-2 with a diamond midfield, basically exactly the same as Seattle did. Elliot served as the holding midfielder and looked to send long distribution forward from his spot in front of the back four. Labrocca played in front of Elliot, and roamed about the pitch, wherever he felt like he needed to be in order to receive the ball. Gavin played wide right, Flores (and later Courtois) played wide left, and they played very fluidly, often switching positions and moving wherever there was available space to receive a pass. Despite this movement Chivas was lacking runs by their strikers that would have given them more chances to score. Moreno and Mondaini started up top, with Mondaini being replaced midway through the first half with what looked like an injury by Braun.  Flores (and Courtois) drifted significantly inside and Braun and Moreno would drift out wide to the wing to try and take their defender off the dribble. Seattle would often run a double team at the Chivas forward when they were in this position, which led to Chivas being unable to threaten the Seattle goal. Chivas never really adjusted to this tactic by Seattle and it led to Braun in particular being stifled all game.

Observations:

• With Noonan getting the start up top, it was clear that part of Seattle’s game plan was to play balls in the air to him. It worked out ok for Seattle but Noonan was often their only option and had multiple defenders covering him.
• It seemed that after Fernandez hit his PK off of the post, Chivas got somewhat of a boost in confidence and they really picked up their play for the rest of the first half. They just could not get enough room to trouble Keller with a shot. Seattle’s back four played an exceptional game.
• With Labrocca moving freely around the field and left back Jazic pushing high up the pitch, the Chivas left midfielder (it started off as Flores and in the second half it was Courtois) was basically playing centrally for much of the match. It worked well for Chivas at times but because of Jazic’s position, it left them vulnerable down their left flank, and Rosales was able to make many dangerous runs as Jazic was left chasing him in recovery.
• As the halftime whistle blew, I marked in my notes that Seattle was playing too many balls blindly into the box. With a part of their strategy being to use Noonan’s aerial prowess, they were too often forcing crosses when Noonan was outnumbered or even when he was not in position to receive a cross. That led to them wasting their possessions too often.
• Seattle’s best chance at a goal from open play came early in the second half when Noonan had chance to bury a rebound off of a Friberg shot, but he was unable to get enough on it to get it past Kennedy. It was a play where Noonan should have done better, and it came to signify the type of day it was for the Sounders, and Noonan in particular. He struggled to hold the ball up and he probably should have been substituted for earlier than he was.
• With Courtois, and even Gavin playing much more centrally as the two Chivas forwards drifted wide, it left Chivas needing more width deeper on the field to help them relieve the pressure that Seattle was applying on their midfield. Their midfielders were too close together to make effective passes to one another and their two forwards were too often on an island with no one to play the ball back to.
• For the last 10 or 15 minutes of the match Sigi Schmid brought on Neagle, moving Rosales up top with Jaqua. Neagle looked just as dangerous as he did during the Sounders dramatic comeback victory against SKC, and clearly drew a penalty in the 89’ minute that wasn’t called. Neagle should have been brought on earlier in the match. With Seattle being unable to score it was clear a shakeup was needed and it came too late in the match. Neagle was unable to have adequate time to create a goal for Seattle.

Conclusion:

     Chivas had to feel like they stole a point on the road in such a hostile environment. Seattle dominated the match and just could not find the back of the net. I would look for Carrasco to start over Friberg next match, and another strike partner with Montero besides Noonan. Seattle played very well, and even though they lost two points from a winnable game at home, they have to feel good with the way they played, particularly their back four. The two center backs played very well, and will need to continue that form as they push for the supporters shield.

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