Chivas USA - Seattle Sounders Football Club

Winner	Score	Game Coverage
FC Dallas	W, 4-2	Game Coverage
Earthquakes	W, 4-0	Game Coverage
Sporting KC	W, 1-0	Game Coverage
Union	D, 2-2	Game Coverage
Rapids	W, 1-0	Game Coverage

Game Location

Winner

Score

Game Coverage

FC Dallas

W, 4-2

Game Coverage

Earthquakes

W, 4-0

Game Coverage

Sporting KC

W, 1-0

Game Coverage

Union

D, 2-2

Game Coverage

Rapids

W, 1-0

Game Coverage

Men Of The Match

Sounders FC Stays Unbeaten

By MATT GASCHK
Sounders FC Insider

CARSON, Calif. - It was a night of mixed emotions for the Sounders FC.

On one hand, they maintained a streak of six consecutive unbeaten matches in MLS play and nine overall while holding Chivas USA scoreless for their third straight clean sheet with four in their last five league games.

On the other hand, they couldn’t capitalize on the offensive end and lose Leo Gonzalez for the next MLS match because of a red card in stoppage time.

Seattle held possession most of the match and withstood a barrage of late efforts by Chivas and ended up with a 0-0 draw in front of 13,839 at the Home Depot Center.

“In the first half I thought we played well, I thought we controlled the game pretty much, maybe we were unlucky not to get one,” Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid said. “But you’re going on the road and you’re not going to win every game and so to come out of here – it’s a tough place to play – to come out of here with a 0-0 tie and at least get a point, we’re not super thrilled with it but we’re not super disappointed with it either.”

The Sounders continued their incredible run on the defensive side, getting outstanding performances all across the defense, but particularly from Patrick Ianni and Jeff Parke in the central roles. Seattle’s defense held Chivas to just one first-half shot and goalkeeper Kasey Keller only had to make three saves in the match, all in the second half and none particularly dangerous.

“I’m just happy with the way we’ve been playing and the way we’ve been stepping out to block shots, the way we’ve tracked runners and got out on the counterattack,” Keller said. “It really has been an unbelievable turn around in the last eight to ten games.”

What started as a somewhat physical match got a bit scary in the 38^th minute when Fredy Montero and Chivas USA goalkeeper Zach Thornton collided while going after a ball in the box. Montero leapt to get to the ball just as Thornton did, while the mammoth keeper swung his arm to knock the ball away.

Montero, who gives away five inches and over 70 pounds to Thornton, was left on the ground nearly motionless for a minute while Thornton worked to replace a lost contact lens. Montero ended up with a thigh contusion and a thoroughly rung bell, though he remained in the match until being subbed out in the 86^th minute.

The second half featured much more action, as Chivas opened up a bit more with the addition of halftime substitute Giancarlo Maldonado. The result was some early pressure, culminating in a low-angled shot from Rodolfo Espinoza that Keller saved right against the post.

In the 62^nd minute, Blaise Nkufo crossed the ball to Sanna Nyassi for a threatening header with some open space in front of the net, but the ball could only find the upright and Chivas dodged a bullet by clearing the ball away.

Nagamura had another chance from close range, but Keller sprung to action and made the save on the eight-yard shot.

“I thought we defended together as a unit,” Schmid said. “We always talk about the back four, but that was really good from the wide midfielders to get that done. I thought Parke was very good today, and overall defensively I thought we were solid.”

The top play came though when Osvaldo Alonso wound up for a shot from 22 yards out, causing Thornton to sprawl to his left as he made a fingertip save on the would-be game-winner in the 88^th minute.

As the final whistle loomed, more physical play marred the pitch. Leo Gonzalez got in tight to defend Mariano Trujillo against the sideline and Trujillo took exception, swinging an elbow, then a backhand at Gonzalez to start a fracas. Gonzalez and Trujillo were both issued red card ejections.

The Sounders moved to 8-8-5 (29 points) and maintained a hold on fourth in the Western Conference while Chivas is now 5-10-4 (19 points) and remain in 8^th in the West.

Seattle will take the week off from MLS play, but will have two CONCACAF Champions League matches before hosting the Chicago Fire August 28. They first will face Marathon in Honduras on Thursday, then host Mexican club Monterrey August 25 at Qwest Field.

Summary
Sounders FC - None.
Chivas USA - None.

Lineups
Sounders FC - Kasey Keller, James Riley, Patrick Ianni, Jeff Parke, Leo Gonzalez, Sanna Nyassi (Roger Levesque 82), Osvaldo Alonso, Nathan Sturgis, Alvaro Fernandez (Miguel Montano 67), Fredy Montero (Nate Jaqua 86), Blaise Nkufo.
Chivas USA - Zach Thornton, Mariano Trujillo, Dario Delgado, Michael Umana, Ante Jazic (Jonathan Bornstein 30), Rodolfo Espinoza, Michael Lahoud, Paulo Nagamura, Osael Romero (Giancarlo Maldonaldo 67), Justin Braun, Alan Gordon (Jesus Padilla 79).

Play by Play

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Time	Event	Description
Final		After three minutes of stoppage time, the referee blows the final whistle and the game ends in a 0-0 draw.
91+		Mariano Trujillo takes a cheap shot elbow and back-handed swing at Leo Gonzalez, knocking him to the ground right in front of the fourth official. There is a skirmish on the field after the play and Gonzalez and Trujillo are both issued red cards. I'm going to need this one explained to me. How does Gonzalez get a yellow card for being elbowed? It appears that the fourth official is the one that made the call.
89		Jeff Parke is issued a yellow card for his tackle on the defensive left side. The resulting free kick is defended by the Sounders two-man wall.
88		Osvaldo Alonso shoots hard from 22 yards out and Zach Thornton gets a fingertip on it to push it away for a Seattle corner kick.
85		Nate Jaqua subs on for Fredy Montero.
81		Roger Levesque subs on for Sanna Nyassi. Miguel Montano shifts to the right wing while Levesque stays on the left side.
79		Jesus Padilla subs on for Alan Gordon, moving Justin Braun back up top while Padilla plays on teh right wing.
Notes		Attendance is announces at 13,839.
75		Kasey Keller and Alan Gordon collide while going after a cross from the right side.
74		Miguel Montano gets away on a run up the left side, but is flagged offside.
72		Justin Braun crosses for Alan Gordon from the right side, but his redirection goes wide for a goal kick.
70		Fredy Montero slams a shot off the free kick from 30 yards out and Zach Thornton saves the shot high in the left corner, knocking the ball down before grasping it.
69		Hard tackle by Michael Lahoud knocks Nathan Sturgis to the ground 30 yards out to draw a foul call.
69		Close range shot from Paulo Nagamura tests Kasey Keller's reflexes, but but Keller saves the shot from 8 yards out.
67		Miguel Montano subs on for Alvaro Fernandez.
66		Alan Gordon gets a shot away from 22 yards out straight away that Kasey Keller saves in his chest.
64		Giancarlo Maldonado shoots from distance, but misses just outside the right post for a goal kick.
62		Great cross by Blaise Nkufo finds Sanna Nyassi at the right side for a header, but it clangs off the near post and is cleared away by Chivas.
60		Leo Gonzalez sends a right-footed cross in from the left side, but can't find anyone on the other end of it and it goes away for a goal kick.
58		Frantic play by Chivas. Paulo Nagamura crosses from the right side and it goes through the box to Rodolfo Espinoza for a shot from the left side, but Kasey Keller saves it against the near post and quickly sends the ball out on the right side.
54		Giancarlo Maldonado gets teh ball at the top of the box, but Jeff Parke cuts him off and knocks the ball away for a Chivas throw in.
51		Justin Braun is called offside for the second time already this half on a run up the right side.
49		After 3.5 minutes, the stadium clock is now running. It was stopped at 43:00 after the half started.
Halftime		Giancarlo Maldonado subbed on for Osael Romero at the half. He is playing up top with Alan Gordon with Justin Braun shifted out to the right wing.
46		Chivas USA takes the opening kick to start the second half, defending the north goal.
Halftime		Shots: Sounders FC 5, Chivas 1. SOG: Sounders FC 2, Chivas 0. Saves: Sounders FC 0, Chivas 2. Fouls: Sounders FC 4, Chivas 5. Corner Kicks: Sounders FC 4, Chivas 3. Offside: Sounders FC 1, Chivas 2.
48+		After three minutes of stoppage time, the referee blows his whistle for halftime.
NOTE		Fredy Montero was treated for a thigh contusion on the field, but remains in the match.
45		After nearly 7 minutes of delay, play resumes.
NOTE		Zach Thornton appears to have lost a contact lens in his right eye in the collision. Fredy Montero appears to have recovered and remains in the game.
NOTE		Zach Thornton is listed at 230 pounds (I'll take the over), while Fredy Montero is listed at 160. No surprise that Montero took the worst of that collision.
38		Big collision in the box between Fredy Montero and Zach Thornton. Both remain on the field, though it looks like Montero took the worst of it on the replay as he takes a Thornton forearm across the face.
36		The Chivas supporters in the north end rain streamers down on Kasey Keller while the ball is at the opposite end of the field. Our supporters were warned in pregame that any streamers that were thrown on the field to disrupt play would result in ejection - we'll see if the same rule applies to the home crowd.
35		Blaise Nkufo gathers the ball on the left side, gets around his defender and tries to cross to the middle, but it is played away for a corner kick.
30		Jonathan Bornstein subs on for Ante Jazic.
28		Jeff Parke - who is having a heck of a first half - jockeys with Alan Gordon while chasing after a ball. Both players end up on the grass, but Gordon knocked the ball away for a Seattle goal kick.
26		Fredy Montero snakes around two Chivas defenders and shoots from 22 yards out, but misses over the crossbar for a goal kick.
25		Another hard tackle from behind brings down Blaise Nkufo, this one a sliding attempt at a tackle in the midfield that dispossesses Nkufo without a call.
23		Seattle gets Chivas back on their heels as Alvaro Fernandez loops a cross in for Blaise Nkufo, but it drifts on him a bit and is headed away by Michael Umana.
22		Great cross from the left side, but it gets to the far post before Fredy Montero can and goes away for a Chivas goal kick.
20		Fredy Montero gets a shot off from the right side of the box, but goes to the ground as he shoots and Zach Thornton makes the easy save against the near post.
19		Jeff Parke picks the ball off in the midfield and carries it quickly up the middle, going 1-on-4 with the Chivas defense before being tripped up 24 yards from goal.
17		This one's starting to get a little physical. Chivas is going in hard when Nkufo and Montero get the ball with their backs to the goal.
13		Sanna Nyassi picks a ball of on the defensive end and races with it up the right side. Great effort by Nyassi, though it doesn't lead to anything on the other end.
11		Blaise Nkufo leads Fredy Montero up the left side, but Zach Thornton wraps his hands around the ball to stop the threat.
09		Nathan Sturgis takes the corner kick and finds Alvaro Fernandez at the near post and it's headed back for a Seattle throw. On the throw, Seattle knocks the ball toward the net and Zach Thornton knocks it over the bar for another Seattle corner kick.
08		Fredy Montero takes Seattle's first shot from distance and it deflects off the back of Dario Delgado for a Seattle corner kick.
06		Rodolfo Espinoza takes a free kick from 28 yards out, but Leo Gonzalez heads it away for a corner kick. Seattle clears the corner kick and Chivas retakes possession deep in their own end.
04		Strong cross from Chivas USA intended for Rodolfo Espinoza coming up the left side, but James Riley knocks it clear for a Chivas throwin.
03		Rodolfo Espinoza leads a pass over the middle, but Osvaldo Alonso outruns Alan Gordon the shield him so Kasey Keller can pick up the ball at the top of the box.
Kickoff		Seattle takes the opening kick, attacking the south goal.
Pregame		The Sounders FC is wearing green shirts and shorts with blue socks. Chivas USA is in red and white shirts with blue shorts and socks.
ECS		The Sounders faithful should get more TV time than against the Galaxy on July 4. Today they are positioned opposite the cameras in the Southeast corner.
Officials		Referee: Alex Prus. Referee's Assistants: George Gansner and Brian Poeschel. 4th Official: Ricardo Salazar.
Chivas USA		Starters: Zach Thornton, Mariano Trujillo, Dario Delgado, Michael Umana, Ante Jazic, Rodolfo Espinoza, Michael Lahoud, Paulo Nagamura, Osael Romero, Justin Braun, Alan Gordon. Subs: Kevin Guppy, Jonathan Bornstein, Carlos Borja, Marcelos Saragosa, Ben Zamanski, Jesus Padilla, Giancarlo Maldonado.
Sounders FC		Starters: Kasey Keller, James Riley, Patrick Ianni, Jeff Parke, Leo Gonzalez, Sanna Nyassi, Osvaldo Alonso, Nathan Sturgis, Alvaro Fernandez, Fredy Montero, Blaise Nkufo. Subs: Terry Boss, Zach Scott, Roger Levesque, Nate Jaqua, Miguel Montano, Michael Seamon, Tyrone Marshall.

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