TUKWILA – Things just haven’t been going Sigi Schmid’s way.
After another tough loss on Saturday against the Colorado Rapids – a match in which the Seattle Sounders head coach said he felt “for the majority of the game, we carried the game” – the team is heading back on the road. The Rave Green has struggled to find success away from CenturyLink Field this year, earning just one point in a draw against Houston. This trip will be especially challenging, as the team spends the next week on the East Coast for a Saturday match versus New England (4:30 p.m. PT; JOEtv, Univision-Seattle, ROOT Sports; KIRO 97.3 FM, El Rey 1360AM) and a midweek tilt versus D.C. United.
“Playing Saturday-Wednesday is much better,” said Schmid following the team’s training session on Tuesday. “You know generally that the team you’re going to play on Wednesday also played on the weekend as well.”
As the team packs for Foxborough, they will be without its designated players.Clint Dempsey joined the U.S. Men’s National Team this week for final preparations before Copa America and Nelson Valdez didn’t dress for Saturday’s match and has since joined Paraguay in Florida.
“We didn’t have Valdez in the game on Saturday and I thought we played really well,” said Schmid. “The only thing we didn’t get were the goals we needed. We need to stay focused and concentrated on that and I think there’s going to be a game coming soon where we’ll be rewarded.”
An Opportunity to Step Up
While Seattle may be missing some of its go-to players, Schmid sees it as an opportunity for others to step up. “There’s different options there. There’s different ways for us to go,” said Schmid. “We have [Dylan] Remick, you can let Joevin Jones push up a line and play as a winger.”
With room in the 18 for players to break through on this trip, Schmid said his team needs no reminding about the value of this opportunity. “Everyone’s got to realize that every time you step on the field, it’s important,” Schmid said. “Every opportunity you get, whether it’s 10 minutes off the bench or in a starting role and it’s 45, 50, 60, 90…you have to take advantage of every opportunity and play like it could be your last time.”
Injury Updates
Substitute Oalex Anderson came off the pitch in Saturday’s 1-0 loss just moments after entering, with what seemed to be a muscle injury. Schmid confirmed following Tuesday’s session that the forward had an MRI, confirming a hamstring strain. “We’ll see how it progresses,” Schmid said, “but he’s obviously going to be out for this road trip for sure.”
Schmid also noted that defender Chad Marshall “did alright” in the team’s session on Tuesday and that he “should be okay for this trip.”
