Sounders FC vs. New York Red Bulls
MLS Regular Season
Saturday, September 20; 4:30 pm PT; Red Bull Arena
TV/Radio: NBC Sports Network; KIRO Radio 97.3 FM; ESPN Deportes Radio, 1490 AM (Spanish)
Sounders FC celebrated its first championship of the season on Tuesday, winning the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Now the club shifts its attention back to MLS play against the defending Supporters’ Shield winners New York Red Bulls, squaring off on Saturday at Red Bull Arena in their only meeting of the year.
With its sights set on winning the Supporters’ Shield itself, Seattle has no problem changing its focus back to league play on this lengthy road trip.
“We’ve got to go forward. We enjoyed the Open Cup and enjoyed the victory. I wanted the team to feel good about it and enjoy it and celebrate it. But now it’s back to business,” Sounders FC Head Coach Sigi Schmid said. “We still have other goals this season and this game on Saturday is important in terms of achieving them.”
Seattle is coming off of two emotional victories, topping Real Salt Lake thanks to a stoppage-time goal by Andy Rose and outlasting the Philadelphia Union for an extra-time win in the Open Cup final. Not only was it a test of the club’s depth and fitness, but also a test of its fortitude. Now readying to play its third match in nine days, Seattle may rest some of its players.
“You always want to put out your best team. With this stretch of games that we’ve got facing us right now, we’ve got to be a little bit smart, a little bit careful with some of our players,” Schmid said. “It’s just a matter of us making the right decisions in terms of the health of our players.”
On the other side of the field, the Red Bulls rank fourth in the East and have won each of their last six home matches. Led by Thierry Henry and Tim Cahill, New York has benefited from goal-scoring by forward Bradley Wright-Phillips, who leads MLS with 21 goals this season.
“Henry and [Wright-Phillips] have a very good relationship. We know he’s fast, but he’s even faster than you think he is and he’s better in the air than you think he is,” Schmid said. “He’s a player that you’ve got to be aware of, especially when Henry has the ball.”
Kickoff is scheduled for 4:30 pm PT with live television coverage on NBC Sports.
