The Seattle Sounders got goals from Nicolás Lodeiro and Yeimar Gómez, but a late golazo by Real Salt Lake’s Pablo Ruíz forced the Rave Green to settle for a 2-2 draw in a wild matchup at Rio Tinto Stadium on Wednesday.
Lodeiro opened the scoring in the 29th minute with a penalty kick finish after a handball on RSL’s Aaron Herrera, before RSL defender Justen Glad equalized with a headed finish off a corner kick just after second-half kickoff.
The match was wide open after that with the sides swapping chances back and forth, and the Sounders were saved by some incredible goalkeeping from Stefan Frei.
Gómez scored his first MLS goal in the 69th on a thundering header off a cross from Alex Roldan to put Seattle up. But the Sounders couldn’t quite see out all three points as Ruíz uncorked a highlight-reel bending goal in the 85th minute, and the sides would split the points.
THREE TAKEAWAYS
BARN BURNER
After a relatively tame first half, the match really took off in the second with plenty of back-and-forth action and near misses. Seattle will be disappointed not to take home the win after leading late, but in terms of entertainment value, this was certainly a fun one.
YEIMAR ON THE SHEET
Gómez was brought in as a defensive stalwart, but his go-ahead goal in this one was a lethal header, showcasing the type of versatile skillset the Colombian brings. He’s an imposing physical presence on both sides of the ball and is looking increasingly comfortable in his new surroundings.
RIGHT BACK (ALEX) ROLDAN
Also, spare a thought for Alex Roldan on Gómez’s goal. Drawing the start with Kelvin Leerdam rotating out amid the fixture congestion, it was Roldan’s pinpoint dime that allowed the center back to cash home the finish. Don’t sleep on the younger Roldan.
