Fair Result: Unsound Defense Hurts MNUFC Against Seattle

August 25, 2024
|In MLS, MNUFC, MNUFC Match Recaps
|By Matthew Johnson
Minnesota United defender Michael Boxall (15) pushes Seattle Sounders FC forward Jordan Morris (13) during the match at Allianz Field in Saint Paul, Minn., on Saturday, August 24, 2024. (Photo by Seth Steffenhagen/Steffenhagen Photography)

History and Heritage Center

Those that have been following Minnesota United FC for a while know two things about the Seattle Sounders. First, they beat Adrian Heath’s MNUFC In the 2020 Western Conference Finals after the Loons were up 2-0 with 16 minutes to play. Second, MNUFC has a dismal record against Seattle. Coming into this match, MNUFC’s MLS regular season record against Seattle was 1-11-2 (W-L-D). If you add the MLS Cup / Western Conference finals and the recent Leagues Cup loss, that’s 1-13-2.

According to FBRef (Football Reference), ignoring a single loss against Inter Miami, MNUFC has the worst record versus Seattle at 0.33 points per match (PPM). The next worst Western Conference opponents for the Loons are significantly better: Sporting Kansas City (1.14 PPM) and Los Angeles FC (1.17 PPM).

On Saturday, August 24, Minnesota United FC played the Seattle Sounders for the third time in 2024. In June, for the Seattle leg of MLS play, MNUFC lost 2-0 at the mercy of a Jordan Morris goal and then Paul Rothrock goal. In July for the Leagues Cup, the Loons flew to Seattle again lost 2-0 with a goal by Jordan Morris followed by one by Paul Rothrock in stoppage time. With this third match at Allianz Field, head coach Eric Ramsay received the rough responsibility of reversing results of recent and a record ranging back to 2017’s August 5 home loss and an August 20 loss in Seattle.

While a new Loon took flight with a brace, those two goals were not enough to overcome the Sounders’ precise passing and the Loons’ defensive mistakes. While Jordan Morris did score a goal, other Sounders not named “Paul Rothrock” got on the scoreboard. Seattle prevailed again, 3-2.

Minnesota United forward Kelvin Yeboah (9) cuts around Seattle Sounders FC defender Yeimar (28) during the match at Allianz Field in Saint Paul, Minn., on Saturday, August 24, 2024. (Photo by Seth Steffenhagen/Steffenhagen Photography)

Home Improvement Building

The MLS summer transfer window closed on August 14 for US-based clubs. MNUFC Chief Soccer Officer and Sporting Director Khaled El-Ahmad and his staff were busy scouting the International Bazaar. English midfielder Samuel Shashoua has Venezuelan and Spanish heritage and already has subbed into a match. Newcomers Ghanaian Italian Kelvin Yeboah and Colombian centerback Jefferson Díaz both started in their MNUFC debuts. Sashoua and new fullback Filipino American Anthony Markanich were on the bench.

Another new fullback, Slovakian Matúš Kmeť was at Allianz Field Saturday but did not make the gameday 20-player roster. Ramsay commented, “He’s still got a little way to go.”

Ramsay elected to go with his standard 5-3-2 or 3-5-2 if you move wingbacks Joseph Rosales and Sang Bin Jeong up. New designated Player Kelvin Yeboah joined Teemu Puuki as a striker pair. The other new DP midfielder, Joaquín Pereyra, is still in Argentina completing paperwork.

Schmetzer’s Traveling Reptile Show

Despite coming into the match in 7th place in the West, the Seattle Sounders have shown to strike with sharp fangs and venom, especially against MNUFC. Plus, they wear green, the color of pit vipers, the green tree python, geckos, skinks, and the plumed basilisk.

Head coach Brian Schmetzer had them play in their typical 4-2-3-1 with their potent front four fangs: Paul Rothrock, Albert Rusnák, Cristian Roldán, and Jordan Morris. They also have arguably the best defensive midfielder in MLS in Brazilian João Paulo.

Seattle Sounders FC players attempt to distract Minnesota United forward Kelvin Yeboah (9) before taking a penalty kick during the match at Allianz Field in Saint Paul, Minn., on Saturday, August 24, 2024. (Photo by Seth Steffenhagen/Steffenhagen Photography)

Visitors Plaza

Early in the match, new Loon Jefferson Diaz sent a long diagonal ball over the middle, intended for Robin Lod. Lod slipped. Cristian Roldán headed the ball down to Obed Vargas who sent a through ball to Jordan Morris. Michael Boxall tried to step up to play Morris offside. A plaza is an open space, and Boxall’s late step gave Morris plenty of space behind himself, Díaz, and Miguel Tapias. In the 11th minute, Morris scored the first goal for the third straight game between these two clubs. His tenth goal of the season put the visitors up 1-0.

Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer animatedly recounted their first goal: “We won the ball because we were pressing higher up the field. Home or away, we’re going to press higher up the field. Obed’s [Vargas] slip pass: excellent. That’s why that kid has such a high ceiling.”

Trapp had both advice and empathy for Díaz on his turnover that led to the goal. “That is one where you hedge your bets on those plays. So, if you’re going to play a diagonal, maybe overhit it: hit it far, not trying to play it in the middle of the field. But again, for a debut, these are the misfires. We all have them. So for him it is unfortunately learning the hard way, but sometimes it’s the best way to learn.”

Minnesota United FC centerback Jefferson Diaz (28) during an MLS match against Seattle Sounders FC at Allianz Field in Saint Paul, Minnesota on Saturday, August 24, 2024 (Photo by Tim McLaughlin)

Creative Activities & Annex

Around the 21st minute, Boxall took a long throw-in from the right sideline. The ball went towards a jumble of players from both teams in the 18-yard box. Jefferson Díaz and Hassani Dotson both headed the ball before Kelvin Yeboah and Sounders centerback Yeimar Gómez Andrade collided as they both attempted to kick the ball. After a VAR review, Yeimar’s clip of Yeboah’s leg was deemed worthy of a penalty kick.

In the 24th minute, Yeboah took the penalty and got Stefan Frei to go the wrong way with a stall in his run up and tied the match 1-1. After the goal, Yeboah annexed his celebration with a gesture of sipping espresso, a carryover from his time with Genoa.

Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer was disappointed with Yeimar’s foul: “I know he [Yeimar] was trying to clear it, but the guy [Yeboah] was not facing the goal. He was never going to score a bicycle kick.”

On the team discussion of who was going to take the penalty, the new Loons striker said, “The whole team: Teemu Pukki and all the other players allowed me to take it. I’m thankful to unlock myself. It was great.”

Space Needle over Space Tower

Fewer than five minutes later, Albert Rusnák had time and space with the ball on the right side. He sent a long ball over the top. Both Sang Bin and Díaz were facing the ball and could only see Yeimar. Jackson Ragen sneaked behind them all and headed the ball across the net. Dayne St. Clair had no chance.

Seattle’s Space Needle at 605 feet is almost twice as tall as the Minnesota’s Space Tower (330 feet) next to the State Fair Bandshell. Due to lack of awareness, Ragen only needed to jump a few inches to head the ball over Díaz.

Ramsay avoided blaming Díaz alone. Rather, he hit on a well-worn subject of team defense: “We didn’t come up particularly well as a group on that. Albeit I do feel like it’s a chance that leads to a goal very infrequently from that far out of the back post. So it’s really disappointing one for us to concede. But that general feeling of concentration as second, third, and fourth phases of set plays take place, that scenario we really got to get better. We’ve got to be more decisive, we’ve got to be more aggressive, and I can assure it’s not for a want of work, want of attention. It’s unfortunately just an Achilles heel of ours at the moment that we’ve got to get on top of.”

Chipwich Ice Cream Sandwich from West End Creamery

In the second half, Minnesota looked livelier. In the 56th minute, Dotson played the ball out the back, threading the needle between three Sounders to Wil Trapp. Trapp found the seam to hit Yeboah in stride as he dribbled between the two centerbacks. As Frei charged off his line, cool as an ice cream sandwich, Yeboah chipped the ball over Frei and past all four of the defensive back line of the Sounders.

Andy Greder (Pioneer Press) asked the 24-year-old designated player what he saw on his second goal. Yeboah replied, “As a striker, I have been working a lot in front of the goal, so repetition. And once you get on the pitch, it becomes natural.”

Wil Trapp gave credit to Hassani Dotson and Yeboah: “Hassani [Dotson] came across, and he happened to be in that number six role, and then I basically just filled his position in the number 8 [role] and just being patient in the pocket. He found a great ball between the lines. I’m kind of just having to half turn, and Kelvin [Yeboah] has done a really good job even in the week and a half [where] we have had him trying to get in between the center backs. So for me, it was almost instinctual. Get tuned, look up, see his run and just slip him though, and I mean it was a great finish.”

Grandstand

In the 75th minute, Rusnák controlled the ball just outside the 18-yard box on the left. Although DJ Taylor already had the outside lanes, Rusnák’s feint left pulled Lod from the center. The Slovakian designated player dribbled right and beat a charging Boxall and a diving St. Clair to put the Sounders in front 3-2. While perhaps not as much of a household name as Blake Shelton or Ludacris, Albert Rusnák loves to perform on a stage. Yeboah sipped the espresso, but Rusnak brought the T-Pain.

After the match Schmetzer did some grandstanding for his attacking midfielder. He remarked, “Albert [Rusnák] scores the third goal, and he does that in practice all day long. He lets a guy come; he beats his guy. He lets a guy come. He looks like he’s going to shoot to the far post, but then he hits it at the near post.”

In the final minutes, Dayne St. Clair made a double save on Morris and Pedro de la Vega. The Loons even had some chances into stoppage time, but the Seattle Sounders hung on to win, and there was no Giant Sing Along of “Wonderwall” or any other anthem at Allianz Field.

Minnesota United FC’s Dayne St. Clair goes down to make a save on a rushing Jordan Morris of the Seattle Sounders FC at Alianz Field in St. Paul, Minnesota on August 24, 2024 (Photo by TIm McLaughlin)

Great Big Wheel

Sometimes, you start low, and after a while, you rise up and get a better view of things, whether that’s the layout of the fairgrounds or what just happened on the pitch.

Ramsay assessed, “I felt like we lacked a real spark until the early stages of the second half.” Yet, after tying the match 2-2, Minnesota looked the better attacking team early in the second half. NSJ asked Wil Trapp what changed.

“The speed: The speed of play. We were trying to get the ball forward quicker. When it’s slow and you don’t break that first line quickly, then it goes back to Dayne [St. Clair]. Then we’re kicking long, then they’re regaining, and it turns into that lack of control of the game. We did a better job of getting it into the pockets and now space opens up. It is like we are softening them a little bit with that. Then we were able to have time to play. Then you saw Sang Bin [Jeong] getting on over the laps. You saw Joseph [Rosales] getting forward. And truly, once we scored the second goal, I felt really good about our chances to win the game. So that’s the frustrating part for us as well as we felt like we were in control, and then it slipped through our grasp.” — Wil Trapp

Ramsay had positive comments on the midfield: “They [Robin Lod and Hassani Dotson] both had good games. They both drove the ball really well in the middle and when we were able to intercept it. They create a lot of forward momentum. They’re dynamic players and certainly in the second half, they looked that way.”

In addition, the fans were witness to a growing chemistry between Kelvin Yeboah and Teemu Pukki despite only a short time training with each other. Ramsay assessed, “They [Kelvin Yeboah and Teemu Pukki] are players that want to play combinations; they want to be close to one another. We want to be an attacking team. We want to be a front-foot team. We want to find a way of getting attacking players on the pitch.”

When NSJ asked Yeboah what it was like to play next to Pukki, he smiled and said, “Amazing, amazing. He’s [Teemu Pukki] so old in the game, so much experience. I can learn so much from him. I’m very grateful to be able to be next to him, really.”

Capos pose for a photo before the match between Minnesota United and Seattle Sounders FC at Allianz Field in Saint Paul, Minn., on Saturday, August 24, 2024. (Photo by Seth Steffenhagen/Steffenhagen Photography)

Fan Central

On my way out, I caught a father and son in the group waiting for player autographs. Mik Gusenius and his son Rylan have been Minnesota United fans for about five years.

When I asked what they thought of the match, Mik said, “disappointing.” He later explained, “Well, we kept scoring and getting even and then giving up another goal. So, it would have been nice to pull ahead.”

Rylan said, “At least we scored a couple of goals.” Mike was quick to reinforce what his son said: “Yeboah getting some goals in his first game: that was pretty neat.”

Yeboah echoed their sentiments: “I am happy for the goals. It’s bittersweet because the team and I were not able to win at home.”

Rylan and Mik Gusenius outside the Player entrance. (Photo by Matthew Johnson / Northland Soccer Journal)

Math On-A-Stick

What is striking about these statistics? Well, the eye test will tell you that the Loons got the ball in dangerous areas and shot high and wide. Yeboah, Pukki, Sang Bin, Wil Trapp, Carlos Harvey, and Bongokuhle Hlongwane all had shots go off target. The Loons 22 shots but only 5 on target is striking-ly off.

“I’m not leaving here today scratching my head as to how we’re going to move forward and how we’re going to create chances and how we’re going to win games. That is pretty evident for most people to see today that there were some ingredients that can put us in a good place. But, we’ve got to play with far more conviction in front of our own goal. That will be the difference maker between us being where we want to be come the end of the year, or not.” — Eric Ramsay

The other statistic that stands out is the disparity of clearances. Minnesota had three to Seattle’s nine. The inability to clear the ball out of play or further up the field has been damaging on set pieces.

In addition to Ramsay’s “Achilles Heel” comment after Seattle’s second goal, Trapp said, “The concentration on set pieces is really what we take away from this one because other than that there is really not much they had in the game. We had emphasized and worked on for the past 20 days our defensive tendencies. So when we fall apart in those moments and they capitalize, it is disappointing. But it just shows that that is a weakness for us.”

At the end of the day, Minnesota had more possession, passes, and shots. However, the shots off target and set piece defense hurt them.

Western Conference Standings from FlashScore as of August 24, 2024

Carousel Ups and Downs

The win jumps Seattle from 7th to 5th place in the West while the Loons drop from 9th to 11th place as most other Western Conference teams won against Eastern Conference opponents on Saturday. Is this a Giant Slide? Ramsay as usual was balanced:

“I obviously leave incredibly frustrated with that because the difference between winning and losing the game is a thread that’s been pretty common for us over the course of this year: in defending the second phase of set plays and giving up chances that we really shouldn’t against a team like that. That’s the big difference. If I strip that away and try and look at it a touch more objectively, there [are] elements of the performance that we could be really pleased of, given the stage that we’re at, given that for us it feels like almost the start of a new season.”

Seattle Sounders came to St. Paul sandwiched between two matches with LAFC. Last week they lost 3-0 at home to LAFC in the Leagues Cup quarterfinals. This Wednesday the Sounders host the Black and Gold again but for the US Open Cup semifinals.

For Minnesota United, the MLS merry-go-round continues. They have eight matches to play starting with away matches at San Jose and St. Louis. Their next home match is not until September 18 against FC Cincinnati. By that time, the Minnesota State Fair will be over, but let’s hope the Loons’ vibe is more Mighty Midway than Kidway.

NSJ

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Albert Rusnak Brian Schmetzer Dayne St. Clair Eric Ramsay Jackson Regan Jordan Morris Kelvin Yeboah Khaled El-Ahmad MNUFC Seattle Sounders Stefan Frei Wil Trapp