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IN THIS ISSUE Editor-In-Chief Robert Casner
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Creative Director Ty Kreft Assistant Editors Alex Caulfield Danny Ciaccio Ryan Krasnoo Kelly Schutz Kyle Sheldon Matt Winter
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Moral Support Larry Arcia
2017 AUDI MLS PLAYOFF BRACKET
Quite a few teams have been eliminated. The Sounders are not one of them.
Cover Illustrator Ian Mork Contributing Photographers Mike Fiechtner Jane Gershovich Dan Poss Corky Trewin Charis Wilson USA Today Sports Images
CLOSER LOOK
Take a behind-the-scenes glance as the Sounders continue their quest for consecutive MLS Cups.
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MEET THE TEAM
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MATCH PREVIEW
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BECOMING SEATTLE'S TARGET MAN
Get to know the men doing battle on the pitch this evening.
The Rave Green are just 90 minutes away from another Western Conference title.
Good things are brewing in the showcase between a club and its former star. © 2017 by Major League Soccer, LLC and Seattle Soccer, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written consent of Seattle Soccer, LLC is prohibited. Seattle Sounders FC 159 South Jackson, Suite 200 Seattle, WA 98104 887-MLS-GOAL SoundersFC.com
WORDS BY RYAN KRASNOO
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PLAYOFFS BY THE NUMBERS
From 0 – 46,758, a full rundown of the Sounders’ postseason history. WORDS BY DANNY CIACCIO
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CLOSER LOOK
NOVEMBER 1, 2017
Downtown Seattle’s waterfront illuminates with Sounders pride as the windows of the Russell Investments Center pay homage to the team’s 1974 roots, while the Seattle Great Wheel features a Rave Green display.
NOVEMBER 2, 2017
Clint Dempsey and Víctor Rodríguez celebrate Dempsey’s second goal in Leg 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals with a special handshake. Dempsey’s brace against the Whitecaps saw him become the club’s all-time leading goalscorer in postseason history.
NOVEMBER 21, 2017
Midfielder Víctor Rodríguez goes full stretch to keep the ball in play during Leg 1 of the Western Conference Championship at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, Texas.
NOVEMBER 21, 2017
Defender Romån Torres boards the flight back to Seattle following the Sounders’ 2-0 win over the Houston Dynamo in the first leg of the Western Conference Championship.
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MEET THE TEAM
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12 SEYI ADEKOYA FORWARD
15 TONY ALFARO DEFENDER
6 OSVALDO ALONSO MIDFIELDER
3 BRAD EVANS DEFENDER
91 ONIEL FISHER DEFENDER
24 STEFAN FREI GOALKEEPER
10 NICOLÁS LODEIRO MIDFIELDER
16 CALUM MALLACE MIDFIELDER
14 CHAD MARSHALL DEFENDER
13 JORDAN MORRIS FORWARD
27 LAMAR NEAGLE MIDFIELDER
5 NOUHOU DEFENDER
4 GUSTAV SVENSSON MIDFIELDER
29 ROMÁN TORRES DEFENDER
23 HENRY WINGO MIDFIELDER
THIS IS THE WESTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP. NO TIME FOR SILLY QUESTIONS.
17 WILL BRUIN FORWARD
21 JORDY DELEM DEFENDER
2 CLINT DEMPSEY FORWARD
33 JOEVIN JONES DEFENDER
11 AARON KOVAR MIDFIELDER
18 KELVIN LEERDAM DEFENDER
32 ZACH MATHERS MIDFIELDER
35 BRYAN MEREDITH GOALKEEPER
1 TYLER MILLER GOALKEEPER
8 VÍCTOR RODRÍGUEZ MIDFIELDER
7 CRISTIAN ROLDAN MIDFIELDER
19 HARRY SHIPP MIDFIELDER
COACHING STAFF
TOM DUTRA GK COACH BRIAN SCHMETZER HEAD COACH
DJIMI TRAORE ASST. COACH GONZALO PINEDA ASST. COACH
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MATCH PREVIEW
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, RAVE GREEN IN DRIVER S
SEAT AFTER VICTORY AT BBVA COMPASS STADIUM Following a 2-0 victory over the Houston Dynamo in Leg 1 of the Western Conference Championship at BBVA Compass Stadium, the Seattle Sounders return home to CenturyLink Field on Thursday, Nov. 30, just 90 minutes away from their second consecutive MLS Cup. And for the first time in club history, the Rave Green will look to lift the Western Conference Championship trophy in front of what will assuredly be a raucous home crowd. Leg 1 in Houston saw third-year goalkeeper Tyler Miller, with seven career First Team appearances to his name, step into a starting role as 2016 MLS Cup MVP and 2017 AllStar Stefan Frei suffered a right hamstring strain during training in the days leading up to the match. Miller was largely untested by the Dynamo offense, but Head Coach Brian Schmetzer believes that Frei’s injury isn’t long-term and the Swiss-American goalkeeper could be available for Leg 2. In front of Miller, the center back pairing of Chad Marshall and Román Torres continued their dominance when together on the pitch. In their last 18 matches when both Marshall and Torres start, the Sounders are an astonishing 12-0-6 with a plus-27 goal differential. "The back six was incredible,” Miller said. “For me, it was an easy game. They were blocking shots left and right. They put in a tremendous performance. I never felt threatened tonight. It’s always a great feeling.” The Sounders have currently gone 557 postseason minutes, or nearly six full
PHOTO The players celebrate forward Will Bruin's headed goal which put them ahead 2-0 in the first half.
matches, since last conceding a goal. This MLS postseason record dates back to the 2016 Western Conference Championship when Colorado Rapids forward Kevin Doyle scored in the 13th minute. Offensively, the Sounders appear to have found their groove since the second half of Leg 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals when forward Clint Dempsey tallied two goals against the Vancouver Whitecaps to see the Sounders through to the Conference Championship. Last Tuesday night in Houston, midfielder Gustav Svensson picked up where the Sounders last left off heading home a Nicolás Lodeiro corner kick in the 11th minute to put the visiting side up 1-0. Shortly thereafter, Lodeiro could have put the Sounders up 2-0 after Joevin Jones drew a penalty kick when former Sounders defender Jalil Anibaba dragged him down in the 18-yard box, but Dynamo goalkeeper Joe Willis was able to push Lodeiro’s penalty attempt aside. In the midst of all the action around the penalty, referee Chris Penso showed Anibaba a red card for denying Jones an obvious
WESTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP / LEG 1 Tuesday, November 21 BBVA Compass Stadium
2- 0
G. Svensson W. Bruin Nouhou R. Torres
11' 42' 64' 88'
28' J. Anibaba 29' A. Elis 44' T. Martínez
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goalscoring opportunity and Houston would play the remainder of the match with 10 men. Anibaba will miss Leg 2 in Seattle as will the Dynamo’s main goalscoring threat, Alberth Elis, who will be suspended due to yellow card accumulation. The agony of the missed penalty kick wouldn’t linger for long, however. In the 42nd minute, a streaking Jones pinged a picture-perfect cross to Will Bruin just outside the Dynamo six-yard box, and the former Dynamo forward did what he does best placing his header up and over the outstretched body of Willis for the Sounders’ second goal. “Will’s goal was a really well-crafted goal,” said Head Coach Brian Schmetzer after the match. “That was a very good piece of technical soccer skill. It’s just testament to Will. He, again, has been a really good pickup for our club.” Added Bruin: “Whenever I’m fired up and feeling good before a game, that’s better for me,” Bruin said of his anticipation before the match. “For me, mentality is a big thing. I was ready to play, I was focused on it. I didn’t want to get overhyped because sometimes you think about too much, you can overanalyze. I wanted to keep it simple, connect my passes and get in good spots to score.” The only blip from the match for the Sounders occurred in the 88th minute when Torres received a yellow card for unsporting behavior. As a result, he will miss the second leg due to yellow card accumulation.
PHOTO Goalkeeper Tyler Miller exits the pitch at BBVA Compass Stadium. Miller was filling in for the injured Stefan Frei. The Dynamo face an uphill battle tonight with the two-leg series heavily in Seattle’s favor with two away goals. Head Coach Wilmer Cabrera’s side has to beat the Sounders 2-0 in regulation just to send the match to extra time. Add in the fact that the Sounders have lost just one match at home since Schmetzer took over as head coach in July 2016 and Cabrera will have his hands full game-planning. However, Schmetzer and the squad aren’t resting on their laurels. “The message after was, ‘You cannot fall asleep for any moment in time,’” said Schmetzer. “We play to our strengths and try to dictate tempo to other teams…We will approach [the second leg in Seattle] the same way. [The Dynamo] are too dangerous to sit back and let them dictate tempo on our home field. That would be a mistake.” If the Sounders can withstand the goalseeking Dynamo early on in Leg 2 and add a goal of their own, the Rave Green will be hoisting the Western Conference Championship trophy in front of a home crowd in their 2017 home finale.
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BY RYAN KRASNOO
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WHEN WILL BRUIN JOINED THE SEATTLE SOUNDERS THIS PAST OFFSEASON, HE CAME IN SEARCH OF ONE THING: A FRESH START. After spending his first six professional seasons with the Houston Dynamo, he fell out of favor toward the end of 2016, not playing consistently for a team that finished last in the Western Conference and missed the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs for the third consecutive year. Now, somewhat fittingly, the team standing in the way of a trip to the 2017 MLS Cup final is his former club. “It would be great to be in Seattle and knock Houston out to go to MLS Cup,” Bruin said with a smile one afternoon after training at Starfire Sports Complex. Bruin and the Dynamo went to back-toback MLS Cups in his first two years in 2011 and 2012, losing both to the LA Galaxy. A young Bruin admitted he took for granted those opportunities and had just assumed they would come again. They wouldn’t, and it’s something that has gnawed at him. Revitalized, Bruin, now 28, found his stride again in Seattle. He finished second on the team with 11 goals, the fourth time in seven years he’s hit double digits, despite playing the third-fewest minutes of his career. His adjustment into Seattle’s starting lineup was slow and arduous, and he didn’t break into the XI until the seventh game of the year. The one constant, though, was him finding goals.
PHOTO Will Bruin revels in the "Seattle Sunshine" during the second leg of the Conference Seminfinals against Vancouver at CenturyLink Field.
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“He came here and knew we had good strikers, so he needed to fight for his spot every week,” Sounders Assistant Coach Djimi Traore said of Bruin. “In the beginning of the year, he started on the bench, but he proved that he can be more than a backup. He did well to come off the bench, score
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IT S A DIFFERENT LOOK WHEN YOU HAVE SOMEONE LIKE HIM. , HE S A NATURAL GOALSCORER. ASST. COACH DJIMI TRAORE ON BRUIN'S EFFECT ON THE SOUNDERS' ATTACK
PHOTO Bruin makes his first appearance at CenturyLink Field in a 3-1 win over New York Red Bulls on March 19, 2017.
some goals and gain some confidence. It’s a different look when you have someone like him. He’s a natural goalscorer.” Bruin opened his Sounders scoring account in the waning moments of the second match of the season when he finished a Cristian Roldan cross to send the Rave Green home with a draw and vital road point at Olympic Stadium in Montreal. Bruin’s most successful stretch of the campaign came during the summer when he recorded four goals and two assists in six matches to help kick start the Sounders’ 13-match unbeaten streak. Additionally, Bruin guided the Sounders to their ninth consecutive playoff berth with a brace against FC Dallas on October 15 and
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PHOTO Bruin heads in the second goal during the 2-0 win against his former club, Houston Dynamo, in the first leg of the 2017 Western Conference Championship.
another tally against the Colorado Rapids one week later. Perhaps more importantly, his efforts helped lift the Sounders to an all-important first-round bye and No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. Said defender Chad Marshall: “Maybe in the beginning it wasn’t going his way as far as playing time with what he’s used to coming from Houston, but he didn’t let that get him down. He kept working hard in training, he got stronger and stronger as the year went on and started pouring in huge goals for us. He’s been a massive signing.” There was a stretch in Houston where Bruin started regularly and had assumed he would be selected every match, and he admitted it made him somewhat complacent. Now being surrounded by the likes of Clint Dempsey and Jordan Morris, Bruin has relished the challenge to impress in training each and every day. Schmetzer called Bruin’s move to Seattle a “win-win” for both him and the Dynamo, who have adopted a different style of play under first-year Head Coach Wilmer Cabrera. “Will has done everything we’ve asked,” said Schmetzer. “He had the elbow dislocation, but he’s such a tough kid that he powered through that and was able to give us minutes even playing with that brace. He’s got 11 goals, that speaks volumes.” Bruin does more than just find the back of the net, though. He’s one of the better hold-up No. 9s in the league and does so well to absorb pressure from the center of opposing defenses that it opens up plenty of space around him for his teammates to operate. “He’s getting fouls for us in and around the box that lead to more goals,” said Marshall.
“When things break down, you can pump a ball into his chest and he’s going to hold off the biggest defenders in the league.” Bruin offers a different look up front than Dempsey or Morris, one the Sounders have not had in recent years. Dempsey is a creative playmaker who can take on defenders 1-v-1 and create his own shot, while Morris is a run-and-gun attacker who loves to work in space and split gaps in behind. Bruin, on the other hand, helps slow the game down and allow runs from Morris and others top develop behind him. “His presence opens up the game for others around him,” said Dempsey, who is roommates on the road with Bruin and with whom he has forged a productive forward unit. “He’s scored a lot of important goals for us, and he’s a key person in our attack.” Said Schmetzer: “Bruin is always in the box and getting to the six-yard box, getting to
HIS PRESENCE OPENS UP THE GAME FOR OTHERS AROUND HIM, , HE S SCORED A LOT OF IMPORTANT GOALS FOR US. , HE S A KEY PERSON IN OUR ATTACK. FORWARD CLINT DEMPSEY ON BRUIN'S IMPORTANCE TO THE SOUNDERS' ATTACK
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the near post, creating that space in behind where Dempsey likes to pick up balls, where [Nicolás Lodeiro] likes to pick up balls. Will is very effective. When the ball comes to him there in front of goal, a lot of times he puts that away.” With the Sounders one step away from reaching MLS Cup for the second straight year, Bruin won’t be taking an opportunity to win his first championship lightly. Not again. “Not being [in the playoffs] the last three years and now getting back, you really don’t take it for granted,” he said. “Each game you prep better, you get ready mentally better throughout the week. “The way I look at it is that you have a great opportunity and you definitely don’t want to let that slip through your fingertips.”
NOT BEING [IN THE PLAYOFFS] THE LAST THREE YEARS AND NOW GETTING, BACK, YOU DON T REALLY TAKE THAT FOR GRANTED. FORWARD WILL BRUIN ON SEIZING THE CHANCE TO REACH HIS THIRD MLS CUP
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9 years in MLS, 9 years in the MLS Cup Playoffs. No other club in the league has reached the #6 OSVALDO ALONSO
postseason each year since 2009 – and the Rave Green are now just one year shy from tying the league record for consecutive postseason appearances. Here is a rundown of more notable numbers from this impressive run.
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B Y D A N N Y C I A CC I O
CO N S E C U T I V E S H U TO U T S DAT I N G B AC K TO 2 0 1 6 T H AT ' S A N MLS RECORD
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P L AY E R S W H O H AV E EARNED POSTSEASON M I N U T E S FO R T H E C LU B
FA N S AT T H E 2 0 1 4 W E S T E R N CO N F E R E N C E C H A M P I O N S H I P T H E H I G H E S T - AT T E N D E D P L AYO F FS M ATC H I N C LU B H I S TO R Y
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32 G O A L S S CO R E D I N THE POSTSEASON B Y T H E C LU B SCORED BY 17 D I F F E R E N T P L AY E R S
A L L S TAT I S T I C S U P - TO - DAT E A S O F N OV E M B E R 3 0 , 2 0 1 7
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M I N U T E S LO G G E D B Y O S VA L D O A LO N S O ( U N S U R P R I S I N G LY ) T H E M O S T P L AY E D BY ANY SOUNDER MLS CUPS WON B Y T H E C LU B DON'T KNOW A B O U T YO U , B U T WE'RE READY FO R M O R E
PL AY E R S WHO HAVE MU LT I-GOAL PERFO R M AN C E S C L I NT DEM PSEY AND N I CO L Á S LO DEI R O
2 #2 CLINT DEMPSEY
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G OA L S B Y CLINT DEMPSEY THE MOST BY ANY SOUNDER DURING THE P L AYO F F S
#24 STEFAN FREI
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S AV E S M A D E B Y S T E FA N F R E I IN THE 2016 MLS CUP MVP! MVP! MVP! MVP! MVP!
POSTSEASON M ATC H E S P L AY E D SINCE 2009 THE MOST OF A N Y C LU B I N M L S
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MILK ISN’ T ORANGE. SO WHY IS YOUR C HEESE?
NATURALLY
WHITE
Cheddar.
Make URBANE part of your game day ritual. Featuring sustainable and farm-to-table fresh ingredients found locally in the Pacific Northwest, Urbane is the perfect location for pre and post match gatherings. Offering easy access to the Link Light Rail, join us for our daily happy hour specials. Urbane is located in Hyatt at Olive 8, the official hotel of Seattle Sounders FC and the only dual LEED and Green Seal certified hotel in town. Happy Hour 4p – 6:30p (daily) 1639 8th Ave (at Olive) 206.676.4600 urbaneseattle.com
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SCOUTING
REPORT
Steve Zakuani breaks down the upcoming Sounders FC matchup with the Quest Diagnostics Scouting Report Watch the latest episode on SOUNDERSFC.COM
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