The Seattle Sounders are visiting Columbus Crew SC on Saturday in their first and only meeting of the regular season. Here is everything you need to know:
WHEN AND WHERE: Kickoff is at 4:30 p.m. PT at Lower.com Field in Columbus, Ohio.
WHERE TO WATCH: The match will be available to watch on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
WHERE TO LISTEN: The match will air on iHeartMedia Seattle and in Spanish on El Rey 1360AM.
2024 RECORDS AND STANDINGS: Sounders: 11-9-7 (40 points, 8th West), Crew: 14-4-7 (49 points, 3rdEast)
FORM GUIDE (all competitions, most recent first): Seattle: LLWLW, Columbus: WWWWW
PREVIOUS MEETING: The Sounders defeated Crew SC on Aug. 21, 2021, in Columbus. Bradley Wright-Phillips opened the scoring for the Crew in the 77th minute before two late tallies by Xavier Arreaga and Will Bruin in the 88th and 89th minutes, respectively, stole three points for Seattle.
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: Originally scheduled for June 1, this weekend’s match was moved to the September international window to accommodate the Crew’s Concacaf Champions Cup Final obligation. As a result, Seattle will be without Nouhou (Cameroon) and Obed Vargas (Mexico U-23s), while Columbus will be without the services of five players: Cucho Hernández (Colombia), Mohamed Farsi (Algeria), Steven Moreira (Cape Verde), Nicholas Hagen (Guatemala) and Patrick Schulte (United States).
MINOUNGOU MAGIC: Former Tacoma Defiance winger Georgi Minoungou signed a First Team contract last week and played well in his substitute appearance against the Portland Timbers last weekend. Seattle will need him to be incisive in the final third to generate more chances on Saturday.
END OF ROAD SWING: The Sounders will play their third straight MLS road match this weekend after winning 3-2 in Minnesota on Aug. 24 and falling 1-0 in Portland last weekend. Seattle will then return to Lumen Field for a trio of home matches beginning with Sporting Kansas City on Sept. 15.
TOUGH TO BEAT: The Crew are tied for the fewest losses of any team in the league this season (four) and are second in Points Per Game, trailing only Supporters Shield-leading Inter Miami. Columbus also enters on a seven-match win streak in al competitions, including a Leagues Cup title.
STOUT DEFENSE: Part of the Crew’s success has been their tremendous defensive fortitude. Columbus has conceded a league-low 24 goals, five fewer than anyone else in MLS.
PLAYER TO WATCH: Diego Rossi, F
The Sounders will benefit from the absence of Cucho, who is firmly in the MLS MVP conversation, but they’ll know what to expect from Rossi. The former LAFC winger returned to MLS with Columbus last season and has hit the ground running. He has 10 goals and 11 assists in 25 matches this year.
