With five goals and four assists, Lamar Neagle is having a good start to the 2014 season. On Saturday, he scored the game-winner as Sounders FC topped the Chicago Fire 3-2, earning Neagle a spot on the MLSsoccer.com Team of the Week for the first time this season.
Neagle is fast-approaching his career-best stats from 2013 when he tallied eight goals and four assists, as he helped Seattle go into the World Cup break with a league-best 10-3-2 record.
He was joined on Team of the Week by goalkeeper Luis Robles (New York Red Bulls); defenders Carlos Bocanegra (Chivas USA), Michael Parkhurst (Columbus Crew), Kevin Ellis (Sporting Kansas City) and Nick Hagglund (Toronto FC); midfielders Fabian Castillo (FC Dallas), Cristian Maidana (Philadelphia Union) and Harrison Shipp (Chicago Fire); and forwards Fanendo Adi (Portland Timbers) and Erik Hurtado (Vancouver Whitecaps FC).
Neagle is the seventh Sounders FC player to earn Team of the Week honors.
Sounders FC's representatives on Team of the Week have been:
Week 1: DeAndre Yedlin.
Week 3: Djimi Traore.
Week 5: Clint Dempsey.
Week 6: Clint Dempsey, Sigi Schmid.
Week 7: Obafemi Martins, Chad Marshall.
Week 8: Clint Dempsey, Sigi Schmid.
Week 9: Chad Marshall.
Week 11: Obafemi Martins.
Week 13: Marco Pappa, Sigi Schmid.
Week 14: Lamar Neagle.
NEAGLE AND ALONSO AT SAFECO FIELD
Last year, Neagle played in the United Way of King County's All-Star Softball Classic for Homeless Youth and this year he is bringing along Osvaldo Alonso. However, the Sounders FC teammates will be on opposite sides of the diamond for the June 21 game at Safeco Field.
Neagle will play alongside former Sonics All-Star Shawn Kemp, longtime Mariners first baseman Alvin Davis and Seahawks Super Bowl champion defensive lineman Cliff Avril on a team led by Mariners legends Jay Buhner and Edgar Martinez. Alonso, meanwhile, is on Dan Wilson's team along with NBA Hall of Famer Gary Payton, Seahawks wide receiver and Super Bowl champion Jermaine Kearse as well as former Mariner Julio Cruz and former Sonic Slick Watts.
For tickets to the game, visit www.uwkc.org.
ROLLER COASTER GAME FOR MARTINS
It was an emotional night for Obafemi Martins on Saturday and Sounders FC saw the best and worst of those emotions, as Martins scored two goals, but was also shown a red card.
After he was left off Nigeria's World Cup roster, Martins declared that he would play his own World Cup with the Sounders. However, a friendly on Saturday between the U.S. and Nigeria may have opened the wounds of being left off the squad and Martins came out on fire against Chicago.
By the 38th minute he had two goals and nearly scored on one earlier opportunity. However, he was shown a red card in the 42nd minute for what referee Chris Penso deemed violent conduct.
"Martins was sent off after striking an opponent in the head," Penso said in a statement after the match.
"I thought Oba was playing well. I thought he was upset with himself for missing the first breakaway that he had and maybe that carried over into a boiling point with him," Sounders FC Head Coach Sigi Schmid said. "It was probably an emotional day for him watching Nigeria play without him and I know that impacted him. He always wants to play well and he always wants to help us win and he does that with his goal scoring. Unfortunately now we're going to miss him in the D.C. game."
Since the announcement of Nigeria's roster, Martins had four goals and two assists in six matches.
ON THE AIR
This week on Seattle Soccer Talk on Sports Radio 950 KJR, Mike Gastineau will be joined by Marcus Hahnemann and Ross Fletcher. The weekly show will broadcast from the Market Arms in Ballard and can be heard on Sports Radio 950 KJR from 7-8 pm on Monday, rescheduling because of a conflict with the NBA Finals on KJR on Tuesday. It will also be available to hear via podcast after the conclusion of the show at www.sportsradiokjr.com/sst.
