TUKWILA, Wash. – After a disappointing two-match road trip, Seattle Sounders FC 2 are coming home to face their toughest challenge yet.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 have been exceptional this season, accumulating 22 points over 11 games and sitting in first place in the West until Real Monarchs SLC handed them their first loss of the season last Saturday, dropping them to second. S2 will host their neighbors to the north at Starfire Stadium in Tukwila on Thursday (7:30 p.m PT; Live Stream on SoundersFC.com).
“I can probably say they’re the best team in our conference,” said head coach Ezra Hendrickson. “They play very good soccer.”
Led by South African coach Alan Koch, the Whitecaps play a 4-3-3 similar to that of S2 and their parent first team. According to Hendrickson, Caps 2 are very tactically disciplined. They attack from the wings, pinch in their wingers and look for overlapping runs.
“We have to step up our pressure and not let them get too much possession because they’re a very good team in possession,” Hendrickson said. “The higher up the pitch we can stop them, the better for our team.”
S2 will again play without forward Myron Samuel and midfielder Jordy Delem, who are both currently representing their countries in Caribbean Cup qualifiers. Samuel scored for his home country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines in their opening match on Saturday, but the Vincy Heat lost to Suriname after allowing two goals in the final 10 minutes of the match.
Midfielder Amadou Sanyang continues to rehab his knee after off season surgery and was seen participating in team drills during Tuesday’s training session. Hendrickson said that Sanyang’s progress is encouraging, but that he still has a long way to go.
“He’s still not fully there yet; he’s still got some pain in that knee,” said Hendrickson. “He was a big part of our team last year, so as soon as he’s able to play, we’ll get him back on the pitch.”
