Cruz Azul defeated the Seattle Sounders 4-1 on Tuesday night (4-1 on aggregate) in the second leg of the Round of 16 of the Concacaf Champions Cup at Estadio Olímpico Universitario in Mexico City. After a scoreless draw at Lumen Field in the first leg, Charly Rodríguez, Ángel Sepúlveda, Luka Romero and Jorge Sánchez scored for the hosts in Mexico, while Danny Musovski tallied a consolation goal for the Sounders.
Seattle knocked on the door inside three minutes when Jackson Ragen rose to meet an Albert Rusnák free kick, but Ragen’s attempt missed just wide at the near post.
Three minutes later, Jesús Ferreira whipped in a great low cross looking for the run of Jordan Morris, but the recent Sounders goalscoring king couldn’t quite redirect it on frame.
Ignacio Rivero had the first real look at goal for Cruz Azul in the 23rd minute when he tried to beat Stefan Frei at his near post, but his strike hit the outside of the near post and went wide.
Sepúlveda flicked a header toward goal in the 30th minute but his effort went over the bar.
One minute later, Mateusz Bogusz got in between the Sounders’ back line and lifted a ball over Frei, but it soared too far and over the net.
Cruz Azul broke the dam in the 33rd minute when Rodríguez headed a cross to the far post that caromed off the inside the post and into the net.
Sepúlveda should have doubled the advantage in the 36th minute when Bogusz slipped him in on a 2-v-1, but Sepúlveda’s first touch betrayed him and led him too far wide and his eventual shot missed at the near post.
The Sounders caught a break in the 41st minute when referee Oshane Nation went to Video Review for a potential red card offense on Cristian Roldan, but Nation did not send off Roldan for his challenge.
Seattle survived another scare in the 45th minute when Rivero had a great opportunity in the box blocked by Paul Arriola, who dove to keep the effort out.
Arriola went down awkwardly in first half stoppage time and exited the match at halftime.
The Sounders’ best chance of the evening came in the 58th minute when Paul Rothrock, who came in for Arriola, beat his defender down the left flank and dropped a pass to the penalty spot for Ferreira, but his first-timed attempt went over the crossbar.
Cruz Azul doubled its lead in the 71st minute when Sepúlveda converted from the penalty spot after Rothrock fouled Érik Lira in the box.
The Sounders halved the deficit in the 74th minute when Rusnák found the head of Rothrock at the back post on a free kick. An ensuing scrum in the area saw the ball drop to Musovski, who pounced on it first and tapped it home on the doorstep.
Frei made a massive save in the 78th minute to keep Seattle’s hope alive when he kept a Bogusz shot out from inside 10 yards.
Cruz Azul iced the match in the 85th minute when it capitalized on a Sounders turnover trying to start a counter. Carlos Rotondi got the ball on the left end line and played a deft cross to the mouth of the goal for Romero, who slid and stabbed the ball past Frei.
Cruz Azul added another in the 88th minute when Sánchez buried an attempt as the Sounders pushed numbers forward.
Cruz Azul will take on the winner of Club América and Chivas in the CCC quarterfinal.
THREE TAKEAWAYS
CCC unbeaten run ends
Cruz Azul ended the Sounders’ 13-match undefeated run (6-0-7)in the Concacaf Champions Cup, the longest streak by an MLS team in the competition’s history.
Injury concerns
Just a few days after Pedro de la Vega left the home win against LAFC with an injury, Seattle was dealt two massive blows, losing Arriola and Morris to injuries as well.
Saturday in St. Louis
The Sounders will need to regroup and quickly refocus to MLS action on Saturday when they head to Energizer Park to take on St. Louis CITY SC (5:30 p.m. PT | Watch on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV).
