When Sounders FC faced FC Dallas in March, both sides were missing a heap of key players and the teams played to a scoreless draw. The depth of both clubs could be tested again on Saturday, especially for an FCD team that will be without at least five starters due to international duty and suspension.
After a hot start to the season, the Hoops haven’t earned a win in over a month, scoring just one goal in their last four games. Here are three positional battles to watch in Saturday’s match.
Chad Marshall vs. Mauro Diaz
Blas Perez is Dallas’ leading goal-scorer for the fourth straight year, but Diaz is the one who often initiates attacks from the central midfield spot. In April, Diaz took four games off so that he could avoid fatigue late in the season. In his first three matches back, the 24-year-old notched two goals and four assists to lead Dallas to a pair of victories and one draw. Diaz will lead the charge Saturday night at CenturyLink Field against a Sounders backline commanded by Marshall, the reigning MLS Defender of the Year.
Clint Dempsey vs. Dan Kennedy
When FCD held the Rave Green scoreless in the first month of the season, Seattle was without Dempsey and Obafemi Martins. Both star forwards are expected to be available for Saturday despite missing last weekend’s match against Sporting Kansas City. Dempsey, who should be well rested having not played in two weeks, is tied for first in MLS with three game-winning goals and leads the Sounders with a half-dozen assists. Dempsey will be challenged by a veteran goalkeeper in Kennedy, who took the starting job from Chris Seitz in April.
Gonzalo Pineda vs. Victor Ulloa
A product of the FCD Academy, Ulloa is the only Dallas player to be on the pitch for every minute of this season so far. In fact, the young midfielder has started every game since May of 2014 and played the full 90 minutes in all but one of them. His presence in the defensive midfield will be crucial on Saturday, when Dallas could be without three members of its starting backline. In addition to helping keep Dempsey and Martins in check, Ulloa could spend much of the contest marking Pineda, Seattle’s distributor from the midfield.
