If there was any one overriding constant of the Brian Schmetzer era in 2016, it was consistency. Perhaps it was simply an extension of the man himself, a calm tottering sailboat in the midst of storm surges.
But in any case, once Schmetzer took charge on July 31, the lineup rarely changed. The only major adjustment he made in 20 games was flipping Jordan Morris wide left to make room for Nelson Valdez up top. Valdez ultimately scored twice in the postseason and ended his career in Seattle with his most productive spell.
Needless to say, Schmetzer is no Claudio Ranieri. He is no Tinkerman.
That in particular is why the recent signings of Will Bruin and Harry Shipp are so intriguing. Schmetzer had to find positional homes for midseason additions Nicolas Lodeiro and Alvaro Fernandez, and he needed to work Roman Torres back into the lineup after an injury. But for the most part, Schmetzer didn’t have a ton of new toys to play with in 2016 in line with the summer signing jag of 2015.
That changed when the Sounders added Bruin and Shipp in a pair of bang-bang transactions in December. Schmetzer now has some decisions to make.
We’ll have to wait until preseason camp grinds into its latter stages before making any big pronouncements, but both players are in unique positions. Bruin’s position isn’t in question - a striker is a striker is a striker - but his place in the lineup is unresolved. The moment he took over in 2016, Schmetzer installed a 4-2-3-1 and never once moved off it. It’s the formation of record in global soccer at the moment, and certainly the most en vogue in MLS, which replaced the 4-4-2 after years - perhaps even decades - of hegemony Stateside.
Bruin isn’t moving off his position up top. At this point in his career, after nearly 13,000 pro minutes and 50 goals in six years with the Houston Dynamo, Bruin is a forward’s forward. So if Schmetzer plans on incorporating Bruin into the starting lineup, he’ll either have to move Morris back outside - not exactly ideal - or move to a two-man striker setup.
Given the fact that Sounders General Manager and President of Soccer Garth Lagerwey already mentioned Shipp would probably play along the three-man advanced midfield shelf in the 4-2-3-1, it’s probably unlikely Schmetzer shifts wholesale to a 4-4-2 (diamond or otherwise) or a more controversial 3-5-2. So we’ll operate under the assumption the 4-2-3-1, which laid the groundwork for an MLS Cup, isn’t going anywhere.
At least as far as Bruin and Shipp are concerned, this is probably the most likely lineup scenario to incorporate both into one XI. Also keep in mind I’m leaving Clint Dempsey off these particular projections until we know more about his availability for the start of the regular season. At 100 percent, he obviously takes up one of these positions.
In reality, this isn’t entirely ideal. Morris did fine on the wing late in the year, but aside from a brilliant half against FC Dallas in the first leg of the Western Conference Semifinals, he was noticeably quieter in that spot than he was as the lone striker in the same system. If Schmetzer values the presence of Bruin on the field at the same time - Bruin is a prototypical poacher who’s hit double digit goals in three of his six MLS seasons - then it’s not hard to view this as a serious possibility. And Shipp, for his part, came of age in the Chicago Fire Academy and then with Notre Dame as a sort of withdrawn central midfield creator. He’s played some out wide, but it’s a shift from where he started.
Even if it isn’t his natural position, Morris did register some enormous goals as the left peg in that three-across midfield, notably the winner against the Colorado Rapids in the second leg of the Western Conference Final to put the Sounders in the MLS Cup Final. While his overall contribution might be more valuable as a line-busting striker, there’s no question that in a pinch he’s a valuable option wider.
And he might need to be, at least in the interim. Because the Sounders are still in desperate need of width.
The Sounders’ play for Homegrowns Seyi Adekoya and Henry Wingo in January weren’t just efforts to fill out S2 for the coming USL season. I think they were legitimate attempts to plug pieces into positions of need for the recently-arrived preseason. Adekoya spent most of his time at UCLA as a striker, but he has experience out wide and has the athleticism to plug into the Sounders’ system. And at 21, he’s physically ready. Wingo, meanwhile, has heaps of experience as a right midfielder under coach Jamie Clark at Washington, with the option to flex backward as a right back. The Sounders’ current options in the right midfield just happen to be thin; with the departure of Andreas Ivanschitz, they’re looking at Shipp, Fernandez or Aaron Kovar, essentially.
The preseason should help Bruin and Shipp’s roles solidify. The fans are probably just as eager as the coaching staff to find appropriate fits for both. And in reality, both will probably clock plenty of minutes this season, whether primarily off the bench or as bonafide starters. If we acknowledge Bruin almost certainly needs to play up top, and Shipp will almost certainly play out wide, then Morris’ versatility could be the deciding factor in how the lineup shakes out by the time the season starts in March.
