SEATTLE, WASH. – Two goals from Víctor Rodríguez and supporting strikes from Will Bruin and Cristian Roldan propelled Seattle Sounders FC (15-11-5, 50 points) to a 4-1 victory over the Houston Dynamo (9-14-8, 35 points) inside CenturyLink Field in front of 39,518 in Monday night primetime action. With the win, Seattle claims back-to-back victories following its four-goal win against Colorado on September 29, with Brian Schmetzer’s side now victors in 11 of its past 13 outings. With three matches remaining in the regular season, Seattle sits in fifth place in the Western Conference, one point behind fourth-place Portland, and just three points behind both second-place Sporting Kansas City and third-place Los Angeles FC. With tonight’s result, Seattle remains unbeaten against the Dynamo at CenturyLink Field, having posted a 7-0-2 record in regular-season play, with an additional victory and a draw coming in MLS Cup Playoffs action.
MEDIA RESOURCES
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS:http://sndrs.com/mafky
PHOTOS – MATCH IMAGES FOR MEDIA USE:http://sndrs.com/y7m4a
VIDEO – BRIAN SCHMETZER POST-MATCH PRESS CONFERENCE: http://sndrs.com/ucue9
VIDEO – VICTOR RODRIGUEZ POST-MATCH MEDIA SCRUM:http://sndrs.com/xanxh
VIDEO – WILL BRUIN POST-MATCH MEDIA SCRUM:http://sndrs.com/4ppbc
VIDEO – NICOLÁS LODEIROPOST-MATCH MEDIA SCRUM:http://sndrs.com/8cbmf
AUDIO – DOWNLOADABLE POST-MATCH SOUNDBYTES: http://sndrs.com/audio
Bruin once again played the role of antagonist against his former team, putting Seattle on the front foot in the 18th minute of play. The former Dynamo forward received a square ball from Roldan, turning on a dime to fire the Rave Green into an early lead. Fullback Nouhou Tolo was also credited with an assist on the play, with Bruin bagging his fourth goal against the Dynamo in four starts against Houston since joining the Rave Green from east Texas in January of 2017.
Roldan doubled the lead in the 34th minute, advancing a swift-moving Sounders FC counterattack, throttling the ball into the far corner of Joe Willis’ net from an acute angle on the right side of Houston’s 18-yard-box. Nicolás Lodeiro – starting the match after being called into the Uruguayan National Team for forthcoming friendlies in South Korea and Japan – earned his team-leading 12th assist of 2018 on the play, good for his 32nd overall since joining Sounders FC in the 2016 summer transfer window.
Rodríguez bagged the first of his two goals in the 64th minute, sliding home a Kelvin Leerdam pass after Bruin dummied the ball to leave the Spaniard with an on-frame look at goal. The Barcelona native secured his second of the night – and third strike in two games – with a 73rd-minute finish past Willis, this time with substitute Handwalla Bwana playing the role of creator. For the University of Washington product and Sounders FC Homegrown player, it was his first career assist. Meanwhile, Rodríguez now has seven goals and five assists in 27 appearances (including postseason) since signing with Seattle last summer.
Houston pulled a goal back through DaMarcus Beasley in the 87th minute, with the scoreline finishing 4-1. Seattle faces the Dynamo in Houston for the second and final time in 2018 on October 21 at BBVA Compass Stadium. First up, the Rave Green travel to central Florida for the club’s final Eastern Conference test in 2018 at Orlando City. The contest is scheduled for after the upcoming FIFA international window on Wednesday, October 17 (4:30 p.m. PT / JOEtv, YouTube TV, 950 KJR AM, El Rey 1360 AM).
MATCH NOTES
- Sounders FC is now 15-11-5 on the season, and currently sits in fifth place in the Western Conference with 50 points. Seattle sits seven points shy of first-place FC Dallas and just three points shy of second-place Sporting Kansas City with three matches remaining in the 2018 MLS regular season.
- Sounders FC has scored four goals in consecutive games for the first time in more than four years. The club defeated Chivas USA, 4-2, on September 27, 2014, and earned a 4-1 victory at Colorado on October 5, 2014.
- Dating back to the club's loss to Sacramento Republic FC in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on June 6, Sounders FC has accumulated a 13-4-3 record in MLS action.
- With tonight’s result, Seattle remains unbeaten against the Dynamo at CenturyLink Field, having posted a 7-0-2 record in regular season play, with an additional victory and a draw coming in MLS Cup Playoffs action.
- Seattle's 15 victories equal the most wins in a single season since 2017, topped only by the club’s Supporters’ Shield-winning 2014 campaign (20 wins) in that span.
- Víctor Rodríguez recorded the first brace of his MLS career, and he has now scored three goals in his last two games. The Spaniard now has seven goals and five assists in 27 appearances (including postseason) since signing with Seattle last summer.
- Nicolás Lodeiro recorded his team-leading 12th assist of the season, which equals his MLS career high set last season. He is one assist shy of the club’s single-season record of 13 held by Mauro Rosales (2011, 2012) and Obafemi Martins (2014). His 32 career regular-season assists for Seattle are two shy of the club's all-time record of 34 held by Rosales and Fredy Montero.
- Will Bruin’s goal was his first since scoring in a 2-1 victory at Minnesota on August 8 in a 2-1 win. The forward is now tied with Raúl Ruidíaz for second in the club in goals this season (7). Including the postseason, Bruin has now scored four goals in five games all-time against his former club. He was selected 11th overall by Houston in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft before being acquired in a trade by Sounders FC on December 23, 2016.
- Cristian Roldan scored his fourth goal of the season and his first since August 18 in a 5-0 win vs. LA Galaxy. His assist on Bruin’s goal was his second in as many games. Tonight marks Roldan’s first time recording a goal and an assist in the same game since August 21, 2016 (a 2-1 win vs. Portland).
- Nouhou’s assist was the second of his MLS career and his first since July 19, 2017 in a 4-3 win vs. D.C. United.
- Handwalla Bwana recorded the first assist of his MLS career. He recorded his first MLS goal earlier this season in a 2-1 win at Toronto FC on May 9.
MATCH SUMMARY
Seattle Sounders FC 4 – Houston Dynamo 1
Monday, October 8, 2018
Venue: Xbox Pitch at CenturyLink Field
Referee: Drew Fischer
Assistants: Chris Wattam, Ian B. Anderson
Fourth Official: Alejandro Mariscal
VAR: Allen Chapman
Attendance: 39,518
Weather: 55 degrees and rain showers
SCORING SUMMARY
SEA – Will Bruin (Nouhou, Cristian Roldan) 18’
SEA– Cristian Roldan (Nicolás Lodeiro) 34’
SEA– Víctor Rodríguez (Kelvin Leerdam) 64’
SEA– Víctor Rodríguez (Handwalla Bwana) 73’
HOU– DaMarcus Beasley (Arturo Alvarez, Tomas Martinez) 87’
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
HOU– Juan Cabezas (caution) 55’
HOU– Leonardo (caution) 76’
LINEUPS & STATS
Seattle Sounders FC – Stefan Frei; Kelvin Leerdam (Handwalla Bwana 72’), Kim Kee-hee, Chad Marshall, Nouhou; Jordy Delem, Osvaldo Alonso – captain (Henry Wingo 78’), Cristian Roldan (Alex Roldan 83’), Nicolás Lodeiro, Víctor Rodríguez; Will Bruin
Substitutes not used: Bryan Meredith, Tony Alfaro, Lamar Neagle, Waylon Francis
Total shots: 13 (C. Roldan, 4)
Shots on goal: 5 (C. Roldan/Rodríguez, 2)
Fouls: 8 (Rodríguez, 2)
Offside: 1 (Lodeiro, 1)
Corner-kicks: 7 (Lodeiro, 6)
Saves: 3 (Frei, 3)
Houston Dynamo – Joe Willis; Andrew Wenger, Adolfo Machado (Leonardo 73’), Kevin Garcia, DaMarcus Beasley – captain; Darwin Ceren, Juan David Cabezas (Adam Lundqvist 74’), Boniek Garcia (Eric Bird 79’); Arturo Alvarez, Tomas Martinez, Mauro Manotas
Substitutes not used: Chris Seitz, Memo Rodriguez, Luis Gil
Total shots: 11 (Manotas, 4)
Shots on goal: 5 (Five players, 1)
Fouls: 12 (Cabezas/Manotas, 3)
Offside: 6 (Manotas, 4)
Corner-kicks: 4 (Garcia, 2)
Saves: 1 (Willis, 1)
POST-MATCH AUDIO
Post-match soundbytes from Sounders FC Head Coach Brian Schmetzer, midfielders Nicolás Lodeiro and Víctor Rodríguez, in addition to forward Will Bruin are available via the following link: http://sndrs.com/audio.
