SEATTLE — Cristian Roldan can’t stop scoring golazos.
The Seattle Sounders midfielder bagged a world-class finish for the second time in as many weeks, sending Seattle to a 1-0 win over the visiting Houston Dynamo at CenturyLink Field on Saturday.
Roldan opened the scoring just five minutes after kickoff, trapping a clearance off a corner kick with his chest and unleashing a vicious shot into the net to stake the Sounders to the early 1-0 advantage.
The sides traded chances back and forth over the rest of an exciting first half, as Alberth Elis and Mauro Manotas each nearly equalized for the visitors, while Nicolás Lodeiro rang the crossbar with a rocket of his own on the stroke of halftime. However, Roldan’s strike stood as the difference after 90 minutes and moved the Sounders to 6-1-4 with 22 points from 11 matches.
The only collateral damage from Saturday was that Víctor Rodríguez exited in the 15th minute with a left hamstring strain.
Cristian Roldan celebrates his goal | Connor Surdi
THREE TAKEAWAYS
ROLDAN ROCKET PART II
Roldan has made MLS his own personal highlight reel the past two weeks, as Saturday’s strike comes just one week after he touched up Minnesota United for another ridiculous volley in Seattle’s 1-1 draw against the Loons at Allianz Stadium. The 23-year-old midfielder isn’t a prolific goalscorer by trade, but with three goals already this season, Roldan is already halfway to his career high of six that he set in 2017.
RUIDÍAZ STARTS
Raúl Ruidíaz started on Saturday for the first time since March 30 after fully recovering from a heel contusion. He went 73 minutes before subbing off for fellow recent returnee Will Bruin. Ruidíaz’s return should provide a boost for an attack that has had to operate without its top two strikers for much of the past few weeks.
ROAD TRIP LOOMS
The Sounders are going to have to get accustomed to lots of travel in the coming weeks, as they will embark on a four-game road trip starting on May 18 and ending on June 5 that will see them head to Philadelphia, Kansas City, Dallas and Montreal. The first order of business will come on a short turnaround, however, as the Sounders play host to Eastern Conference foe Orlando City SC at CenturyLink on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. PT; JOEtv, YouTube TV, 950 KJR AM, El Rey 1360 AM | TICKETS).
