Ahead of Wednesday's midweek match at Children's Mercy Park, SportingKC.com caught up with SB Nation soccer editor and blog manager of SoundersAtHeart.comJeremiah Oshan to preview #SKCvSEA. Live coverage of Wednesday's match is available on FOX Sports KC+, FOX Sports GO, Sports Radio 810 WHB, and La Grande 1340 AM.
Tickets for Wednesday's match (retro night) are available at SeatGeek.com and check out MatchDay Central for complete online coverage.
How will his defender Joevin Jones’ absence (red card) affect the Sounders backline for Wednesday’s match?
Left back is probably the thinnest position on the Sounders roster and there's no like-for-like replacement for probably the most dynamic defender in MLS. That said, the Sounders should have a couple options. Oniel Fisher and Brad Evans are both expected to be available to start and, though naturally right-sided players, have played LB in the past. Fisher actually has more MLS starts there (9) than any other position. Evans hasn't started there since 2014, when he made four starts at the position including in a pair of back-to-back four-goal offensive outbursts for the Sounders, but he's among the smarter and more technically sound players on the roster.
What is the team’s current form?
Pretty bad. They've now lost two straight and haven't won any of their past three. Both of those are firsts for the relatively short Brian Schmetzer era. Schmetzer is experiencing his first genuine slump since taking over last summer.
What’s gone right and wrong for Seattle this season?
Up until the Chicago Fire game -- and really until halftime of that one -- the Sounders had been playing much better than their record indicated. All the stats were saying the Sounders were unlucky to have only two wins in their first nine and they easily could have gone into halftime of the Fire game leading. But the Fire were clearly the better team in the second half and the Sounders' defense was in particular shambles over the final 20 or so minutes. Their offense continues to generate some decent chances, but they've not been finishing nearly as well as they should be given the talent on the squad.
After a road match at Chicago on Saturday, do you expect many lineup changes for this midweek match?
There could be quite a few. Jones being suspended will create at least one. Chad Marshall only just returned from an injury and it's unknown how quickly he can turn it around. Similarly, Jordan Morris has been dealing with an ankle injury and hasn't looked himself for much of the year. He's likely due for a rest. There could be other changes for form reasons as well.
What match-ups and/or players are you looking forward to watching on Wednesday?
The Sounders have out-possessed all their opponents except one this year and probably wouldn't mind changing that up in a stadium where they always seem to be looking to counter. If that's the case, Osvaldo Alonso's ability to get the transition going will be one to watch particularly closely.
How do you expect Seattle to approach the match?
The last time the Sounders visited Children's Mercy Park turned out to be Sigi Schmid's final game as head coach. The Sounders looked as bad as they've ever looked in that 3-0 loss and very much like a team that had simply quit on their coach. Their form heading into this one isn't much better than it was then and this will be a significant test of how much has really changed under Schmetzer.
