Local hero Lamar Neagle breaks out with three as the Sounders stomp Columbus 6-2

By Money Mike

The Seattle Sounders returned home to Seattle looking to pull within three points of the Los Angeles Galaxy, and it turned out to be easy for them. Lamar Neagle, a Federal Way native, scored a hat trick for the Seattle Sounders as they stomped the Columbus Crew by a final score of 6-2. A history making day for the Seattle Sounders and also for one player on the Columbus Crew side. The Sounders scored three goals in the first 20 minutes of the game, they scored four first half goals (a club record) and they scored a total of six goals in the match (another club record). Not only that, so far, they lead the entire league in goals scored this season with 42 goals. So all you fools who say, "they can't score", put a cork in that.

Lamar Neagle got the party going in the fourth minute of the game. After a nice give and go with Mike Fucito, Neagle cut inside his defender and directed a low shot on goal. Columbus Crew goalkeeper Will Hesmer failed to corral the ball, letting it slip behind him and in the goal.

In the 16th minute, the Sounders added another. After a nice turn in the box by Mike Fucito, the ball struck the hands of defender Rich Balchan in the penalty area and referee Baldomero Toledo pointed to the spot. Mauro Rosales, who also played a fantastic game, stepped up to take the penalty and he burried it inside the right post to make it 2-0. Rosales then ran over to the fans with their banner that says "VIVA ROSALES" as you can see on this picture.

They need to re-sign this guy to a long term deal. I mean $42,000 this year? He's playing like he deserves a lot more than that. He's got 5 goals and 9 assists now and I think he should be a candidate for the MLS MVP. I don't know how Sounder fans would react if he wasn't MVP.

Seattle weren't done though. In the 21st minute, James Riley made an overlaping run from right back position and put in a touchline cross. The ball fell to Lamar Neagle who volleyed the ball into the goal for his second of the match.

In the 40th minute, things just got better and better for the Men in Rave Green. Mauro Rosales sent in a short cross and Mike Fucito made the Columbus defense pay for standing around as he rounded the goalkeeper and put away the forth goal for the Sounders. It was Fucito's fifth goal in all compitions this season and his first in MLS since April 17, 2010 when he scored a late winner over Sporting Kansas City. This guy's been in and out of the starting lineup with Sigi Schmid trying to find a replacement for O'Brian White, who by the way just underwent a second blood clot surgery. My guess is Fucito will be dropped to the bench again after the Sounders acquired forward Samuel Ochoa yesterday.

The only major highlight for the Columbus Crew, came in the 59th minute of the match. After a miscue, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado took down Emilio Renteria in the box and the referee pointed to the spot. Hurtado was lucky not to be shown a straight red card for the challenge. Jeff Cunningham, who coming into the game was sittin' on 133 career MLS goals, tied with Jamie Moreno, was given the green light by head coach Robert Warzycha to try and break the All-time MLS goalscoring record. Cunningham stepped up and calmly converted the PK into the left corner of Kasey Keller for his 134th career MLS goal which makes him the all-time leading goalscorer in Major League Soccer history.

In the 70th minute, Lamar Neagle struck for a third time. A brilliant effort hit the underside of the crossbar and just barely crossed the goal line. This made Neagle the second player in Sounders history to record a hat trick in a game and the first to do it at home. Columbus made it 5-2 after a brilliant free-kick by the former USL Sounder Josh Gardner in the 73rd minute, but a minute later, Gardner got credited with an own goal to make it 6-2 Sounders.

Seattle has another match on Tuesday, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup semifinal against FC Dallas at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila. Kickoff time is at 7pm and will be streamed live on soundersfc.com. They don't return to MLS play until September 10th when they host Real Salt Lake.

Scoring summary:

Seattle Sounders FC - Lamar Neagle 3 (Mike Fucito 2) 4'

Seattle Sounders FC - Mauro Rosales 5 (penalty kick) 16'

Seattle Sounders FC - Lamar Neagle 4 (James Riley 2, Mauro Rosales 8) 21'

Seattle Sounders FC - Mike Fucito 1 (Mauro Rosales 9, Fredy Montero 7) 40'

Columbus Crew - Jeff Cunningham 2 (penalty kick) 59'

Seattle Sounders FC - Lamar Neagle 5 (Osvaldo Alonso 3) 70'

Columbus Crew - Josh Gardner 2 (unassisted) 73'

Seattle Sounders FC - Own goal (Josh Gardner) 74'

Misconduct summary:

Columbus Crew - Kevin Burns (caution; Tactical foul) 64'

Seattle Sounders FC - Jeff Parke (caution; Reckless foul) 73'

Seattle Sounders FC - Zach Scott (caution; Reckless tackle) 81'

Lineups:

Columbus Crew - Will Hesmer; Sebastian Miranda, Rich Balchan, Chad Marshall, Josh Gardner; Dilly Duka (Jeff Cunningham 56'), Kevin Burns, Emmanuel Ekpo, Robbie Rodgers; Emilio Renteria (Tom Heinemann 56'), Andres Mendoza (Justin Meram 76')

Seattle Sounders FC - Kasey Keller; James Riley, Jeff Parke (Zach Scott 75'), Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Tyson Wahl; Mauro Rosales (Alvaro Fernandez 71'), Osvaldo Alonso, Erik Friberg, Lamar Neagle; Mike Fucito (Nate Jaqua 78'), Fredy Montero

Seattle Sounders FC vs Columbus Crew preview. Sounders with a chance to pull within three points of LA for 1st place.

By Money Mike



Coming off a memerable 1-0 win on the road against Monterrey in the CONCACAF Champions League, the Seattle Sounders return home, looking to cap off a big week with a big win as they take on the Columbus Crew this afternoon. Kickoff time is at 1pm and will be televised on KONG-TV and I believe it will also be shown live on ROOT Sports outside the Seattle area. With the Supporters Shield and home field advantage on the line this late in the season, you have to think that every game is a must win for the Men in Rave Green. The Sounders of course have had a big week on the pitch and in the front office. On tuesday, Seattle traveled south of the border to Monterrey and pulled off a 1-0 upset win over the CONCACAF Champions. And just yesterday in the front office, the Sounders swapped Allocation ranking spots with the Chicago Fire and traded their third-round pick of the 2012 MLS draft to acquire former US under-20 international Samuel Ochoa, so now they won't have to worry about trying to gamble for players by the trade deadline on September 15th.


Injury report:

Columbus Crew - Alright, we got a big list right here for the visitors. Starting with this man. He started the season with the Red Bulls, then was traded to Toronto FC in Week 3, and now here he is with the Columbus Crew via another damn trade. Tony Tchani when he was with Toronto, he didn't make the trip to Seattle because he was suspended. This time, the reason for not making the tip for this weekends matchup is because he's wounded. A right knee inflammation is what's keeping him out, I don't think he's even made his Columbus debut yet. Eddie Gaven (Right lower leg contusion) and backup goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum (Fractured right thumb) are also out. Shaun Francis and Korey Veeder are listed as doubtful. Rounding out the list are Emilio Renteria, Rich Balchan and Jeff Cunningham who are listed as probable.

Seattle Sounders FC - For the Sounders, Steve Zakuani, well according to Josh Mayers on Seattletimes, he may be done for the season. Right now I'm not going to confirm anything, except that Brian Mullan is a douche. Mike Seamon has an ankle problem so he is out. O'Brian White, what the hell is going on? He was supposed to be back last month, but something must be going terribly wrong with this guy. It doesn't look like he has fully recovered because he's not returning at least for this match. And finally rounding out the list, Patrick Ianni with a strained hammy. He is listed as probable.


Suspensions:

So one player has to watch this game from the press box, thank god it's not a Sounders player. Julius James has been booked too many times. So the Columbus defender is suspended for this afternoons matchup because of caution accumulations.


Other notes:

- New boy Sammy Ochoa doesn't look like he'll make his debut for the Seattle Sounders tomorrow. Accoring to the Sounders webside, Ochoa is expected to join the team next week. So there's a chance he could make his debut on tuesday in the U.S. Open Cup semifinal against FC Dallas.

- Now this is off topic with the Columbus Crew match. Should the Sounders win the semifinal on tuesday, they will host the final on October 4th at CenturyLink Field against either the Chicago Fire or the Richmond Kickers.


Key matchups:

Alvaro Fernandez vs Sebastian Miranda - Fernandez has become one of the most valuable members of the team. Leading the Sounders with 8 goals in all compatitions. He'll be challenged by the Crew's right back who is second on his team in minutes played this season.

Tom Heinemann vs Jhon Kennedy Hurtado - Heinemann was Lamar Neagle's strike partner last season with the Charleston Battery. This time he's Andres Mendoza's strike partner with the Columbus Crew. He's only 24 years of age and he's improving as an MLS player. He'll be a handful for the Columbian.

Sounders draw 1-1 at Columbus

By Money Mike


After watching their six game unbeaten streak slip away in D.C. on Wednesday, the Seattle Sounders had to make a lot of changes in their lineup on Saturday against Columbus and they leave Columbus Crew stadium with a point after finishing level with the Columbus Crew, 1-1.

Sigi Schmid said before the game that Fredy Montero really had to step his game up, and that's what he did in the seventh minute...........

In the seventh minute, Erik Friberg sent in a cross from 35-yards to the center of the box, and Fredy Montero slipped between Crew defenders Chad Marshall and Julius James and flicked the pass into the back of the goal as Will Hesmer was coming off his line to try to clear it. Not a smart move in Hesmer's part. It was Montero's 2nd goal of the season and his 24th of his Sounders career.

Columbus had a great chance to equalize in the 32nd minute. Dilly Duka's header sent Robbie Rodgers on the break, Kasey Keller came off his line and stopped Rodgers as he tried to slide it past the goalkeeper, but Keller used to right foot to deny him.

In the 67th minute, the Crew were awarded a penalty when Chad Marshall was pulled down by Patrick Ianni on a corner kick which was taken by Eddie Gaven. Emilio Renteria stepped up to the spot and placed the shot right down the middle as Keller dived to his left. It was Keller's 2nd penalty he's faced this season. The first PK he faced was in the 2nd match of the season against the Red Bulls when he denied Thierry Henry from the spot.

Columbus had some chances to pull off a victory. In the first minute of stoppage time, Kasey Keller came up with another huge stop, denying Andres Mendoza's free-kick from 23-yards out.

The Sounders (now 3-3-4) return home for a stretch of three straight home matches, starting next Saturday against the Portland Timbers, that match kicks off at 8pm.

Scoring summary:

Seattle Sounders FC - Fredy Montero (Erik Friberg) 7'

Columbus Crew - Emilio Renteria (penalty kick) 67'

Misconduct summary:

Seattle Sounders FC - Servando Carrasco (caution; Retaliation) 38'

Seattle Sounders FC - Fredy Montero (caution; Reckless tackle) 44'

Seattle Sounders FC - Leonardo Gonzalez (caution; Reckless tackle) 53'

Seattle Sounders FC - Alvaro Fernandez (caution; Reckless tackle) 64'

Columbus Crew - Sebastian Miranda (caution; Reckless foul) 75'

Seattle Sounders FC - Roger Levesque (caution; Reckless tackle) 90'

Lineups:

Seattle Sounders FC - Kasey Keller; James Riley, Jeff Parke, Patrick Ianni, Leonardo Gonzalez; Erik Friberg (Nate Jaqua 66'), Osvaldo Alonso, Servando Carrasco, Alvaro Fernandez (Lamar Neagle 89'); Roger Levesque, Fredy Montero (Michael Fucito 84')

Columbus Crew - William Hesmer; Sebastian Miranda, Chad Marshall, Julius James, Rich Balchan, Rich Balchan; Dilly Duka (Andres Mendoza 61'), Kevin Burns (Emmanuel Ekpo 73'), Dejan Rusmir, Robbie Rodgers, Eddie Gaven; Emilio Renteria

Previewing Seattle Sounders FC vs Columbus Crew + A look ahead to the CONCACAF Gold Cup in June

By Money Mike


The Seattle Sounders take on the Columbus Crew this Saturday in their last road match before they return home for a stretch of three straight home games against the Portland Timbers, Sporting Kansas City and FC Dallas. The Sounders are come head to Columbus after losing to D.C. United on Wednesday 2-1 which also ended Seattle's 6-game unbeaten streak as Charlie Davies and Josh Wolff combined on both the goals and each coming away with a Goal and an Assist. Seattle got the goal from the Penalty Spot which was converted by Brad Evans but it wasn't enough. On the other side, Columbus is sitting on a 6-game unbeaten streak right now after defeating our rivals from the north, the Vancouver Whitecaps 2-1. They're a tough team to score against and at the same time, they don't score that many goals, so this looks like a pretty evenly side affair.

Injury report:

Seattle Sounders FC - Well of course, O'Brian White and Steve Zakuani are out and Pat Noonan is probable. One player to add to that list, Mauro Rosales. Now, I don't know what happened here, they said he suffered a hamstring injury, but I don't know when that happened. However with the lineup changes Sigi Schmid will make, one of which will be keeping Mauro Rosales out for this match.

Columbus Crew - For the Screwed up Crew (lol!!), we have Danny O'Rourke out with left knee surgery and Josh Williams out with right hip labral tear. Shawn Francis has a strained left hamstring and is listed as questionable. Last but not least, Tommy Heinemann is listed as probable after having to deal with a Right pes anserine bursitis.

Key matchups:

Emilio Renteria vs Jeff Parke - We need Jeff Parke out there, I don't understand why the hell he was kept on the bench these last couple of games, when there was really no need to bench him. The way Renteria's been playing, benching Parke for the third game in a row would definetely not be a smart move.

Fatigue vs Depth - This team has just been banged up. Ever since the Zakuani injury you've had to switch a bunch of things around, especially with O'Brian White out as well. Where's Lamar Neagle, where's David Estrada, where's Mike Fucito, where's Montano? You have a bunch of young players who are ready to show that they deserve to be on this team.

Key to victory:

Three words: QUIT! STANDING! AROUND!

There's no way in hell that you'll win a game when you have 9-10-11 players in your own area backing away from the ball and not going after it. That's just extremely stupid. They did that against New York and lost because of it. Quit standing around and go after the ball.

Look ahead to the Gold Cup:

Now I know it's a little early but the Gold Cup is just around the corner and the international teams are preparing their roster's for the tournament which kicks off on the 5th and ends on the 25th. Mexico already has their roster set up for the Gold Cup and the player to look out for on that team is...... and believe me I don't need any help with the answer. The player to watch for Mexico...... Manchester United forward, Javier Hernandez aka "Chicharito. Here's a player who I thought wasn't really gonna do much for United because he joins the team from Chivas de Guadalajara on July 1st and the fact that the Premier League is a lot tougher than the Mexican League. But I was wrong, so far Chicharito excelled in his first year with Manchester United scoring 12 goals in 25 appearances in the Premier League and 19 goals in 42 appearances in all compititions in 2010-2011, so yeah he's definitely a player to watch for Mexico. The New York Red Bulls are gonna spend the majority of June, practicing, traveling, all that stuff, without Rafa Marquez after he was added to the Mexican side.

The United States hadn't announced anything with their squad yet, I'm guessing Brad Evans will be left out this year. O'Brian White, unless he can recover quickly, looks like he will be left out of the Jamaican squad and Leo Gonzalez, I don't think will be added to Costa Rica's squad. Again, we'll find out sooner or later.