Sounders against Atlanta United, recap: Kill football softly

SEATTLE – There are all kinds of reasons why Seattle Sounders have struggled to get results in the last few months. But all these excuses were missing when they lined up against Atlanta United at home for a televised TV match on Sunday. They did much to dispel any concerns with a 2-1 victory over a lame opponent, which was more convincing than the suggested result.

• The Sounders should probably have opened the scoring in the 22nd minute when Kim Kee-hee opened his eyes on the back post, but sent his shot over the crossbar as he fell.

• Cristian Roldan had a look at the Sounders' first game when he opened on the left side and dribbled into the penalty area for Brad Guzan to keep his shot.

• Harry Shipp was the next Sounders player to have a breathtaking chance when Nicolas Lodeiro put him behind the Atlanta defense. The pass was a little behind Shipp, who also seemed to underestimate how much time he had and whose shot was blocked.
• The Sounders finished the first half with a 10-8 shot advantage, but their appearance was much better.
• For a brief moment, it seemed like all those missed opportunities would come back to bite the Sounders when Pity Martinez would seem to open the scoring in the 50th minute just to have it. excluded for offside.
• All these chances finally turned out to be good in the 58th minute after Raúl Ruidíaz's absolute magic. The attacker controlled a pass from Roldan, then sombrero Miles Robinson with his second forward blow his blow about eight meters from Guzan.
• Lead was short lived, however. Josef Martinez was actually left unmarked on a head in the 65th minute and passed Stefan Frei. It was Atlanta's second shot in the game and the first shot they'd made since Julian Gressel's 9th-minute attack.
• The Sounders were quick to generate new chances. Ruidíaz fired a shot from the post in the 66th minute and Shipp had a chance on the penalty spot saved in the 68th minute.
• The winner came on a nice game worked in the 71st minute. Jordan Morris started the sequence by winning the ball on the offensive side and then pushed it forward towards Lodeiro. Lodeiro then placed Morris in space along the right wing and Morris fired a pass for Shipp at the back post. This time, Shipp has finished, hit a head back on Goal of Guzan and in the net.

Big win on a big club: Listen, we all know that Atlanta United is not playing as well as it was a year ago, when it staged one of the most beautiful regular seasons in MLS history (but managed not to win the Shield of fans). MLS Cup. United have now won just 3 out of 9. Still, the Sounders do not have a ton of convincing victories against playoff-level opponents and the final score aside, it was about as good as they had watched it all year. Brad Guzan hinted that the Sounders should probably have scored a few more goals and that it would be their best game by xG. With just as many players healthy and rested as a few months, this is the kind of performance the Sounders needed to deliver.

Redeemer-SHIPP-ing: The player who will probably get the highest share of the xG Sounders will certainly be Shipp, who has continued to place himself in very good places only for his final touch to elude him. The goal, however, has been well taken and should not be treated as some kind of tap-in. The ball hung in the air long enough for Guzan to get ready and another defender put himself in a position to potentially stop the goal line. But Shipp did well to hit his head and win the Sounders' win. Shipp has quietly been the best player of the Sounders over the last six weeks and deserves to be hailed in this one.

Jordan Morris is a winger: It's not very often that you can say that Morris played well in a match where he did not have a single shot, but that's exactly what happened. Morris was credited with four opportunities created – including the winner's support of the game – with two tackles and usually only what wingers want to do. When asked if he now felt like a winger, Morris responded in the affirmative. Comfort shows.