If all’s well that ends well then Seattle Sounders FC might be feeling a bit down after their 3-0 win over D.C. United. Mauro Rosales went down late with an apparent knee injury. An MRI Monday confirmed a small tear in his MCL that could keep him out 2-4 weeks. Rosales was involved in every goal the Sounders scored this evening, making his injury especially disheartening.
The MVP of the Sounders (and possible MLS MVP candidate) created the first chance for Mike Fucito with a clever flick through. Fucito then beat his defender to the ball and slid it into the far post past keeper Joe Willis. A really great individual effort by Fucito set the tone for the rest of the game.
The second goal was the play of the match. Fredy Montero held up play in the last third after a bad turnover by the United defense. When he saw Alvaro Fernandez streaking he played a quick pass to Rosales who then, with a deft first touch, played a through ball into Fernandez who then slotted it in to the far post. It was beautiful passing and timing and showed off all the Sounders’ skills.
The third goal vindicated the Sounders’ evening. Rosales sent in another beautiful back post cross that Montero put a good head on. Willis made a good save, but it bounced right to Fernandez who made no mistakes in front of goal. 3-0 at this point and that is how it would end.
Keller made plenty of good saves tonight, the best being on a bouncing ball in the box that ended up on a United player’s foot. The quick shot was parried out of bounds and Keller kept his clean sheet. He showed plenty of his experience tonight, even creating a chance for Montero on a boot from the box. Montero just couldn’t dance in the box long enough to get a clean shot at goal.
All said, good game for the Sounders that had a bad aftertaste with Rosales going down.
