On paper at least, this first season opener on the road in Sounders history would appear the perfect way to ease a banged-up squad into action. The defending MLS champions face Houston, which was last in the Western Conference last season.
HOUSTON – On paper at least, this first season opener on the road in Sounders history would appear the perfect way to ease a banged-up squad into action.
After all, the defending Major League Soccer champions will open Saturday against a Houston Dynamo club (5:30 p.m. PST, Ch. 13) that finished last in the Western Conference a season ago and spent the winter rebuilding toward youth. But there’s nothing simple about the Sounders heading into BBVA Compass Stadium, a place they have yet to win in seven previous tries.
Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer sounded a tad testy toward the end of training camp when asked about preparing his team for the normally sweltering Houston weather. Schmetzer quipped back: “It’s not going to be hot out.’’
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Indeed, it won’t be, with a relatively mild — by Texas standards — high of 67 degrees and a lot of rain in Saturday’s forecast.
The Sounders are 0-3-4 in Dynamo’s home stadium, with a pair of 1-1 draws last season in April and August that saw them need extra-time goals by Chad Marshall and Nicolas Lodeiro to avoid defeat.
For what it’s worth, Houston went undefeated in the preseason while the Sounders were winless. To be fair, the Sounders were easing a number of regulars back into playing condition, including forward Clint Dempsey, midfielder Osvaldo Alonso and goalkeeper Stefan Frei.
All will start Saturday, as will striker Jordan Morris after missing his final two preseason contests with a twisted ankle. The lack of continuity was evident up front, where the team’s attack sputtered.
Morris is excited about his second MLS campaign, compared with last season when he struggled early and went scoreless his first five games. He rebounded to win MLS Rookie of The Year honors and says the confidence from that has provided a huge boost.
“Coming in, I wasn’t very confident and was more nervous for the first few games rather than being excited,’’ he said after the team’s final workout in Tukwila before flying here. “Now, I’m just excited. Obviously, I know the other guys really well now. It’s just a different year and a different experience.’’
If the offense continues to stall, or players show fatigue from a lack of preseason minutes, Schmetzer won’t hesitate to go to his bench. The team’s goal, at least the opening month or two, is to avoid burning out a squad that had little rest after winning the MLS Cup final fewer than three months ago.
Should Morris lag, Schmetzer can go to newcomer Will Bruin, a fixture in Dynamo colors for six prior seasons in which he became that franchise’s second-leading all-time scorer with 50 goals. Bruin scored a mere five goals last year before his trade to Seattle, but was one of the more impressive attackers in camp.
“I was on one team for six years,’’ Bruin said as camp wound down. “But it’s very exciting now to kind of mesh with the group and play in a different system and be able to combine with guys around the box and get out there and play.’’
As for Houston, it replaced interim coach Wade Barrett with Wilmer Cabrera, who had coached its USL affiliate last year. The club has parted ways with several veterans — Bruin among them — while importing Honduran attackers Alberth Elis, 21, and Romell Quioto, 25, from the Olimpia team.
Among other young players is former Sounders defender Dylan Remick, 25, acquired in December in the MLS re-entry draft.
How Remick’s former team will look compared with when it last suited up against Toronto FC for the title match in December is anyone’s guess.
Schmetzer is seeking improvement over what he saw at times in camp. “Are we playing our best soccer? No,’’ he said, after the team’s winless showing. “Are we capable of playing better soccer? Unequivocally yes. So, we’re somewhere in between.’’