Sounders notebook: Stefan Frei vows to improve, training facility gets new name

RENTON — Stefan Frei, again, took responsibility for conceding the goal that ultimately led to last week’s 1-0 loss against the LA Galaxy.

The Sounders keeper reviewed tape and said the positioning of his hands and movements in the wet conditions at Dignity Health Sports Park helped Gabriel Pec slot home the game-winner in the fourth minute.

“I’ve got to make sure that doesn’t happen again,” Frei said. “It’s not like I didn’t know I shouldn’t have done that. The unfortunate thing with goalkeeping is it won’t be your first and it won’t be your last ever. The margins are so slim, you make a mistake, and it goes in.”

Frei, who’s in his 11^th season with Seattle, was particularly frustrated because he had a good week of training and was finding his rhythm after missing the opening four matches with a hamstring injury. Giving himself more room for error was a big takeaway.

“A half a step or step forward gives me a better angle to the point when [the ball] skids out to the left side it might just hit the post and go out,” Frei said. “Those are the things that you can look at and say maybe we can improve on. But it’s a silly mistake. Unfortunately, it happens once in a while. You don’t want to repeat it.”

The goalkeepers’ union worked on shot-stopping and stepping into balls this week to sharpen those skills. Frei said the work helped reinforce his confidence.

Seattle hosts CF Montreal (2-2-1) on Saturday at Lumen Field. The Sounders (0-3-2) are off to their worst start since 2018.

What a strike

Alex Roldan closed Thursday’s training session with a bang. The team was practicing scoring from corner kicks. Sounders midfielder Albert Rusnak provided the service, and Roldan had a thunderous volley from outside the box.

Teammates, including keeper Andrew Thomas who couldn’t stop the shot, were stunned and celebrated Roldan’s score.

“I closed my eyes,” the defender teased. “It’s a confidence booster for sure. Those are hard to come by, and it was a great delivery by Albert. When you get some good feedback from your teammates, that’s always a good thing.”

Name change

The Sounders announced Thursday their headquarters in southwest Renton will now be called Providence Swedish Performance Center & Clubhouse. The naming rights are an extension of the sponsorship deal the team and not-for-profit health care system announced last year. Use of the word “clubhouse” is supposed to be a nod to the land’s sporting roots as Longacres racetrack, which operated from 1933-1992 and had a clubhouse where people could mingle and view the track with Mount Rainier as a backdrop.

Providence is also now the official medical service provider. Their physicians will work alongside the club’s team doctors and sports medicine staff.

Windscreens imprinted with the new branding will wrap the footprint of the training fields and started to be installed Thursday. Silhouettes of the team’s trophies are part of the markings.

“Working with Providence, we want the name of our new home to reflect key elements of this partnership, recognizing that Sounders FC is both a soccer club and a community institution,” Sounders majority owner Adrian Hanauer said in a released statement Thursday. “We’re proud of the team’s legacy of success on the field and the performance advantages Providence’s expertise brings to those efforts. We’re equally proud of being a club that is dedicated to bettering the community it serves. The Clubhouse symbolizes both of those philosophical pillars.”

Fans were also considered in Thursday’s announcement. The team plans to have free viewing days of trainings twice a month on a first-come, first-served basis. Season-ticket holders will be able take in training from a second-story area overlooking the fields. The first available dates are April 24, May 10 and May 17, beginning at 10:30 a.m.

There was backlash after the Sounders’ original announcement of Providence as a marquee jersey sponsor in January 2023. The 10-year deal will now bring in more than $5 million annually for the team.

Emerald City Supporters continue to protest the partnership at home matches with messages like “ProveYouCare” on banners. The main concerns cited are Providence’s “policies around abortion rights, fairness in the treatment of transgender people, and low-income patients,” according to a statement released by the Sounders FC Alliance Council — an elected body representing the team’s season-ticket members.

Providence settled a lawsuit with the state of Washington in February, agreeing to refund and exonerate approximately $158 million for nearly 100,000 low-income patients the state claims Providence overcharged and used aggressive collection tactics against.