The second installment of the Leagues Cup officially got underway on Friday night, with a host of group stage matchups on the slate, including the Loons’ showdown with the Sounders in Seattle. It’s no secret that the Black and Blue’s all-time record at Lumen Field is, well, not good. Previous disappointments aside, the hope was that the boys would draw inspiration from last year’s run to the quarterfinals rather than their regular season record. However, it would be another trip to Seattle with another gut-wrenching loss at the hands of the home team, 2-0.
The first half of this match felt like there was a lack of sharpness from both squads, with misplaced passes and missed scoring opportunities. That doesn’t mean that the first half was without some bright spots for the Loons, as attacker Löic Mesanvi saw some first-team minutes and made the most of them, playing uptempo and aggressive in the face of more seasoned competition. While Mesanvi had a handful of minor miscues playing in an unfamiliar position, his performance more than flashed the potential for this young talent.
The most pivotal moments came in the middle of a frenetic second half. Around the 60-minute mark, things seemed to be picking up for the Loons, coinciding with the substitutions of Tani Oluwaseyi, Samuel Shashoua, and Devin Padelford into the match.
Unfortunately, the upswing in attacking pressure lasted only a few short minutes before disaster struck. Hassani Dotson’s reckless challenge on Seattle’s Raúl Ruidíaz drew a red card, leaving the Loons to battle the remaining 25 minutes and change with only 10 men.
Up until the 80th minute, the Loons’ defensive third was able to bend without breaking, thanks in large part to the performance of goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair. The big Canadian made a number of phenomenal saves throughout the evening, including a late-game penalty kick earned by Seattle in the closing minutes.
However, Dayne’s big night was overshadowed by Seattle’s Jordan Morris, who once again pulled his late-match shenanigans. Morris snuck in behind Micky Tapias and put home a Paul Rothrock cross to score at point-blank range in the 87th minute. The final dagger came just a few minutes later when Rothrock scored another goal in stoppage time, capping off another night with another unwanted result in the Pacific Northwest.
Even after dropping this one in Seattle, the Loons hopes for making it out of the Leagues Cup group stage are still very much alive, so it’s time to invoke their goldfish memory recall. They must be ready to face Liga MX side Necaxa at Allianz Field next Tuesday if they hope to keep that dream alive.
