Sounders 9-7-11, 38pts, 5th in Western Division, 7th overall
Saturday 4:30pm at
Columbus, 12-4-10, 46pts, 1st overall
Last game, 05/30/09, 1-1 draw
When we last faced Columbus Crew, we were the hot snot upstarts, the cool fresh kids who hoped to reignite their winning streak with a dramatic win over the defending champions.
Oh what a difference a season can make…
We’re hoping, struggling, barely breaking through the top eight to the playoffs. We squelched a lead in last week’s game against New England to lose 2-1, dropping to number seven in the post-season race.
The Crew, meanwhile, are all but kings of the league, riding high on a 22-home-game winning streak. They’ve already clinched a spot in the playoffs and are strongly in the lead for the ”Supporter’s Shield”—the trophy that goes out to the team with the best record at the end of the season, and a slot in next year’s CONCACAF Champions League.
The Crew will be missing captain Frankie Hejduk for accumulated yellows (although he hasn’t been called up since I first said it, I still think he’s the 2rd most important player on the National squad ). And defender/All Star XI Chad Marshall is out injured.
The Sounders, on the other hand, will be missing Jaqua for yellows. This isn’t a really bad thing. What will make it worse, though, is starting Evans in his place (I wasn’t the only one to question his performance last week.)
