Zac only had to make one save on the night, and for long spells, didn’t have to do much of anything. I still walk away pleasantly surprised with his performance, as he had an entire match without any nervy moments or questionable rush-outs. He was in position every time he was called upon to win a ball or make a pass, and given a first clean sheet of the year, we can celebrate Zac a bit for being steady and reliable. (No card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 7.1 | SofaScore Rating: 7.0
Brayan Vera: 7.5 (co-MVP)
Left-back
It was a bit of a wild ride for Vera on the night, who at times was fantastic at attacking. All of his dribbles down the flank were successful and exciting, as his advanced runs were never punished by losing possession. For a player who has proven their grit in defense already, it was nice to see a bit of what Brayan can bring going forward. Speaking of defense, he went 11/13 on his duels for the night, and managed a solid 90% passing from out wide. If you ignore the uh, failed attempt, at a clearance that almost led to a 1v1 with MacMath, he played a very strong game. (Yellow card crew)
It was a quiet night for Glad who never really found himself making any big mistakes or stand out plays. In many ways, he served to compliment Marcelo who was attacked far more often. It was a good sign to see him connect 6 long ball passes on the night, a key part of his game that this team needs functioning to work in this system. (Yellow card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 6.5 | SofaScore Rating: 6.9
Marcelo Silva: 7.25
Center-back
While Morris remained frustrated on the other side of the field, on the left there were more threatening attacks coming from Léo Chú, João Paulo, Héber, and Nicolás Lodeiro. If that doesn’t sound scary, take a look at all of those accented names – terrifying. In all seriousness, it was a pretty busy night for captain Silva, who in the first half came dangerously close to conceding a penalty on one of many dynamic attacks. It was by no means a perfect night, but looking back on the game, Marcelo was at the center of stopping a number of key Seattle attacks, and did far more good on the night than bad. He deserves a real shout out for the first clean sheet of the year. (No card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 7.1 | SofaScore Rating: 7.1
Bryan Oviedo: 7.5 (co-MVP)
Right-back
Given that Brody is in the injury abyss, Hidalgo got a knock pregame, and Eneli was run empty on Wednesday in Vegas, the right back position fell to Oviedo on the night. I don’t think anyone knew he could play on the right, and maybe can’t, but he played center back for half of the US Open Cup game, so might as well, right? Given he is a complete left sided player, I think Oviedo went above and beyond in his emergency appearance. His passing was one off perfect, and he did good defensive work while completing 2 key passes. I’ll point out the idea on the night was to start Oviedo on the left and Hidalgo on the right, so for as much as Vera has looked good, he wasn’t set to start. I think Oviedo has looked every bit as good as Vera - all while being on his less preferred side. Don’t sleep on this Bryan. (Yellow card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 6.8 | SofaScore Rating: 6.7
Midfield
Pablo Ruiz: 6.0
Defensive Midfielder
On the whole it was a bit of a disappointing night from Ruiz who had been doing quite well in recent performances. Mastroeni noted post-game that there was a natural 2v3 overload in favor of Seattle in midfield all night, leading Ruiz to spending lengthy spells ball chasing. For whatever combination of factors, he simply never managed to really put himself in the match. He had some really nice build up passes, but couldn’t contribute more than another of his speculative shots. The most disappointing part of the night is certainly the needless late red card. Without Jasper already, the team can ill afford to be losing any midfielders. Next match will have to feature a combination of Ojeda/Caldwell/Eneli to fill in the center of the park. (Yellow card VIP crew)
WhoScored Rating: 5.3 | SofaScore Rating: 6.6
Scott Caldwell: 5.75
Defensive Midfielder
It's tough to be too hard on Caldwell, who until this point in the season, wasn’t even making bench appearances. He pulled a long shift in Vegas mid-week, and got an unlikely start today as well. Overall, his stats border on average to slightly poor for the night, and the eye test basically gives the same summary. For an emergency midfielder I think he is a great fit, but obviously lacked any sort of resounding statement that he should be competing for a starting role. (No card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 6.2 | SofaScore Rating: 6.5
Carlos Andrés Gómez: 6.5
Right-winger/Left-winger
Gómez is going to be an off-and-on player for a while, we’re all aware and onboard with this right? Compared to his early season “un-impressive” games, this one was notably more “impressive”. Two shots, one dangerous, a key pass, and 7 dribbles down the flank. No, he didn’t find himself on the score sheet, and launched a volley into orbit in the second half, but this was far from a poor outing. Strangely for the first 20 minutes of the second half he also swapped sides with Savarino, an experiment that sure didn’t lead to anything. (No card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 7.1 | SofaScore Rating: 6.7
Jefferson Savarino: 6.75
Left-winger/Right-winger
The three-game scoring streak was fun while it lasted. Honestly Savarino was dangerous enough on the night that he could have ended up producing or scoring that key missing goal, but all in all, he wasn’t dangerous enough to warrant it. What was a bit odd to see were a few lackadaisical attempts at crosses and shots that were just blocked point blank, something that’s unlike the dynamic winger. Still, despite having an off game from recent form, he managed the most key passes on the team and showed up all over the pitch and stat sheet. (Yellow card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 6.7 | SofaScore Rating: 7.0
Attack
Daniel Musovski: 5.0
Advanced Forward
Moose was on the field for an entire 55 minutes, and for almost all of that he was lost in the woods. We’re all aware by now that the center forward role for this team is positioned to push as far forward as possible to create space for the wingers out wide. Looking at it that way, Daniel may have been doing his task quite well in the coaching staff’s eyes. From the stands though, he was near invisible, highlighted by his un-impressive 2 for 4 passing attempts during his entire shift. (No card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 6.0 | SofaScore Rating: 6.5
Rubio Rubin: 6.25
Poacher
Another week, another chance for me to join the chorus of people up in arms about Rubio’s attacking play. There was some progress to be seen in the fact that he managed a few shots, and two shots that I would even call dangerous. While missing the target isn’t exactly a confidence booster, it's better than not shooting at all, which is what has been the trend recently. I will still, however, point out that outside of the goal threat, Rubin has been playing some great holding forward play. I don’t think it’s enough to warrant starting every match, but he certainly contributed a lot more than Musovski this time around. (No card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 6.8 | SofaScore Rating: 7.3
Substitutions
Braian Ojeda: 6.75
Defensive Midfielder
It's not hard to come on and look better than the starter – when the starter is Scott Caldwell, but Ojeda for sure did his part. In his 35 minutes of game time, Ojeda went 11/11 in passes including long balls and crosses. His addition improved how the team looked, which given the Ruiz red card, should ensure that he will be starting against Houston up next. (Yellow card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 6.3 | SofaScore Rating: 6.7
Bertin Jacquesson: 6.25
Advanced Forward
Jacquesson, as noted in the broadcast, was the teams leading scorer in pre-season. For those unfamiliar with the “College Mbappe” he comes from the same University (Pitt) that provided Löffelsend. Generally, he had been seeing minutes at right-wing or left-wing, and from that position, nabbed an assist and set up another goal Wednesday night in Vegas. Against Seattle he was used as a direct striker replacing Musovski. The French international managed a few exciting moments in attack, and even curled a pretty dangerous shot just off target. Outside of those things, we didn’t see much, so for a debut game, it's hard to draw too many conclusions. Given that no player was traded back for Meram on the deadline day trade, expect Bertin to become a regular part of this team. (No card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 6.0 | SofaScore Rating: 6.5
Damir Kreilach: N/A
Advanced Forward
9 minutes wasn’t enough for Dami to add much to this game, he went 4/4 passing. (No card crew)
WhoScored Rating: 6.1 | SofaScore Rating:6.6
Emeka Eneli: N/A
Left-winger
Eneli was run empty mid-week and had an injury time cameo in this game. (No card crew)
Wasatch Soccer Sentinel
