While watching the Seattle Sounders second half dismantling of the Portland Timbers, this writer was struck with the sudden realization that they may have finally found a championship winning formula. Whether that comes with a US Open Cup triumph, where they are into the semi-finals and will face the Chicago Fire, or the MLS Cup that they have been threatening to win for several years now; it is the attacking quartet of Obafemi Martins, Clint Dempsey, Marco Pappa and Lamar Neagle holds the key.
Martins made his return from injury replacing starter Chad Barrett on 51 minutes and that was when the game changed. For those first 51 minutes, Seattle looked labored and without ideas when attacking. Martins then came on adding an injection of speed and strength that gave the Timbers defense something new to worry about and they could not handle it. Dempsey and Martins showed a terrific understanding of each other when on the ball while Neagle and Pappa interchanged seamlessly as the match progressed. The front four seemed to be completely in sync with each other and the added threat of 2014 FIFA World Cup starlet DeAndre Yedlin attacking down the right side left the Portland defense with too many attacking threats to deal with.
It seemed likely that Seattle would score every time they came forward. Martins was constantly on the shoulder of the last defender forcing the Portland line farther back with Dempsey dropping into the hole between defense and Timbers central defensive midfielder Will Johnson that Martins had created. Neagle and Pappa were either streaking down the wings or cutting inside to look to shoot while Yedlined down the wings to put in a dangerous cross.
Once the Sounders went ahead 1-0, they sat back and waited for their opportunities on the counter as the Timbers were forced to send more numbers forward in the search for an equalizer. The Sounders quartet that had wreaked such havoc throughout the game were simply presented with more opportunities to go forward as the Timbers were often caught out in 3 v 2 or 4 v 3 situations. Seattle ended up finishing the game off as Pappa scored the second goal.
The Sounders have been the best team, not just in the Western Conference, but in the whole of MLS this season as they sit on 38 points with a three-point lead in the race for the Supporters’ Shield and a nine-point lead in the race for top spot in the Western Conference. Sigi Schmid has struck gold with this attacking formation, and if it continues to work like it did against Portland, then Seattle will likely wind up winning some sort of silverware this season; quite possibly a famous domestic double.