In the Seattle Sounders' latest game against DC United, Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei collided with a United player in the 29th minute and although he played on for the rest of the 1st half, he didn't play in the second. He was sitting on the bench with a sling on his left shoulder. He has been ruled out with a left shoulder sprain. The Sounders ended up winning the game with a amazing goal in the dying minutes but the loss of Frei loomed large after the final whistle blew.
Sounders manager Sigi Schmid said he didn't know how long Frei is going to be out. It all depends on how bad the injury is. The earliest Frei could come back is probably in two weeks.
Losing Frei is a big loss for the Sounders as he has been one of the best goalies in the MLS with the Sounders. Up until the game against United, Frei hadn't missed a minute of any Seattle match (he signed with them last year) and he is also the league leader in saves and shutouts. He is second in wins and save percentage. The Sounders are losing a big part of their defense in Frei and it seems safe to expect Seattle to be a little bit more defensive with the fact that Frei is not in net anymore.
The two backups to Frei are 23-year-old Charlie Lyon and 33-year-old Troy Perkins. Perkins is the most likely to be in the starting role and he did well when he came on for Frei in the 2nd half versus DC.
Seattle will be tested without Frei, they will have to make sure to not to test Perkins too much. Seattle's backline will be tested as well.
Although Seattle won't slip out of a playoff position, they will struggle without Frei.