By Tony Álvarez
The Seattle Sounders battled a tough opponent in Puebla but, in the end, grinded out a hard-fought win after a 90-minute stalemate sealing a spot in the Leagues Cup semifinals with a nail-biting 4-3 penalty shootout victory.
As expected, it was a tactical contest early on. Both teams spent the first half sizing each other up. Puebla’s struggling attack showed flashes under interim head coach Martín Bravo, who has had only a few days to instill his ideas. Still, it was the home side that generated the more dangerous chances.
Paul Rothrock came close with a strike from outside the box that missed just wide of the far post, while Obed Vargas and Pedro de la Vega each had looks of their own. Despite holding 75% possession, Seattle couldn’t break through, sending the game into halftime still scoreless.
In the second half, the Sounders continued to dictate tempo, but Puebla nearly stunned them in the 60th minute. Emiliano Gómez slipped into the box, beat a defender, and fired a left-footed shot that went just wide of the near post as Andrew Thomas closed him down.
Seattle responded quickly. Three minutes later, Cristian Roldán unleashed a curling effort from distance that narrowly missed the crossbar. Jesús Ferreira had perhaps the clearest chance in the 71st minute, but his attempt after a deflected cross also went wide.
The match turned at the 76th minute when Danny Musovski was shown a yellow card for a foul on Nicolás Díaz. Musovski’s protests escalated as he made contact with the referee, earning him a straight red and reducing Seattle to 10 men.
Despite being a man down, the Sounders maintained possession but couldn’t find the breakthrough, sending the contest to penalties. The shootout began with drama: Roldán hit the post for Seattle, and Thomas denied Ricardo Marín’s effort for Puebla to keep it scoreless after one round.
Alex Roldán converted Seattle’s second attempt, but Esteban Lozano immediately equalized for Puebla. Both sides were perfect through the next two rounds, setting up a decisive final frame. Obed Vargas buried Seattle’s fifth kick, leaving it to Thomas, who sealed the win by saving Nicolás Díaz’s shot — sending the Sounders to the Leagues Cup semifinals.
REACTIONS
- Seattle Sounders Head Coach Brian Schmetzer:
- “Andrew (Thomas) did what he needed to do tonight, he did what he´s good at which is penalty kicks, had him on my bingo card as a kicker if it had gone pass five (shots) (…) tonight was Andrew´s night because he helped the team win.”
- Club Puebla Head Coach Martín Bravo:
- “We are very proud of what was done on the pitch. The gameplan was carried out almost perfectly. The team made an effort, worked hard during the 95 minutes and achieved a good result in regulation time.”
PLAYER OF THE GAME
- Seattle Sounders:
- Andrew Thomas kept the clean sheet in regulation, he had two saves. Later he went to get the key saves in the shootout for the win.
GAME NOTES
- The Seattle Sounders advanced to the tournament semifinals for the first time in their history.
- The Sounders now have five wins in their last six games, three of which they shutout their opponent.
- First game of the tournament that the Seattle Sounders failed to score a goal in the 90 minutes.
- Danny Musovski was red carded and will be suspended for the semifinal game.
CARDS/INJURY REPORT
- Yellow Cards:
- Club Puebla: Alejandro Organista, Nicolás Díaz, Ricardo Marín
- Red Card:
- Seattle Sounders: Danny Musovski
LOOKING AHEAD
- Seattle Sounders have advanced to the Leagues Cup semifinals and they remain a perfect 4-0.
- Club Puebla are now eliminated from the Leagues Cup and their next game is Sunday vs Pumas in Apertura 2025 action.
