No Clint Dempsey, no Nicolas Lodeiro, no Jordan Morris, no Osvaldo Alonso...no problem for the Seattle Sounders.
At least that was the case on Sunday night, as the defending MLS Cup champions cruised past the San Jose Earthquakes 3-0 at CenturyLink Field, with two Cristian Roldan goals in three second-half minutes steering Seattle to victory despite the absence (via a combination of international duty, suspension and injury) of several important starters.
Playing in a more advanced midfield role than usual, Roldan nodded home his first after a long throw-in was flicked into his path by Gustav Svensson, then picked the pocket of Victor Bernardez for his second mere moments later. Dutch newcomer Kelvin Leerdam delivered the aforementioned long throw, and later capped the result with his first MLS goal in his first start.
Goals
- 54' – SEA – Cristian Roldan Watch
- 56' – SEA – Cristian Roldan Watch
- 65' – SEA – Kelvin Leerdam Watch
Three Things
KEEP ON ROLDAN
: If Roldan felt any pain or frustration from being one of the six US national teamers sent home
as part of Bruce Arena's roster shuffle
for the knockout rounds of the
Gold Cup
, he's harnessed it for good use. Since rejoining Seattle the third-year midfielder has scored three goals, played five key passes and logged two solid 90-minute performances in two Sounders victories. It may only be a matter of time before he gets the USMNT call again.
Next Up
- SEA: Saturday, July 29 at LA Galaxy (10 pm ET | ESPN, ESPN Deportes in US, MLS LIVE in Canada)
- SJ: Saturday, July 29 vs. Colorado (8 pm ET | MLS LIVE)
