Thursday’s 1-0 win over Sporting KC wasn’t pretty for the Seattle Sounders. They were on the back foot for the first 15 minutes as KC’s 4-1-4-1 formation isolated the Sounders defensive midfield and aggressively attacked the centerbacks, creating turnovers and attacks again and again. For the Sounders’ part, they weathered the Sporting KC blitzkreig on the back of Stefan Frei.
For KC, their initial tactical setup was focused on high intensity pressing high up the field that, once bypassed, left them with little defensive focus. Once the high-pressing subsided, the Sounders went toe-to-toe for the final 75 minutes of the game, content to play out a deeply flawed game to the bitter end.