Andreas Ivanschitz’s absence perversely underlined the importance of having a free-kick specialist on the field during close games.
The Austrian playmaker missed Seattle’s narrow 1-0 win over Columbus last weekend with a thigh injury, and is questionable for this Saturday’s home match versus San Jose. Against the Crew, the Sounders clearly missed Ivanschitz’s whipping crosses and dipping shots, the way the crowd noise rises in expectation whenever he’s standing over a dead ball.
Seattle finished dead last in MLS in set-piece goals last year with six, and Ivanschitz’s late-season addition was specifically touted as a way to improve that facet of the game.