Onetime Mexican national team midfielder Gonzalo Pineda understands the magnitude of the Sounders getting by their next opponent.
The assistant Sounders coach spent the bulk of his professional career in Mexico with the Chivas side from Guadalajara, which visits CenturyLink Field on Wednesday night to open a two-leg CONCACAF Champions League series. Chivas is known for only using exclusively Mexican players, a fact which has made it a beloved legacy team in that country and a huge draw for expatriate fans no matter where it plays.
And for the Sounders, beating that team would be a huge deal.