If there were ever a time for the Sounders to compete with one of the world’s best teams, it’s now, when they are playing the best soccer in franchise history.
The Sounders are unbeaten in their last 11 matches, including Sunday’s 4-3 win against defending MLS champs Colorado. After struggling to score goals for most of the past year-and-a-half, the teams is suddenly finding the net easily–ten goals in their last three games.
The boys in rave green are doing better with their feet than their neighbors across Royal Brougham Way are doing with large wooden sticks–the Mariners scored just two runs in four games this weekend, while the Sounders had four goals in one game Sunday. (Though comparing any offense to the Mariners’ may be damning with faint praise.)
It’s a nice time for the Sounders to reach the pinnacle of their offensive prowess, because they play legendary English team Manchester United on Wednesday.
“Man U,” as last year’s English Premier League champs are known from Aberdeen to Zanzibar, are doing their version of spring training by traveling around the U.S., playing exhibition games against U.S. teams. They beat New England 4-1 last Wednesday.
The Sounders have only once played a team of this quality–2009, when they were obliterated 4-0 by Barcelona, on two goals by the incredible Lionel Messi. (Messi and Barcelona beat Manchester United in the 2011 UEFA Champions League final May 28.)
The Sounders will probably take another beating–Manchester United has some of the best players in the world, including striker Wayne Rooney, central defender Rio Ferdinand, and midfielder Park Ji-Sung, but even their bench players will be bigger, faster, and more technically adept than the Sounders. If you had to put in in American sports terms, it’s probably like an NBA team playing a pro hoops team in Turkey.
As much of a publicity phenomenon as Sounders FC has been, they’ve never been phenomenal on the field–until now. Competing against Manchester United would be both an athletic and publicity coup.
