Seattle Sounders vs. Portland Timbers: Player ratings

Dec 31, 2023

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Frei tacks on another clean sheet in drowsy doubleheader first leg.

The stage was set: beautiful Seattle sunshine; Raúl and Cristian on the bench; playing your biggest rival, this time at home with a chance to replace the memory of that fiasco in April. It could have — should have been — a tactical masterclass, defensive clinic, knock-down-drag-out battle between two behemoths ultimately leaving it all on the field. Instead, it was a slow, tedious match featuring a boring team against an also boring but more tired team that ended in a passionless 0-0 draw. Portland displayed their patented "bunker and casually consider countering, while fouling incessantly any time the opponent got across midfield" strategy. Add Seattle's "ping the ball around and accumulate small chances without looking remotely dangerous with guys who couldn't finish a sandwich," and this game was definitely … something. Ultimately, both teams, and likely many fans, were disappointed that more didn't happen. The Sounders should not be satisfied with a point in that match, no matter how stupidly this author said they need to grind out draws in similar affairs.

Did Frei have to do much? No. Did he earn his ninth shutout in half a season? Yes. Does that put him on pace for 18? Yup. That's a 7 rating in my book. He had two saves.

One thing I liked: Stefan stopped every quarter-chance Portland attempted, with both "shots on goal" being weak efforts from Dairon Asprilla that Frei handled cleanly.

One thing I didn't like: In the 5th minute when the game still looked like it might be exciting, Frei made it more so by dribbling into two Timbers players inside his own box before kicking wide to Yeimar. He had a number of late in the match inexplicable short goal kicks that offered Portland some chances they were 100 percent not deserving of.

Going forward: Based on math, Seattle is guaranteed at least 18 points this season due to Frei shutouts. The rest is up to the other guys.

Nouhou returned to his left defensive position and put in an entire day's work, excelling in the back and leading the team in several statistics. His five tackles, three interceptions, and two clearances were part of an extensive workload that eliminated almost every attempt by Portland to attack down his wing.

One thing I liked: A 90th minute recovery (one of eight) was a tidy piece of defending that helped deny Portland an utterly ridiculous win on a day they actively tried not to get one.

One thing I didn't like: Staying up in the 94th minute, a corner dropped to him and instead of making a simple short pass to a waiting Ruidíaz, he first-time volleyed it into the stands.

Going forward: Nouhou has returned from illness and looks like the same dominant player he has been for the past few seasons, but now he has plenty of depth behind him and will need to show two-way play as the situation demands.

Ragen had very little to do as the Sounders midfield pulverized any attacks centrally and the outside backs did their job to make the few Portland forays forward predictable. Jackson was a clean 88 percent passing on 66 touches.

One thing I liked: Ragen had a boring night which is likely what you want from your central defenders. His ability to suss out small potential issues and be positionally impactful without offering defensive concessions was on full display.

One thing I didn't like: Seattle was fairly passive when attempting to break down Portland, and this match was in stark contrast to the last when Ragen was on the right and pushing into aggressive support positioning.

Going forward: Ragen has been great and a big part of the shutout records being chased.

Yeimar returned after a rest midweek and was excellent, defending almost perfectly and pairing well with young Cody Baker to his right. He had 66 touches and won three headers.

One thing I liked: There was no sign of struggles when a new right back was positioned next to him, and his five interceptions showed great communication and confidence in coverage that allowed Yeimar to be aggressive.

One thing I didn't like: Yeimar had a contested header moving away from goal on a corner kick that was easily caught by the Timbers’ keeper. This was Seattle's only "shot on goal" in the match. Insert your own preferred puke emoji here.

Going forward: Yeimar doing Yeimar things is good for Sounders.

Baker moved from the left to the right and didn't skip a beat, offering strong defense and some late runs into the offense that showed more intention than many of his teammates. He had three tackles and three clearances in a defensive effort that helped limit any thought that the Timbers could move past midfield.

One thing I liked: Baker had a smooth transition from left to right, finding a strong connection to both Yeimar and the defensive midfielders. He looked up for the rivalry game and his enthusiasm was a nice change. In the 14th minute he flew back to intercept after a bad Albert Rusnák giveaway presented Portland with their best chance.

One thing I didn't like: As much as he tried to get involved, the final connection wasn't ever there, and his 68 percent passing was indicative of effort that didn't materialize into benefit.

Going forward: Baker looks to be an excellent young, interchangeable player already comfortable and MLS-ready who has plenty of room to improve on an already impressive season.

JP did his job in the middle of the park, pushing the ball around and making sure that any of the few Portland attempts to come central were thwarted. He by far led the Sounders with 109 touches, and converted 90 percent of those.

One thing I liked: Four tackles, two interceptions and two clearances were part of a dominant central defensive effort that limited Portland's shots, scoring chances, and agency in the match.

One thing I didn't like: For as much as he had the ball, JP was unable to get it into dangerous positions to create scoring chances. With no key passes and a single errant shot, he was active but unable to complete a single pass into the box.

Going forward: JP is a great defensive catalyst and connector, but he isn't an offensive-minded player and expecting him to be that is folly.

Albert was fine, with 70 touches, 90 percent passing, and a key pass. Defensively, he combined with JP to remove any middle chances other than an early mistake, mostly via intercepting everything they tried through his zone (four interceptions). Rusnák got the ball forward but was unable to penetrate the compact Portland defense.

One thing I liked: Rusnák had excellent defensive cover in the 40th minute when Portland was still entertaining the idea of kicking the ball towards the Brougham End in a semi-attacking manner. This alert defending prevented a devastating lapse right before half.

One thing I didn't like: It was nice to see Seattle spread the set piece attempts around, but similarly to JP and Nico, Albert had zero luck finding a teammate on dead balls. A number of them were particularly bad as Seattle resorted to short corners that were as likely to threaten Frei's goal as the Timbers’.

Going forward: Rusnák and the rest of the Sounders have the defensive stuff figured out, but he is likely the most offensive-minded player being held back by current gameplay.

Léo Chú played his usual quality wide match but, as a complementary player, needed more help in the form of better service or options, and received neither for most of the match. He had 32 touches and had a single shot, zero key passes, and plenty of frustration.

One thing I liked: When he had space and time, Chú again was a dangerous creator for Seattle, getting through and probing the Timbers defense for opportunities. In the 20th minute he was almost released through on a nice pass from Nouhou.

One thing I didn't like: After being put into a great position in the 52nd, Chú looked up and had zero options in the box, with Seattle failing to make a single coherent run in support of his wide play.

Going forward: Léo showed how he can take over a match as long as teammates come along for the ride, and when they don't, he is limited.

Lodeiro played his third match in a week and looked like it. He still worked hard and ran a ton to find spaces, but the polish and individualism necessary to break down a compact defense weren't there, resulting in only a single key pass before he tired and was subbed late.

One thing I liked: While not directly attacking the Timbers where they were strongest, Lodeiro pivoted strategically. The Sounders relied on him to put wide players into good spots and he did that in the first half, the best a 44th minute beautiful long diagonal.

One thing I didn't like: Seattle needed a dynamic midfielder to connect everything and Nico responded with half the touches of JP and minimal chance creation. He only attempted three passes into the box the entire afternoon, completing none.

Going forward: Nico playing three games in a week is too much to ask.

I watched the match live and I couldn't remember who played right wing prior to re-watch. That is both a compliment and a criticism for RBW; he didn't make any big mistakes but didn't do much more than be a placeholder until Cristian could sub in. He had 28 touches and 73 percent passing.

One thing I liked: Baker-Whiting showed again he has increased his confidence for the Sounders, displaying a sweet little 16th minute turn that earned him a free kick after being hacked down.

One thing I didn't like: A 35th minute turnover by Reed presented the Timbers with a chance to push forward for one of the few times they poked their head out from defense, and they earned a shot from the chance, which was well wide.

Going forward: Reed is a great athlete and can definitely play soccer, but he's having a hard time finding an optimal position on a team that just added another two people to potentially play at one of his best options (right back).

Fredy showed up in the lineup sheet as perhaps a surprise starter and proceeded to have minimal impact in his little-over-a-half outing. His 22 touches had a clean 85 percent distribution rate but he wasn't able to get on the same page as the rest of the team and only managed a single shot before subbing off.

One thing I liked: Montero stuck it in a few times and battled against two and sometimes three central defenders all night, creating opportunities for his team.

One thing I didn't like: Fredy rarely got the ball at all, and when he finally touched it in the 31st minute he promptly forced his (only) weak shot.

Going forward: Seattle needs to find a way to utilize their target forwards in a way that still allows numbers in the box if they are used in buildup.

With Ruidíaz subbing in early in the second half, Seattle had a true momentum changer entering the match and a chance to take advantage. That never really bore out, and just like his predecessor, Raúl had similar issues with lack of service.

One thing I liked: In the 76th minute Raúl showed a bit of what was hoped he could do. He connected nicely in the midfield with teammates to hold up and open space to counter, then charged into the box in full support, diving to the six as a great option.

One thing I didn't like: Raúl only touched the ball 11 times and did not have a shot.

Going forward: Seattle needs to get service into the box, and Raúl cannot have all of his touches be both outside the area and away from the goal.

Cristian Roldan finally returned to a deserved ovation after weeks of missing matches due to concussion symptoms. He added some flair on the right and some more creative effort on the wing, but he also showed a lot of rust and understandable fitness issues. He ended with 25 touches and 71 percent passing including a key pass.

One thing I liked: It was great to see Cristian back on the field. His verticality and ability to create reminded us how valuable he can be to a team missing those things from his backups. His drive and cross in the 73rd minute earned a corner and showed us what we’ve missed.

One thing I didn't like: Seeing a physical player shying away from physicality and clearly avoiding heading the ball was scary. It must be hard to play while constantly worrying about doing permanent harm to yourself.

Going forward: Cristian is hugely important to Seattle for lots of reasons and hopefully his return will positively impact the effectiveness of others.

Héber came on to give Nico four minutes of rest he probably could have used on Wednesday.

One thing I liked: Although he only completed one of his two passes, it was towards goal.

One thing I didn't like: This was only the third sub for a team playing their third match in seven days and it came with four minutes to play.

Going forward: Héber didn't have much chance to break his scoreless streak but should be a quality offensive sub now that Raúl is back.

While Chapman didn't do anything overly egregious, this was a lousy refereeing job. He called 27 fouls and gave out four cards, but the nature of his refereeing added to an already sluggish match. Continually allowing professional fouls and buying into a dreary-paced match decreased the watchability of an already mundane walkabout. Portland disrupted any half chances through the middle with physical play and were ultimately rewarded by a referee willing to let that aggression go.

One thing I liked: Chapman wasn't scared to card Diego Chara early, correctly giving him a yellow in the 7th minute.

One thing I didn't like: In the 24th minute Chara came through the back of Nico's leg and was whistled for his second (and FINAL!) foul of the match, which should have sent him off the pitch. If you are going to give someone a yellow early but refuse to penalize them for the next 84 minutes for anything, allowing them to foul with impunity, what is even the point?

Going forward: Some of the referee performances this year have been extremely poor and this one was exactly that.

We’ll just interpret this vote for "other" as a vote for "none." This was a Portland side completely bereft of ideas other than "stop Seattle from playing." Which, if you’re a road underdog playing your biggest rival, maybe that's exactly the match you want. A point is a point and all that.

Next up: Some rest and then more soccer, and at this point who knows. Maybe having Cristian back will make a difference.