Sounders scrimmage on final day of Seattle preseason
Team will leave to Spain on Saturday.
TUKWILA — On the final day of training before they leave for Spain on Saturday, the Seattle Sounders completed their second intrasquad scrimmage of the preseason. It appeared to end in a 2-2 draw after a late goal from Leó Chú allowed the nominal second team to equalize. Héber and Jordan Morris also scored, with the other score coming off an own-goal.
“They worked hard,” Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer said. “Four goals, that’s always a positive. Some of the defending might not be positive, but overall it was a good way to end our camp in Seattle.
“My expectation was mainly that they put the work in. The goals came off defensive pressure, trying to press higher up the field. I thought that was a positive.”
Aside from the goal-scorers, some of the notable takeaways from the match were Obed Vargas playing all 75 minutes; João Paulo playing the first 45 minutes, albeit in orange shorts that signified he was not to be tackled; and Yeimar Gómez Andrade playing with players otherwise expected to be backups. Yeimar is apparently dealing with some niggling injuries and Schmetzer insisted that his place with the reserves is more an attempt to get Jackson Ragen reps with the starters as a precaution. Schmetzer also said any decisions about starting spots will be made in Spain.
Opponents in Spain
The Sounders will play two matches while in Marbella. The first will be against 2. Bundesliga side Hamburger SV, who were second in the table when the league paused for their winter break. Hamburger beat the Vancouver Whitecaps 2-0 on Wednesday. The other match will be against Swedish side Hammarby IF, who finished third in the 2022 Allsvenskan. It was not immediately clear if either match would be streamed.
“Significant club announcement”
The Sounders will be holding an event at Renton High School on Friday where they will make a “significant club announcement.” It has been widely speculated that they’ll be announcing their new shirt sponsor. The event is scheduled to begin at 1 PM.