Photo courtesy of Seattle Sounders FC
SEATTLE – Abraham Darío Carreño and César Delgado each scored as defending champions Monterrey booked passage into the quarterfinals of the CONCACAF Champions League with a 2-1 victory over the Seattle Sounders at CenturyLink Field on Tuesday night.
With the result, both teams advance out of Group D with Monterrey (4-2-0) claiming the top spot.
The Mexican giants came into the match needing just a draw to advance to the quarterfinals but were able to ride the contributions of Humberto Suazo to earn all three points. Seattle (3-2-1) had already qualified coming into this match but missed an opportunity to take the top spot in Group D.
With their league fortunes flagging, los Rayados opted for a full-strength team led by Suazo and goalkeeper Jonathan Orozco. The Sounders lineup was marked by more reserves. Bryan Meredith got his first start as a Sounder in relief of Kasey Keller, while David Estrada and Sammy Ochoa earned rare starts as well.
Dressed in their electricity yellow kits for the final time, Seattle found themselves in an early hole. Carreño ran onto a nicely timed ball from Suazo to give Monterrey the 1-0 lead after just three minutes.
Seattle steadied the ship after the conceded goal and equalized through captain Fredy Montero in the 42nd minute. The Colombian scored directly from a free kick, sneaking the ball inside the post from about 25 yards away. It was Montero’s 11th goal in 11 games across all competitions as Seattle outshot Monterrey 8-3 in the first half.
Monterrey came out in the second half and held possession ably before Suazo triggered the second goal in the 61st minute. The Chilean operated a give-and-go with Carreño before having his shot blocked by a Sounders defender. The rebound fell perfectly into the path of Delgado, who knocked the ball home past Meredith.
Seattle attempted to answer. Roger Levesque had a header tipped over the crossbar in the 62nd while Montero just missed the target after turning his defender in the 65th.
Monterrey’s backup goalkeeper, Juan de Dios Ibarra was forced into action in the 73rd minute for Orozco, who appeared to suffer a shoulder injury after a collision with a defender. Ibarra made an immediate impact in the 76th minute, saving a point-blank header from Patrick Ianni to preserve victory for the Rayados.
The Sounders next head to Los Angeles to face Chivas USA on Saturday in their regular-season finale before opening the MLS Cup playoffs.
Scoring Summary:
MTR -- Abraham Darío Carreño (Humberto Suazo) 3
SEA -- Fredy Montero (unassisted) 42
MTR -- César Delgado (unassisted) 61
Misconduct Summary:
MTR -- Luis Pérez (caution; Reckless Foul) 41
SEA -- Zach Scott (caution; Reckless Foul) 58
MTR -- Severo Meza (caution; Delaying a Restart) 75
MTR -- Humberto Suazo (caution; Delaying a Restart) 82
MTR -- Miguel Morales (caution; Delaying a Restart) 94+
Lineups:
CF Monterrey -- Jonathan Orozco (Juan de Dios Ibarra 73), Severo Meza, Ricardo Osorio, Miguel Morales, José Basanta, Luis Pérez, César Delgado (Neri Cardozo 80), Sergio Pérez, Abraham Darío Carreño, Sergio Santana, Humberto Suazo.
Substitutes Not Used: Walter Ayoví, William Paredes, Jesús Corona, César de la Peña, Marcelo Cazubón.
Seattle Sounders -- Bryan Meredith, James Riley, Zach Scott, Jeff Parke (Patrick Ianni 67), Tyson Wahl, David Estrada (Lamar Neagle 79), Osvaldo Alonso, Erik Friberg, Roger Levesque, Fredy Montero, Sammy Ochoa (Mike Fucito 74).
Substitutes Not Used: Brad Evans, Álvaro Fernández, Pat Noonan, Kasey Keller.
Referee: Enrico Winjgaarde
Referee's Assistants: Ramon Louisville; Egberth Paesch
4th Official: Rudolph Angela
Attendance: 15,866
Time of Game: 1:51
Weather: Partly Cloudy and 58 degrees
