The Seattle Sounders’ 3-1 victory over New York City FC Sunday night at Yankee Stadium was more of a test than the final score would indicate. In the end, however, Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins were all the Sounders really needed.
Seattle absorbed a great deal of pressure from NYCFC throughout the first half of Sunday’s match and looked like they might be in for a tight battle after New York’s Mehdi Ballouchy curled a 54th minute equalizer past Seattle goalkeeper Stefan Frei to knot the score at one shortly after the second half kickoff.
- Match Recap: Oba-Dempsey combo too much for frustrated NYCFC
But Dempsey and Martins quickly squashed any possibility of a dramatic finish.
Four minutes after the equalizer, Dempsey gave Seattle the lead right back off a nifty finish that found its way through traffic in a crowded New York penalty box, and Martins sealed the deal in the 66th after finishing his second goal of the game, a break-away set up by a perfect back heel pass off the boot of a twirling Dempsey. The goal finished off a sequence that included 18 consecutive passes by the Sounders.
Such is life for Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid, who is reaping the benefits of a star duo that has already combined for 11 goals and six assists in Seattle’s first eight games.
“Nothing surprises me with those two guys,” Schmid told reporters after the game. “They’re just like that. I see it at practice all the time. They’re able to conjure up magical stuff. They’re unique and special and we’re happy to have them on our team.”
- Opta Chalkboard: Seattle's dynamic duo show class all over field
Martins also highlighted the natural feel of the chemistry he and Dempsey have grown to develop, saying that the success they’ve had in games is simply a manifestation of how they train together on a daily basis.
“I think it’s just automatic, really,” Martins said. “It’s what we do in training. For us, we just need the ball so we can do something different with it. We did tonight. I’m glad that I scored and he scored too. As a team we did very well.”
Frei and the Seattle backline couldn’t quite manage their fifth clean sheet of the season but were solid enough, bending but not breaking on several occasions against an energetic NYCFC attack.
Schmid singled out defenders Brad Evans and Dylan Remick for their improved play as Evans adjusts to his new position and Remick acclimates to his newly claimed role as Seattle’s starting left back.
“I think Evans is getting better and better at center back,” Schmid said. “I thought today was probably his best game at center back. And I think Dylan Remick has stepped in as a left back and is really jumping up as well. …It’s not just the returning guys and the guys we expect to do well. It’s also those [other] guys coming through.”
With the victory, Seattle moved to 5-2-1 ahead of its match next Saturday, another road tilt against the Columbus Crew.
