Player Ratings: How Did Sounders Perform in 3-0 Loss to San Diego FC?
Seattle Sounders FC dropped their road matchup against San Diego FC, MLS’s newest franchise, in a 3-0 defeat on Saturday night. While offense has been an issue all year long, at least Seattle could rely on its defense to keep them in games up to this point.
That wasn’t the case for the first time this season on Saturday, however, as Seattle was completely played out of the park and looked a different class to the much better San Diego FC.
Along with a player rating of 1-10 on the game, there also is an evaluation on if a player is better suited for the traditional 4-2-3-1 or the 3-4-3 that Seattle has switched to this year. With results being hard to come by early in the season, questions can be asked if the tactical change was warranted, so it’s time to take a look at each player individually and see if the change is working for them:
Stefan Frei - 4
While it’s hard to blame any goal directly on the Sounders goalkeeper, eventually you would expect someone of his caliber to make a big save and stop the bleeding, but the 38-year old wasn’t able to do so tonight. There was nothing he could do on the opening goal, but he was given two opportunities to bail his team out and keep them in the game on the second and third San Diego tallies, and he could not come through. We are just so used to Frei being able to make big saves in big moments that when he can’t, it stands out as a surprise.
Yeimar - 6
This is the first time this season that the Sounders center back looked off the pace. Yeimar was caught in between multiple times either being bullied by Onni Valakari, or being out paced by Chucky Lozano. He definitely looks less comfortable in a back 3 as opposed to a back 4, something you can say for many Sounders players in this new formation, so it will be interesting to see if Brian Schmetzer resorts back to his trusty 4-2-3-1 in the coming games.
Nouhou - 7
Nouhou was the best Sounders defender on the night. Many times he had to cover for mistakes of the other two center backs and he did extremely well to recover and make goal saving tackles multiple times. Unlike his other two partners in defense, the back 3 seems to suit him very well because he can both use his pace to keep up with wingers and recover either for himself or his teammates, but also because he has a much more defined defensive role and isn’t asked to go forward as much. When he simplifies his game, he becomes extremely effective.
Jackson Ragen - 5
Tonight’s game was a step back for the young center back’s development, he constantly was scrambling to keep up with San Diego’s attack, and uncharacteristically, he was also very sloppy in possession. It was a common theme for many Seattle players on Saturday night, but the inability to make simple passes and keep the ball really stood out with the 26-year old homegrown talent. He is another candidate that seems much more comfortable in the back 4 versus the back 3.
Alex Roldan - 6
Even though the opening goal came down his side, it was off a corner so the younger Roldan brother was not at fault. He was subbed off in the 33rd minute due to injury, so hopefully he is okay. He is one that thrives in the back 3/wing backs formation as it gives him more opportunity to get forward, combine with the midfield, and get good crosses in, all possibly his most redeeming qualities as a player.
Obed Vargas - 8
Once again, Seattle’s best player on Saturday night. For a 19-year old, he does so well in possession and keeps things ticking at an extremely high rate. He also finds the perfect time to be creative and making chances for his forwards. But as has been the case all season, without the final product from the forward group, he doesn’t have much to show for it. Seattle will be lucky to survive the summer transfer window without a European club poaching him, he is a special player. In regards to the formation, he is so talented that he can thrive in either one but he has shown an ability to exert his creativeness more often with the formation change so it does favor him slightly.
Cristian Roldan - 5
For the second year in a row, Seattle’s “CR7” is off to a slow start to the season. The change that kick-started his season in 2024 was moving him from wing to the center of the field, but he has started this season in the middle of the park, so maybe a change back to the wing would help him get a different outlook on the game. He undoubtedly is one of the Sounders’ most important players, so there has to be an urgency to figure out a way to get his season going, whatever that means. With his versatility, the formation change would seemingly have a lower impact on him than others, but there’s a possibility that’s part of the struggles early on this season.
Paul Rothrock - 6
The life of a winger can feel very frustrating at times. There can be long stretches of games, even seasons, where someone can find themselves just not getting involved for whatever reason. It’s completely different than that of a striker or a midfielder because you are central in the pitch and can roam to whichever side the play seems to be going through. That isn’t as possible with a winger as you are asked more often than not to provide width and if the ball doesn’t happen to find you, then you end up having the type of stretch that Paul Rothrock is having.
When Rothrock does get on the ball, you still see the flashes of his breakout season last year, but it just isn’t finding him right now. He definitely is someone that the formation change has affected in a negative way, where as of now he’s technically one of the wing backs, whereas he profiles much more as a true winger, so maybe with a possible impending switch back to the 4-2-3-1, that would help jump start a slow campaign so far for him.
Albert Rusnak - 5
Saturday night was by far the worst game of the season for Rusnak. Sounders fans have just become so used to consistent performances from the #8 that when he struggles like he did against San Diego, it really stands out. He uncharacteristically displayed a lack of creativity multiple times where, instead of looking for the line breaking pass, he would turn around and play a safe pass backwards to keep possession. There definitely is a time to slow the game down and make the safe play, but when you are relied upon to be the creative force in the game, and when your team is clearly looking for any sort of spark offensively, that is the time to take risks. Rusnak is another where I think the formation change has affected him in a negative way. He is very clearly a true #10 who thrives on having the freedom to roam and create, but in this more structured 3-4-3, he has a much more defined role and clearly isn’t comfortable in it yet. He was rightly substituted at half time.
Jesus Ferreira - 5
Ferreira is clearly pressing to make things happen at this point in time, and as is the case in a lot of sports, that can sometimes have the opposite effect. The longer the goal drought goes to start the season at a new club, the more concern there will be for his long term outlook in this squad. There can be no questions about his desire to perform as multiple times he can be seen dropping extremely deep in order to see the ball more, but again, that can have the opposite of the intended effect because Seattle needs him in the box causing havoc for opposing defenses, and scoring goals. His case is curious when it comes to the formation, because he is the profile of player that one would think fits well in the new 3-4-3 formation as one of the deeper forwards, but he just hasn’t looked comfortable to start the season.
Georgi Minoungu - 6
Georgi gets somewhat of a pass as he played a completely new position as the Sounders striker on Saturday night. Fans were clamoring for this move as a “why not?” situation amidst the Sounders goal scoring issues, and Georgi did some positive things in the new spot. There still seemed to be a bit of a disconnect with the forward group and the midfield, and Georgi’s skillset definitely lends itself to be a pure winger, so he is someone who would benefit from a change back to the 4-2-3-1 formation that Seattle has played for years up until this season.
Kolani Kossa Rienzi - 6
Rienzi was subbed on for Alex Roldan at the 33 minute mark, and as someone who was thrusted into a situation earlier than he would have been anticipating, he filled the role admirably. He did his job defensively and while he may not have been able to provide the same as Roldan going forward from the wing back spot, you couldn’t ask for a much better emergency fill in to come in and play 60 minutes. Rienzi hasn’t played enough to make a complete evaluation on which formation suits him better.
Pedro de la Vega - 6
The biggest win of the night for Seattle might have been the return of their young winger from Argentina. It was a positive development that he was able to return as quickly as he did especially with all of the injury concerns he dealt with last year, and he looked bright in his 30 minute cameo, even if the game was already done and dusted. There is still more to be seen from him in regards to which formation suits him better, but he seems the type of player to be versatile enough to adjust and play different roles at a high level.
Danny Leyva - 7
Leyva came on and impressed once again. Every opportunity he has been given this year he has taken advantage of, and he might possibly be earning himself some more playing time depending on if Brian Schmetzer sticks with the current game plan or starts to make some changes to get some results. He is excellent in possession, and does a great job popping up in spots to provide an option when his teammates need it. He looks comfortable in the new formation.
