Thursday’s win over Sporting KC wasn’t pretty, but the Seattle Sounders got the win and are moving on to the conference semi-finals against FC Dallas. The stats sheet was a little disheartening—Seattle’s only shot on target was Valdez’s late winner—but the performance between the sticks was absolutely vital to the result. Stefan Frei had a brilliant match, making seven saves against a KC attack that looked as if they would break through multiple times.
But Brian Schmetzer wasn’t surprised, considering the goalkeeping dynasty that the Sounders have had since joining MLS. “If you look at the goalkeepers we’ve had at this club, they’ve been pretty outstanding,” Schmetzer said.