The Seattle Sounders and the Portland Timbers, the two biggest rivals in MLS, had their first meeting of the MLS Cascadia Cup on Saturday and it was as tense as you'd expect. It was a physical, tight battle that didn't give us many goals as the Sounders qon 1-0, but it did give us some talking points. Here are our takeaways:
It's not the first time Christian Roldan has shown he deserves a look at the international level, but Saturday was a good reminder. Roldan again displayed good awareness and quality on both sides of the ball in the midfield, helping the Sounders break up the Timbers' possession while himself helping move the ball up the field.