Sounders look to lock up playoff spot vs. Union (Oct 01, 2017)
By game time Sunday, the Seattle Sounders will know if they have a chance to clinch their ninth straight postseason berth.
With the L.A. Galaxy being eliminated from playoff contention, Seattle, which plays the Philadelphia Union at Talen Energy Stadium in Chester, Pa., would have the longest active streak in MLS.
The Sounders (12-8-11) ended their five-game winless streak with a 3-0 victory over first-place Vancouver on Wednesday.
"It's one of those games where it clicked. It worked," Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer told The Seattle Times. "Those guys enjoyed playing with each other. The team as a whole was getting a little irritated. ... This group was going to have a breakout game. That was tonight."
Sunday's game is the Sounders' last road match of the regular season.
Seattle sits in fourth place in the Western Conference, level on points (47) with Portland and Kansas City, and four points behind Vancouver. The other three teams played Saturday.
Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei had his career-high 11th shutout of the season on Wednesday.
"Defense wins championships," Schmetzer told his team after the win. "Make sure that we all appreciate what (Frei) did. We got three goals. Everybody's clicking. It was a good team effort.
"It doesn't get any easier. Let's just make sure we focus. We've got the train moving down the tracks in a positive direction. Let's just make sure we keep it going."
Seattle captain Osvaldo Alonso is questionable with a quad injury.
While the Union (9-13-9) sits in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, the team is 8-4-3 at Talen Energy Stadium this season.
Philadelphia is coming off a 3-0 loss that could have been a lot worse if not for Union goalkeeper Aaron Blake's seven saves.
"In the first half, I thought we gave them too much time and space, maybe a little too much respect because they have been blowing teams out here and really outscoring them," Union coach Jim Curtin told The Philadelphia Inquirer. "They punished us."
Philadelphia's faint postseason hopes would be squashed with a loss or tie on Sunday.
Philadelphia fans who root against Seattle striker Clint Dempsey will undoubtedly be in his corner when the 34-year-old takes the field with the U.S. national team in Friday's must-win World Cup qualifier against Panama in Orlando.
"When his team is up against it, whether it's Seattle or the national team, and they need someone to make a play, Clint is as good as anyone who's ever played," said Curtin, who played against Dempsey in MLS more than a decade ago.
Dempsey has four game-winning or tying goals for the Sounders this season.
Union captain Alejandro Bedoya will likely join Dempsey in Orlando.
"The way he carries himself as a person on and off the field, he has this never-back-down personality about him that makes him so strong mentally and physically," Bedoya told the Inquirer. "He's always striving to be better and is always up for any challenge."
Sunday's match could possibly be Dempsey's last in the Philadelphia area. The Sounders aren't scheduled to play in Chester until the 2019 season, which would be Dempsey's 15th if he plays that long.
The Union will finish the regular season with two road matches. The team plays at Chicago on Oct. 15. The Sounders host FC Dallas the same day.
