SEATTLE — The Seattle Sounders welcomed the San Jose Earthquakes to CenturyLink Field on Sunday evening without forwards Clint Dempsey and Jordan Morris and attacking midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro, but still thrashed the ‘Quakes 3-0 behind three goals in 11 second-half minutes.
Dempsey and Morris are each away with the United States on international duty and will take on Jamaica on Wednesday in the CONCACAF Gold Cup Final. Lodeiro served a one-game suspension for his late ejection against D.C. United midweek.
Despite missing their three first-choice attackers, the Sounders did not skip a beat because of a virtuoso performance from Cristian Roldan.
Normally a defensive midfielder in head coach Brian Schmetzer’s 4-2-3-1 formation, Roldan filled in as the No. 10 in Lodeiro’s absence and recorded his fourth and fifth goals in a two-minute span, the first time in the club’s MLS history a player has done that. He now has a career-high five goals this season, including four in his last six games and three in his last two.
“There are a lot of pundits out there that think that Cristian is more of a [No. 6] or a [No. 8], I hate to define people by one number,” said Schmetzer. “What I feel in Cristian is he can do multiple things.”
Roldan scored the game-winning goal against D.C. United on Wednesday as well and his performances over the past 180 minutes are certainly not a coincidence. Roldan returned to the Sounders following a stint with the United States national team for the Gold Cup group stage, in which he started and earned his first cap against Martinique.
The game is slowing down, and Roldan is taking his already impressive game to new heights.
“The international level is a little faster, you have to think faster and take a better first touch,” said Roldan.
“He senses that he can play at that [international] level,” said Schmetzer. “We’ve always believed he can play at that level and now he is actually finding that out for himself. That little bit of self-reflection and confidence and knowing he can play at that level certainly helps him down here [with the Sounders].”
Roldan’s brace on Sunday was not flashy. The first came from being in the right place at the right time, crashing the back post on a training-ground throw-in and expecting a flick-on from Gustav Svensson. The second came off a hustle play in which he tracked down a Will Bruin flicked header and forced defender Victor Bernardez into a mistake at the back.
Roldan has already played four positions for the Sounders this season, mostly on the defensive side, so this past week’s offensive output was further validation of his breakout 2017.
“On nights like tonight and the other night when he’s pushed up,” said Schmetzer, “he’s certainly capable of providing some statistical numbers to back up his all-around good play.”
