The Seattle Sounders are visiting the Colorado Rapids on Sunday in their first and only meeting of the 2020 MLS regular season. Here is everything you need to know.
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WHEN AND WHERE: Kickoff is at 6 p.m. PT at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo.
WHERE TO WATCH: The match will be televised on JOEtv and Prime Video. The prematch show begins at 5:30 p.m. PT.
WHERE TO LISTEN: The match will air on 1090 KJR AM and El Rey 1360 AM.
2020 RECORDS AND STANDINGS: Sounders: 10-4-5 (35 points, 2nd West), Rapids: 5-6-4 (19 points, 11th West)
FORM GUIDE (most recent first): Seattle: WDDLW, Colorado: LLWWL
ALL-TIME HISTORY: The Sounders are 18-6-2 against the Rapids, including a 7-4-1 mark on the road.
PREVIOUS MEETING: Seattle fell 2-0 at Colorado last September behind a brace from forward Andre Shinyashiki. The Sounders were notably missing 10 internationals.
LET’S TRY THIS AGAIN: The Sounders’ first scheduled meeting with the Rapids on Oct. 14 was postponed following positive COVID-19 tests within Colorado’s camp. All told, the Rapids had five matches canceled between Sept. 23 and Oct. 24.
MAKE IT A DOZEN: With their 2-0 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps on Tuesday, the Sounders qualified for their 12th consecutive MLS Cup Playoffs appearance, extending their own league record. The current defending MLS Cup champions head into Sunday’s clash first in the West in points per game.
RAÚL RETURNS (AND DELIVERS): Sounders forward Raúl RuidÃaz returned to the starting lineup against Vancouver after missing the previous four matches on international duty with Peru. He scored the opener before setting upNicolás Lodeiro six minutes later en route to earning an MLS Team of the Week nod. RuidÃaz now has 10 goals on the season, which is tied for third in the league.
DEFENSE DOMINATING: Goalkeeper Stefan Frei and the Sounders defense earned their second shutout in three matches and have only conceded once in that span. Seattle is tied for second in MLS in goals allowed with just 18 in 19 matches this season.
ROUGH RIDE: The Rapids had won three of four matches prior to their month-long shutdown, but lost both of their first two games back by a combined score of 6-1. MLS has opted for points per game to determine postseason qualification given teams finishing the season without an even number of matches, and Colorado is just barely above the playoff line at 1.27 PPG.
22 UNDER 22: The Rapids are led by two Homegrown talents in midfielder Cole Bassett and left back Sam Vines, both of whom appeared in this year’s edition of 22 Under 22, MLS’ annual ranking of the 22 best league talents under the age of 22. Bassett, 19, came in at No. 7, while Vines, 21, was ranked No. 13.
