Brad Evans and his Sounders FC teammates are preparing for one of the biggest regular-season matches in the club’s history, but one could hardly tell by their mentality at training on Monday.
“We’re relaxed right now,” Seattle’s captain said. “As the week goes on, we’ll get a little more intense, a little more serious. But right now we’re trying to have fun and enjoy that it’s a culmination of the season.”
The Sounders have already clinched a sixth straight playoff berth, and with two games to go, their loftier goals are still within reach. With a victory on Sunday at the LA Galaxy, Seattle would become just the second MLS team to win the Supporters’ Shield in the same year it won the U.S. Open Cup.
Currently tied at 60 points, the Sounders and Galaxy have a home-and-home series over the final two weekends of the season that will decide the No. 1 overall seed in the MLS Cup Playoffs. If the two teams were to finish with the same amount of points, Sounders FC’s advantage in total wins would be the deciding factor.
As for Sounders Head Coach Sigi Schmid, winning this year’s Supporters’ Shield would be the third time he’s done so as a head coach. Schmid coached the Galaxy and Columbus Crew to first-place finishes in 2002 and 2008, respectively.
Even in his dozens of years as a coach, Schmid has never been involved in a pair of regular-season matches of this magnitude.
“It’s great for the fans, and I think it’s great for the players, too,” Schmid said. “As a player you want to be comfortable in big games. Big games are things that you look forward to, that you’re really comfortable in and relaxed in. That makes you a better player and a better team.”
When Schmid won the Supporters’ Shield with Columbus, his team had already clinched first place with two games remaining. That gave the Crew a chance to rest some key players before the playoffs, an opportunity that Sounders FC could have in the regular-season finale if it wins on Sunday.
“If we can clear things up in the first game, that’d be great,” Schmid said. “It’s going to be an emotional game because it’ll be Landon Donovan’s last regular-season game at home. So they’re going to be sold out. There’s a lot of emotions at play for them, but we’ll be ready.”
Not only will the Sounders be up against an LA squad playing for Donovan, but Seattle hasn’t won on the road against the Galaxy since 2009. LA is tied with D.C. United for the most Supporters’ Shields with four.
While winning an MLS Cup is the team’s main goal, Schmid knows how special a first-place finish would be for his club.
“Winning the Shield is something you can always be proud of,” Schmid said. “For us, it would be a nice accomplishment.”
