The Seattle Sounders played to a gritty 1-1 draw on Sunday against LAFC, which entered the match perched atop the Western Conference standings.
With two goals inside the first five minutes, the game seemed destined for an end-to-end, high-scoring affair. That all changed when midfielder Cristian Roldan was sent off in the 18th minute, forcing the Sounders to play the duration of the match down a man.
Galvanized by what the team deemed an unfortunate call, the team rallied around Roldan as they nullified LAFC’s dangerous attack.
“It’s pro sports, there are no moral victories,” said Head Coach Brian Schmetzer. “But this is about as close as it gets. What I’m most proud of out of that group is that they all came together.
“After a tough week — it was their third game in eight days, some of them are tired and heavy legged — they actually came together as a group and formed a really strong bond amongst themselves that I know is going to help us down the road,” he continued. “Those kinds of matches are critical to have. It’s critical that your players step up.”
Roldan, who received his first professional red card, watched the rest of the match from the locker room. At halftime, he did his best to inspire his teammates, urging them to keep working hard and executing Schmetzer’s tactical game plan.
“I just wanted to keep encouraging my teammates,” Roldan said. “They were doing a tremendous job. It was such a gutsy performance. I was watching this game and cheering these guys on. I was their biggest cheerleader.”
A young veteran on the squad, Roldan has carried the team several times throughout his MLS career. Motivated by his early dismissal, the rest of the players rallied around Roldan and held on for a massive result at home.
“We don’t blame him for anything,” said forward Jordan Morris. “We know how hard he works and how much he cares about this team, and he would never do anything to put the team at risk…He’s such an honest, hard-working guy. We wanted to do it for him, for the team, and just prove that we could come out of it with a result.”
Left back Brad Smith, who nearly nabbed a late winner in second-half stoppage time, echoed those sentiments.
“We had to help Cristian out because he’s been such a great player for this club for many years,” Smith said. “So, for him to get sent off, we need to help him out in that moment, and I think we did that.”
