Seattle Sounders FC U-16 finished up the second round of the group stage for the Generation Adidas Cup last week. Qualifying for the annual Major League Soccer showcase, which features some of the future stars of the league, takes place over two weekends in November and February.
With some of the most promising prospects for the future of the beautiful game in North America on display, the Sounders organization was eager to showcase the fruits of its labor with player development. Despite failing to win any of its three matches, the team dominated the run of play for lengthy spells across each game. More importantly, a number of talented young Sounders were able to elevate their individual game on the biggest stage against well-drilled opposition.
The Rave Green fell just short of forcing extra time in the first match against the San Jose Earthquakes, resulting in an end-to-end 2-1 loss. Both teams struggled to convert possession and free-flowing combinations in the final third into any clear-cut chances. However, the young Sounders went into the break down 1-0, despite their solid defensive shape effectively starving the San Jose forwards of any meaningful service.
In the second half, midfielder Kei Tomozawa began to drop deeper in search of the ball in order to facilitate play and dictate the tempo of the match. A true box-to-box midfielder, Tomozawa repeatedly received the ball on the half-turn, ghosted past a pair of defenders, and found the feet of a teammate in a more advanced position.
While piling on the pressure in search of an equalizer against San Jose, the young Sounders conceded against the run of play courtesy of a lightning-quick counter-attack. However, Seattle soon responded and got a goal back to make the score 2-1 with about 15 minutes to go.
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Tomozawa received the ball about 25 yards from goal with two defenders closing him down quickly. He quickly turned out of pressure and found the feet of striker Leo Burney. The young striker demonstrated his impressive hold-up play before playing Tomozawa in space and spinning off the shoulder of the last defender. Kei completed the 1-2 with a first time ball for Bradbury to strike in stride, and his rasping left-footed shot was too much for the ‘keeper, who could only palm the ball into the path of Sam Johnson who applied the finishing touch.
With Seattle in search of an equalizer, the Earthquakes nearly restored their two-goal lead, but were denied by a smart save from goalkeeper Trey Muse. The young goalkeeper from Kentucky closed down the angle on a 1 v 1, made himself as big as possible, and palmed away a stinging shot from about five yards away. Seattle nearly leveled from a set piece in the closing seconds, as Sam Rogers rose above everyone else at the back-post, but could only fire his header into the side netting.
It was a similar story the next day against the Colorado Rapids. Tomozawa once again looked to link defense and attack with his close control and excellent vision. Khai Brisco moved back into the center of defense, after featuring at left back against San Jose, and put in a dominant display in the heart of the Seattle back line.
However, the Sounders once again conceded an early goal and spent the rest of the match chasing an equalizer. Despite absolutely dominating the second-half, and carving out a number of chances along the way, the Sounders were held scoreless by the stingy Colorado defense.
In the final match against Real Salt Lake, whom the Sounders lost to by a score of 5-4 in the first round of GA Cup, Seattle once again fell infinitesimally short of the three points. Despite impressive all around performances from Tomozawa, Wilson Harris, and Brisco, the young Sounders were unable to attain the result they desired. In fact, if it weren’t for a sprawling penalty-kick save by the RSL goalkeeper, the Rave Green would have forced extra time.
With the second round of the group stage completed, the Rave Green will move on to the Premier Division of the GA Cup in March. The group will fly to Frisco, Texas, and will be drawn into a group with two other MLS academies, as well as one international side. Despite the results, there were still a number of positive takeaways for the Academy staff.
“The Generation Adidas Cup is an important event for us, and there are lots of lessons to be learned as it is the highest playing standard in the country,” said Academy Technical Director Marc Nicholls. “We expect to do better in terms of results, but it’s a very big learning curve and a valuable experience for the players. From an individual player development perspective we are encouraged as we have some players, that proved once again, that they are up there with the best.”
