Under pressure for most of the first half at the BMO Field in Toronto, the Sounders finally cracked in the second half, when Jordan Hamilton scored for the hosts in the 60th minute. Jonathan Osorio was also on the bench.
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“We’re a fortunate team”, Seattle head coach Sigi Schmid said, adding that he was happy with the point his side earned.
However, the celebration died quickly as Seattle’s Jordan Morris, who looked unbelievable for Seattle, equalized the game a minute later. Aside from scoring Toronto’s lone goal, Hamilton put in a solid night’s work, showing a deft touch and troubling the Seattle defence with his movement both on and off the ball.
Vanney went with a three-man defence (Eriq Zavaleta, Damien Perquis and Nick Hagglund) and a five-man midfield with defenders Mark Bloom and Steven Beitashour out wide. Sebastian Giovinco’s shot was stopped by goalkeeper Stefan Frei but the ball bounced to an unmarked Hamilton, who stroked a left-footed shot home.
TFC dominated the first half without getting on the score sheet.
Jordan Morris, Cristian Roldan and Aaron Kovar were all in the mix for Seattle’s attacks, and even though they were moving the ball well and opening space, none of their final balls were particularly unsafe to the Toronto goal. Seattle almost had a second goal but the returning Bloom was somehow able to keep it out and the game ended in a lackluster draw.
While Giovinco played a key part in Toronto’s goal, the Italian has been stuck on eight goals for six league matches.
Despite several good chances all game, Toronto was only able to come away with the draw.
Seattle (5-9-2) came into the game having lost its last two and five of its last six games, a stretch that saw the Sounders shut out four times. Seattle is also 1-5-2 on the road and has only scored seven goals away from home.
Seattle forward Clint Dempsey, also returning from playing for the US team in the Copa America, could be rested for the match in Toronto.
Raheem Edwards, a 20-year-old prospect from TFC 2 – the Reds’ farm team in the third-tier USL – came on as a late substitute, but the Canadian forward couldn’t find a goal in his MLS debut.
Seattle is coming off a penalty-shootout victory over Real Salt Lake on Tuesday that advanced the Sounders to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup. It was a brilliant finish from the Seattle rookie, and silence the boisterous BMO Field crowd.
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With Bradley, Irwin and Johnson possibly out for another 7 games and Jozy Altidore’s return date still unknown, Toronto’s current form is concerning with how tight the eastern conference now is.
