Last
night I saw the Seattle
Sounders play Sporting Kansas City in a thoroughly enjoyable
MLS encounter. It started uneasily, however, as on a very
pleasant Seattle evening we traipsed down to SoDo.
The
trip involved me fielding several obvious-but-unhelpful statements
from my companions, mutterings like “It's not like the Premier
League” or “I'd rather watch the European Championships”.
When
the whistle sounded to end the tie, we'd taken in slice of everything
we'd seen over the past two days of the Euros.
Firstly,
defender Paul Ianni scored a goal that reminded me of Zlatan
Ibrahimovic's masterful strike for Sweden against France – one
legged and using all his martial arts ability to stabilise his upper
body while channelling all his power into his striking leg.
In
front of 47,000 singing fans – nearly the same attendance as saw
England defeat Ukraine – Sporting Kansas City managed to grab an
early goal, before Ianni's set-piece strike levelled the match in the
fifteenth minute.
In
the second half, the match first appeared as if Seattle would
dominate possession and the match as Sporting KC were pegged back by
an impressive Sounders midfield. The ex-Wizards looked most likely to
pinch a winning goal by quick ball movement on the counter-attack,
which again reminiscent of so many teams throughout Euro 2012.
As
if consciously mimicking yesterday's match between the Ukraine and
England, a crucial goal (in this case the potential game-winner from
Fredy Montero) became more transparent - most of the ball crossed the
line, but not all - and we had ourselves a ghost goal.
There
was also plenty o' niggle, as KC persistently fouled a more
fleet-footed Sounders attack; the fulminating when Seattle sub Alvaro
Fernandez was sent off with a straight red in the ninety-first
minute.
I
didn't have to temper my companions' expectations when the game
finished, just sit back and enjoy my beer as they enthused about our
shared spectacle.
It
was a match that had everything that football can provide. The Euros
have been fantastic, and it's been great to see the sport receive all
the attention such a tournament deserves, but to think of MLS as a
poor relation is unfair and patronising. MLS is what it is – a
retirement investment, a development league, an enviable top tier. It
is many things to many people, and is
now creating its own impressive identity because of that
multicultural background.
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