The Seattle Sounders earned a 1-0 win over the Chicago Fire on Sept. 28 on a goal from veteran defender Chad Marshall.
He headed home a corner kick from Andreas Ivanschitz in the 24th minute to give Seattle its third of four consecutive victories as it made its sudden push for a postseason spot. Chicago left Marshall unmarked, and the veteran flicked in his fourth goal of the season, which tied a career high. Three of Marshall’s four tallies this season came in the air.
Despite having 60 percent possession, the Sounders were stymied offensively and only had four shots on target. At the time, Marshall’s goal put him third on Seattle’s 2016 goalscoring list, and he was named Major League Soccer’s Player of the Month for September.
The most important part of Marshall’s effort was that it lifted Seattle into playoff position for the first time all season. The Sounders sat on 41 points and were tied for sixth place with the Portland Timbers.
Marshall had a 94th-minute equalizer against the Houston Dynamo back in April that saved a point for the Sounders, but his timely header in the middle of a brutal three-games-in-eight-days stretch — bookended by difficult road games in Los Angeles and Vancouver — was critical in the Sounders’ run to the Audi 2016 MLS Cup Playoffs.
