The Seattle Sounders fell 3-0 to the Vancouver Whitecaps at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on Sunday behind goals from Jeevan Badwal, Daniel Rios and Damir Kreilach. The Sounders played more than half an hour with nine men after Nouhou and Jon Bell were sent off three minutes apart early in the second half.
Alex Roldan had a chance on a volley at the back post inside of two minutes after a Ryan Kent cross wasn’t dealt with properly by Vancouver, but Roldan’s effort missed wide at the near post.
Cristian Roldan had a great chance of his own in the 30th minute after a lovely buildup saw Kent lay a pass off for Roldan at the top of the box, but his shot was deflected just wide for a corner.
A minute later, Cristian Roldan set up Pedro de le Vega with a deft pass into the box, but the Argentine’s whipped shot skipped just wide of the far post.
The Whitecaps took the lead in the 40th minute when Édier Ocampo beat his man to the left end line and cut a ball back to the center of the box to find Badwal, who lunged to redirect it into the net.
The Sounders were dealt a massive blow in the 52nd minute when they were reduced to 10 men after Nouhou was sent off. The Cameroonian fouled Mathias Laborda as he appeared to be in on goal.
Things got worse for Seattle three minutes later when Bell saw red as well for another denial of a goalscoring opportunity when he tripped Emmanuel Sabbi, who had gotten in behind on a ball played over the top.
The ‘Caps doubled their lead in the 70th minute when Rios unleashed a laser from 20 yards out the rattled inside the far post.
Vancouver was close to adding a third goal three minutes later when Ocampo had a volley attempt from the center of the box, but Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei did well to parry it away.
The Whitecaps earned a penalty in the 87th minute after João Paulo fouled Sabbi in the box. Kreilach calmly deposited the ensuing penalty a minute later.
The Sounders finish the weekend in sixth in the Western Conference with 26 points from 18 matches.
THREE TAKEAWAYS
Déjà vu
In a strange coincidence, the Sounders fell to the Whitecaps and were reduced to nine men just 14 months ago in a match on April 20, 2024, at Lumen Field.
Cascadia Cup
The Whitecaps took a commanding lead of the Cascadia Cup standings through two matches with six points, having beaten both the Sounders and the Portland Timbers. Seattle and Portland are each on one point.
FIFA Club World Cup
The Sounders will look to regroup quickly as their MLS season pauses and they embark on their 2025 FIFA Club World Cup journey. Seattle will host Brazil’s Botafogo next Sunday (7 p.m. PT; DAZN) before welcoming Spain’s Atlético Madrid and France’s Paris Saint-German to round out Group B.
