The Seattle Sounders don’t quite know what to expect when they travel to San Jose on Saturday night.
The Earthquakes (0-4-3, 3 points), who are in last place in the Western Conference, parted ways with coach Matias Almeyda earlier this week.
Will the Earthquakes continue with Almeyda’s unique man-to-man defensive tactics?
“It’s hard because you can’t watch film of their previous style of play, because Matias played a very distinct style of play,” Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer said. “We don’t know how they’re going to come out.”
Earthquakes interim coach Alex Covelo, who formerly led the team’s MLS NEXT Pro side, claimed he doesn’t have any tricks up his sleeve.
“I think that the surprise is going to be that we are going to try to play the way that we want,” he said. “That’s it. I don’t have any tricks or tricky plays to show, or going to try to beat Seattle with a trick. It has to be more about our work defensively and offensively and see if the guys can understand (our game plan).”
San Jose’s Jeremy Ebobisse, familiar with the Sounders from his time in Portland, has scored in three straight matches. The only other San Jose player to do so in the past two decades was new assistant coach Chris Wondolowski, who in fact scored in four straight matches six times.
The Sounders (2-3-1, 7 points) have been doing double duty this season, having reached the finals of the CONCACAF Champions League, which begins Wednesday in Mexico City against Pumas UNAM.
Seattle has used a league-high 23 different starters this season. Schmetzer promised more of the regulars would play than did in last week’s 1-0 home loss to Inter Miami CF.
“You’re not going to see a nine-man rotation like you did against Miami,” Schmetzer said. “It’s the same like (against) Minnesota (a 2-1 win on April 2). We started a strong team against Minnesota and we make changes as that game progresses. Because San Jose is an important game for us.”
The Sounders are unbeaten in their past eight matches played in San Jose (4-0-4).
–Field Level Media
