Just when things seemed to be headed in the right direction, the Rapids’ season took another detour late Saturday.
The Rapids (6-9-6, 24 points) entered Saturday undefeated in their last three starts and got off to a good start, as Jonathan Lewis scored in the third minute, but Seattle hit back with two goals. The game winner fell to a man and Seattle held on to win 2-1.
The loss was baffling for a number of reasons, considering the Rapids were just one win in playoff talk. However, Colorado fell to 1-3-0 when the opponent ejected a player.
Here are three takeaways from the loss.
1) Lack of concentration hurts
On Seattle’s first goal, a foul was called on Lalas Abukakar which occurred in Colorado’s half. However, the free kick was launched well behind the scenes of the foul, 20 years back. The goal came, and so did the complaints.
“At the time the free kick was taken by Seattle, it was estimated that the ball was an acceptable distance from the place of the foul,” the PRO referees told MLS reporters.
Either way, Colorado got caught staring at the ball again. The team just needs to get in the game and stay focused.
2) “Power play” strategy is broken
The Rapids have played four games this year as teams have been reduced to 10 men. In these four games, the team has a goal to show. Saturday against Seattle was by far the longest streak of the season that the Rapids played a player, for most of the second half. It took Colorado 35 minutes to even get a shot on goal after the red card was shown.
“Yeah, it’s frustrating,” Rapids coach Robin Fraser said. “To go up a man is a time when I really think you should be able to put teams under a ton of pressure if you’re good with your spacing and you pass and I thought that was just not not what it was supposed to be tonight.
3) The lack of depth shows
The Rapids had seven players missing on Saturday night, four key injuries including captain Jack Price, while two players, Sam Nicholson and Steven Beitashour, were in health and safety protocols, while Danny Wilson was suspended. The lack of spark on the bench is noticeable.
Max, Darren Yapi and Dantouma “Yaya” Toure were all second-half substitutes to provide lift but were waived by Seattle. The team need to find a different spark on the bench, with just one goal and two assists from substitutes all season.
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