Fredy Montero lurks near Metapán goalkeeper Jose Gonzalez. (Chris Coulter)
Chris Coulter was one of a dozen or so Seattle Sounders fans to make the journey to El Salvador on Tuesday night to see the club play their second leg of the CONCACAF Preliminary (play-in) series. Seattle went into the match leading 1:0 thanks to a Fredy Montero goal at Qwest Field in the first leg played July 28th.
The match was more than two hours away from Isidro Metapán's home stadium and fan base. The crowd in the giant Estadio Cuscatlán was tiny, with most of the Metapán supporters hovered under overhangs to protect themselves from the rain.
Chris captured the first-ever Seattle (MLS) international away match from the floor of the swampy stadium.
See the first batch of Coulter's photos here.
My three Sounders stars of the match:
1. Fredy Montero
2. Leo Gonzalez
3. Alvaro Fernandez
Seattle Times / Steve Kelley: Far from home, Sounders find their way
The Sounders signed Alvaro Fernandez for moments like this. They signed the Uruguayan national for his poise and his experience in big games, in difficult places.
And in the 74th minute, in miserably sloppy conditions, when it looked as if Sounders FC and Metapan were heading toward a dangerous overtime to decide this preliminary leg of the CONCACAF Champions League, Fernandez caught James Riley's cross perfectly and struck a goal as lovely and important as any in Sounders FC history.
Comments
Awesome photos--great to see folks making the trip...
El Flaco is very very skinny.
Montero is becoming a man right before our eyes.
that was so funny when jaqua passed that ball with his hand. can you head a ball when you're down on the pitch?
Love the Flashdance off-the-shoulder look on El Flaco. :-)
Great Pictures!
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