USA Open Cup – Championship [B]Seattle –0.5 +114[/B]
The Sounders have been playing about as well as a team can play these last two months. On offense, Seattle is firing on all cylinders scoring eight goals in their last three games. The recent addition of designated player Blaise Nkufo has upgraded the offense. Getting back players like Nate Jaqua who missed much of the first half of the season has also helped. After a sluggish start to the season the Sounders have turned it around going 8-1-3 over their last 12 games. The Crew on the other hand is a team that appears to be heading in the opposite direction. They are not in good form at all. No league wins in a month (the last was Sept. 4) has seen the team slip from top spot in the Eastern Conference and out of the Supporters' Shield discussion. This game is a big deal for Seattle and I look for them to have some extra motivation in that they are the defending Open Cup champions and also will play this game at home in front of 30000 screaming fans. Head to head Seattle has owned this series against Columbus. The Sounders easily defeated Columbus a few weeks ago on the road 4-0 and the game earlier this season that ended in a 1-1 draw was a game that Seattle had dominated.
