Strengthened spine gives Quakes hope
San Jose expects boost new from acquisitions, returning players
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It's a match which will decide who claims the inaugural Heritage Cup, which goes to the winner of the season series. The first meeting between the teams didn't count in the competition, which is lucky for San Jose considering that Seattle prevailed 2-0 on that occasion. That means the Quakes need only overturn Seattle's 2-1 win back on June 13.
But following Friday's training session, the mind of head coach Frank Yallop was focused more on his new midfielders. Former Brazilian international Andre Luiz was signed earlier in the week, and received his international transfer clearance on Friday.
That should clear the way for him to partner another new signing, Ramon Sanchez, who joined San Jose just last week. Although a sore calf could delay the Brazilian's debut, Yallop indicated that he thinks Andre Luiz will be healthy enough to team up with Sanchez on Sunday.
"The way [Andre Luiz] trained on Friday, he should be fine," said Yallop.
San Jose's midfield makeover comes at an opportune time, as Seattle's attacking midfielder Freddie Ljungberg is suspended for the match after picking up two yellow cards last week against Chicago. Sounders FC will welcome back Brad Evans from duty with the U.S. national team, but Yallop is eager to see how his new charges perform together.
"Both of these guys slow it down to where the rhythm is good," said Yallop. "It just changes the dimension a little bit of how we're playing."
Sanchez enjoyed a solid debut during last week's 2-2 draw with D.C. United, with his steady positioning and clean passing helping the Quakes come back from an early two-goal deficit. While there figures to be a settling in period for the new signings, Luiz has been training with the team for the better part of two weeks, and feels he has already struck up a good partnership with his Salvadoran teammate.
"With Sanchez being Latin, he knows how I play," said Andre Luiz through an interpreter. "He plays a style like we play in Brazil, and he has a lot of the same techniques like I do."
In another bit of good news, the Quakes are also getting two players back from injury. Ryan Johnson has recovered sufficiently from the injured shoulder he sustained last week against United to be in contention for a starting spot, while Ramiro Corrales looks set to return at left back after being sidelined for a month with a sprained ankle.
Arturo Alvarez will likely sit out Sunday's match with a right hamstring strain, but given the quality of Sunday's opponent, San Jose will be grateful to have almost everyone else available. Sounders FC have made a mockery of the struggles that usually haunt first-year sides, with head coach Sigi Schmid fashioning a team with talent and depth from front to back.
But with Ljungberg reduced to spectator status, more of the attacking responsibility will fall on Colombian forward Fredy Montero, who leads the Sounders with nine goals.
"[Montero] is a skillful player, a smart player for being a young guy," said defender Jason Hernandez. "But [Ljungberg] is their engine, he's their big guy, the guy they go to. The fact that he's not there is a positive thing for us."
Another positive was the way the Quakes finished last weekend's game against United, one where they were the dominant side over the last 55 minutes. Yallop knows that for his side to be successful on Sunday, they'll need to replicate that effort, especially in terms of pressuring the opposition.
"You can't just let good teams come here, keep the ball, and play," said Yallop. "I don't care who you play, it's just about getting at [the opponent], getting focused, and wanting to do it as a group."
Jeff Carlisle is a contributor to MLSnet.com.
