Seattle Sounders coach Sigi Schmid has claimed that his team are looking to put behind the disappointment of the last season U.S. Open cup by winning the trophy this time around. The team will be coming into the U.S. Open cup final to take on Philadelphia Union. A victory in this match will give Seattle Sounders their fourth successive in this competition in the last six years, which makes them one of the most prolific in this competition. Last season, they were knocked out of the third-round after a disappointing and surprising defeat against NASL’s Tampa Bay Rowdies.
In fact, Seattle Sounders have been taking part in the U.S. Open cup final in all of the last five occasions apart from this exception. Such is the strength of the team in this tournament that Sigi Schmid can have reasons to be complacent ahead of the match. However, after having won the last four league matches, he says that his team are in the best possible shape to get another victory. In contrast, Philadelphia are going through an inconsistent run of form that has seen them take only three wins in the last five matches. Those three victories came on the bounce before they suffered a 2-2 draw with New York Red Bulls last week.
“We’re just happy to be in the Open Cup final again. It’s a tournament that as a club we take very seriously. If you look at our past history, I think it reflects that. We were disappointed last year by getting knocked out early. But we’re very excited. We’re happy to be playing against a team that’s playing really well right now. It’s going to be a tough game, it’s going to be a competitive game, a fun one to watch,” said the Seattle Sounders manager.