Seattle Sounders head coach Schmetzer's play-off admission: 'We shot ourselves in the foot'

Seattle Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer has admitted that his side will have only themselves to blame if they fail to secure a place in the MLS play-offs. Seattle face Los Angeles FC in the final round of the league, known as Decision Day, with nothing less than a positive result required.

With one match of the regular season remaining, Seattle sit 10th in the Western Conference, level on points with wild-card contenders Portland Timbers and Colorado Rapids. Seventh-placed LA Galaxy hold the last direct play-off berth, while sixth-placed LAFC have already guaranteed their place in the play-offs.

Seattle, who extended their winless run to five matches with a 5-1 defeat to Vancouver Whitecaps last time out, must avoid defeat against LAFC to reach the postseason. Even with a win, however, Seattle will need their rivals to drop points in order to finish above the play-off line.

Schmetzer, who said the situation has left him with deep regret, said: "Honestly, I don't like this picture at all. We shot ourselves in the foot in a lot of games. I don't like where we are, but that's the reality. We have to face that reality and do everything we can to get the result we want on Saturday."

Winger Paul Arriola echoed his head coach, saying: "In too many games this season we've been the side reacting, we haven't been proactive and we haven't been able to take the game on the front foot. This match will be about rolling up our sleeves and trusting the experienced figures in the dressing room, the players who have played in finals and have been at these levels for a long time."

Opponents LAFC, meanwhile, were beaten 3-1 by Minnesota United in their last outing. Interim head coach Xavi Tamarit stressed that the performance fell short of their standards, saying:

"The team reacted very well in training throughout the week. We talked about how anyone can have a bad day. But we can never repeat the passivity we showed in the first 15 minutes against Minnesota. For a club with the standards of Los Angeles FC, that is absolutely unacceptable. It must not happen again, and I believe the players feel the same way as me."

Key players

Seattle Sounders: Dejan Joveljić

Joveljić, who played for LAFC's arch-rivals LA Galaxy before joining Seattle, has scored 5 goals in 13 matches against LAFC. The Serbia international is the Sounders' top scorer this season, with 13 goals from 9.53 expected goals (xG).

Los Angeles FC: Denis Bouanga

Bouanga, who has scored 18 goals in MLS this season, has produced 11 goals more than his closest teammate. Having reached the 18-goal mark for a fourth consecutive season, the star has become the only player in LAFC history after Carlos Vela (34 goals in 2019) to reach this level more than once.

LAFC have won 15 of the 26 matches between the two sides, while Seattle Sounders will take to the pitch with nothing but victory in mind as they look to keep their play-off hopes alive.