An independent review panel has rescinded a red card given to Seattle Sounders FC forward Obafemi Martins, allowing him to play in this weekend’s Cascadia Cup matchup against rival Vancouver.
Martins was originally shown a straight red by referee Ricardo Salazar in the 71st minute of Seattle's 2-0 win at Chivas USA after a tussle with Goats player Gabriel Farfan.
But Seattle resorted to the red-card review process in place this season. MLS clubs can appeal to have red-card decisions reviewed by an independent panel made up of one representative from the U.S. Soccer Federation, Canadian Soccer Association, and Professional Referees Organization (PRO).
The decision allows Martins to be eligible for Saturday's match against the Vancouver Whitecaps, a Cascadia Cup rivalry clash that will see upwards of 50,000 fans in attendance at CenturyLink Field, and his coach is happy to have the Nigerian international available for the cup tie.
“Getting Oba back is a big plus for us,” Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid said. “Oba and Lamar [Neagle] have played together fairly well and to be able to come back with those two is a huge plus and helps us in terms of making our lineup decisions this week.”
Before being ejected in last Saturday’s match against Chivas USA, Martins scored his fourth goal of the season. He’s accomplished that in just 366 minutes, giving him a league-leading .98 goals per 90 minutes.
Even with Martins back, the Sounders will be missing six other potential starters. Eddie Johnson, Brad Evans and Mario Martinez are with their respective national teams, Osvaldo Alonso (quad) and Steve Zakuani (sports hernia) are out with injuries and Shalrie Joseph is serving the second game of his own two-game suspension.
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