Praise for Pretty Boy Marc Burch

As an engineer and an American sports fan I love and rely heavily on stats to provide objective evidence for my claims. It is one of the reasons I love baseball and basketball so much; you can make your case by just pointing to the numbers. Not having proof, to back myself up, makes me hesitant to make arguments. I just don't like relying on my gut alone.

Soccer, by it's very nature, forces writers into the realm of subjective argument. There just aren't very many stats for non-forwards. Some of the very best players might go the whole season without scoring a goal. Coupling my innate reservation about making arguments without stats with my lack of a deep soccer background makes me nervous to write analysis of soccer players. However, I am going to try to do exactly that.

This season the Sounders have been doing really well. They have surged from a slow start to take over first place in the Western Conference with 49 points. With the team doing this well several players have found success. However, the quality of play for one non-star player has stuck out to me and I feel like he deserves some praise. Although he hasn't scored a goal for the Sounders, Marc Burch has been a constant quality contributor to the team.

Look at that gorgeous hair!

Despite being a natural defender, Burch has spent most of the 2013 season playing left midfield. From this position he has been able to control the ball and make good crossing passes into the goal box. He has excellent touch on the ball. Even if they dont always result in goals, Burch's passes give the Sounders good opportunities, which is key to a successful team.

Like most Sounders players, Burch is always hustling. He takes good lines and gets to the ball quickly. His background as a defender shows.Very rarely do you see him get beat and I have never seen him give up on a play. These attributes are really important to helping the team win.

At yesterday's Sounders FC vs Real Salt Lake match Burch again made his presence felt by positioning himself where he could make plays and making well placed crosses into the scoring area. While Obafemi Martins and Lamar Neagle scored the goals, Marc Burch clearly helped the Sounders beat RSL. The game was a great example of everything he brings to the team. Hopefully the coaches and fans realize what they have in Burch and he continues to get playing time.