Everything was going as planned for Sounders FC. Early goals by Brad Evans and Clint Dempsey ignited a crowd of 46,758 at CenturyLink Field, and the Rave Green were one half from reaching their first MLS Cup Final.
Seattle continued to put the pressure on after taking a 2-0 lead, but the visitors halted that momentum by finding the back of the net in the 54th minute. Juninho gave the LA Galaxy a vital away goal that changed the dynamic of the Western Conference Championship.
When Sounders FC was unable to add a third goal on Sunday, its historic season came to an end.
“I am really proud of the team,” Head Coach Sigi Schmid said after the match. “I am proud of their effort and I am proud of their fight to the very end. I think these two teams are equal; I think the aggregate score reflects that. I thought we were a little bit unlucky today, and my heart goes out to our fans and our team because I think they’ve battled and done really well this season, and deserve to go to the MLS Cup Final. But that’s not the way it turned out.”
Seattle benefited from the away-goals rule in the Conference Semifinals, advancing on Osvaldo Alonso’s goal in the First Leg at FC Dallas. This time the Sounders were eliminated in a similar fashion, as their series with LA finished 2-2 on aggregate.
As a result, Sounders FC came up short of its ultimate goal. Winning the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and Supporters’ Shield was not quite enough for Schmid’s club.
“There’s nothing I want to do more than bring an MLS Cup to the city of Seattle,” Schmid said, “because the fans deserve it and their support has been phenomenal. You heard them even after the game.”
Sounders FC fans stuck around and continued chanting in the freezing cold as the Galaxy hoisted the Western Conference Championship trophy. It was their final chance to cheer for a team that gave them so much to be excited about in 2014.
Seattle won the fourth and fifth trophies of its six years as an MLS club. Dempsey and MVP finalist Obafemi Martins both broke the club record for goals in a season. Schmid became the first MLS coach to reach 200 wins. Dempsey and DeAndre Yedlin shined at the FIFA World Cup, and Chad Marshall was named Defender of the Year.
So despite Sunday’s bitter ending, the Sounders made their fans proud from start to finish in 2014.
“This is a great group of guys and a great group of players,” captain Brad Evans said after the match. “You always want to be with guys that come out and fight and play for the fans, play for each other, and play for their families. And I don’t think we had anybody on this team that took away from what we were trying to accomplish as a group this year. And I think that’s why went as far as we did.
“We’re so proud of the performance, proud of the team, and we live to fight next year.”
