A cursory look at the stat sheet might not have given much reason to get excited about Brad Smith’s performance on Sunday against Los Angeles FC. The left back completed just 50 percent of his passes and didn’t even have a key pass. But his contribution’s to the Seattle Sounders’ 1-1 tie despite playing a man down for 72 minutes were impossible to miss for anyone who actually watched.
Smith was one of the few Sounders who forced LAFC onto their heels, and nearly allowed the Sounders to pull off a miracle win when he managed to set up a glorious chance in stoppage time, only to have Latif Blessing make a last-minute tackle to preserve the tie.