SEATTLE — When last we left the Seattle Sounders and LAFC, the former was on the receiving end of a 3-1 defeat that started a dip in form which lasted up until the end of the season. What made that 3-1 defeat all the more dispiriting at the time was that LAFC was far from full strength, as Carlos Vela had yet to return from his summer-long injury and playing on short rest. Additionally, LAFC suffered multiple first half injuries in the game, and the Sounders were still unable to turn that to their advantage.
And so it was on a rainy Tuesday in November at Lumen Field, with the Sounders closer to full strength, and LAFC relatively decimated by positive Covid-19 tests to four potential starters.