One should never write off the Seattle Sounders, and Monday night’s Western Conference Finals game against Minnesota United showed why. Despite trailing 0-2 until the 75th minute, Seattle managed to orchestrate a stunning comeback and book their fourth MLS Cup appearance in the past five seasons.
Minnesota entered the game as underdogs but decided to show early on that they should be taken seriously. They pressured the Sounders across the field and managed to capitalize soon after, thanks to a memorable free-kick goal by Emanuel Reynoso.
Reynoso shined again in the 67th minute, delivering a well-placed kick that found Bakaye Dibass in Seattle’s penalty box. Dibassy made a leap and got off a header that finished in the net.
At this point, the game looked like it was slipping through the Sounders’ fingers, with nothing going their way. The Loons, on the other hand, seemed to be on the way to their first MLS Cup appearance that would cap off their impressive season.
But Seattle wasn’t about to give up so easily.
Forward Will Bruin gave Sounders a hint of hope late in the game, scoring shortly after he came off the bench. Then in the 88th minute, Raul Ruidiaz tied it up with an impressive goal.
And just when everyone expected the game to finish as a draw, the Sounders somehow managed to find a way to get one more. Gustav Svensson used Nicolas Lodeiro’s corner kick to score in the dying minutes, to tumultuous reactions.
“We have a very, very talented team. I think we have a very, very experienced team, and that’s a good combination,” said Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer after the game. “I think you can see that everybody stepped up a little bit. Everybody turned on a little more, and I think that just speaks to the volume of our whole squad.”
The Seattle Sounders will face Eastern Conference champs the Columbus Crew in the MLS Cup finals on December 12th. They will be looking for their second consecutive MLS Cup title and third all time.
