Sigi Schmid’s departure from Seattle ahead of Sunday’s nationally televised game against the Galaxy (1 p.m. ESPN) and his great rival Bruce Arena likely spared all concerned the indignity of seeing the club endure a third consecutive loss within a month at the hands of the team where the Sounders coach began his MLS career.

Seattle, which comes into the game against L.A. with six shutouts in the last 11 games, is in free fall in the Western Conference. Sitting 10 points outside the playoffs at this point in the season the Sounders had nothing to lose by making a change if they are to salvage something out of the year, however likely that might appear given recent performances.

The drumbeat of critics calling for the former UCLA coach’s head had grown ever louder over the last few weeks.

Seattle could no longer ignore them after yet another disheartening loss to Kansas City last weekend.

The fact the Sounders almost made a minor piece of MLS history by only narrowly avoiding going the entire game without a shot on goal after finally making an off target attempt in the 88th minute just underlined the need for change.

“When a team doesn’t play well, there’s a lot of (factors),” Schmid was quoted as saying after the game. “Obviously, as a coach, I’m the guy who has to take responsibility.”

That sort of admission sounded a lot like a coach nailing the lid of his coffin shut from the inside.

Within 48 hours Schmid was gone.

From his pioneering days as a kid playing in the first-ever AYSO season in Torrance to his three national titles at UCLA and seven largely successful seasons with the Galaxy, Schmid played a major role in the growth of the game in Southern California.

Married to a former UCLA coworker, the Manhattan Beach homeowner is already seen as the logical hometown choice to become LAFC’s first coach when the club joins MLS in 2018.

Perhaps by then LAFC principal Tom Penn will also have convinced Galaxy striker Robbie Keane, a good friend and former neighbor when both lived at L.A. Live, to become the assistant coach with the long-term goal of succeeding the 63-year-old Schmid.

Schmid is the all-time leader in MLS wins. But he has just two MLS Cup titles to Arena’s five and that’s what really counts.

Schmid was hamstrung in Seattle by the limitations of a playing squad that had no recognized playmaker and never replaced goal scorer Obafemi Martins despite the best efforts of a still developing Jordan Morris.

Schmid also has a reputation for putting defense first.

In truth those tactics were more of a recognition of the limitations of his squad at places like LA and Columbus, where Schmid won those MLS Cups.

But he was never able to emulate that feat in Seattle.

Schmid was infamously fired by the Galaxy at a Manhattan Beach bagel shop in a middling run of games while atop the Western Conference, as much because club brass believed an entertaining style of play was as important as results.

The Sounders showed far more patience, despite similar criticism from fans.

But qualifying for the MLS playoffs in seven consecutive years with nothing to show for it, while Arena was winning three MLS Cups inside four years in L.A., was never going to cut it with the hard-core Sounders faithful who regularly fill CenturyLink Field and make Seattle one of the world’s best supported club teams.

“My only disappointment is that we were unable to bring home an MLS Cup to our tremendous fans,” Schmid was quoted in the wake of his departure.

And with that looking increasingly unlikely yet again, Schmid’s long tenure with Seattle was done, if not his MLS career.

For more local soccer news, read the 100 Percent Soccer blog at www.insidesocal.com/soccer.