Thomas Muller scored the clinching goal off a clever indirect free-kick routine as the Vancouver Whitecaps beat the Seattle Sounders 2-0 to return to the top of the Western Conference in MLS.

Vancouver had been temporarily knocked off the top of the West following the Houston Dynamo's victory over the LA Galaxy on Saturday, but a win over their Cascadia Cup rivals restored them to the summit.

There was just a single shot on target throughout a low-key first half, with Muller's volley from a corner being blocked on the line by a combination of Andrew Thomas and Paul Rothrock.

And Seattle would go the entire contest without hitting the target as Vancouver grew more dominant after half-time. The visitors finally took the lead in the 77th minute, with Rayan Elloumi finding the far corner for his first MLS goal of the season following a fine run and pass from Emmanuel Sabbi.

The Whitecaps' second goal came in bizarre circumstances five minutes later, as Thomas picked up a back pass from Nouhou Tolo to gift the visitors an indirect free-kick inside the Seattle area. 

As Sabbi feinted to move to the left and Ryan Gauld also stood over the ball, Oliver Larraz rolled it right for Muller, who curled his finish into the bottom-right corner. 

The result takes Vancouver two points clear of Houston at the top of the West, with Seattle sitting 11th.

One of Sunday's other games saw FC Dallas beat Texas rivals Austin FC 2-1, lifting them to fifth in the standings.

Elsewhere, the Philadelphia Union launched a stirring second-half comeback to beat New York City 3-2 at Yankee Stadium, with all three of their goals being assisted by brothers Cavan (two) and Quinn Sullivan (one).

Whitecaps go back to the summit

Neither team approached Sunday's game in sparkling form. While Vancouver were winless in three MLS games, drawing each of their previous two, Seattle had lost six straight.

And the Sounders' losing streak was extended to seven as they were well beaten by Jesper Sorensen's side, who must surely fancy their chances as legitimate MLS Cup contenders.

The Whitecaps dominated every phase of this game, having a 57% possession share and firing off 19 shots to Seattle's five, as well as winning the expected goals (xG) battle by 1.61 to 0.67. 

Muller was at the centre of everything positive about Vancouver's play, leading all players on the pitch for shots (five), shots on target (four) and duels contested (18), winning eight of those.