A playmaking midfielder with FC Barcelona lineage, surrounded by a talented ensemble cast from Europe and South America, storming its way through the MLS Cup Playoffs with a level of dominance never before seen in the league.
It’s exactly what many expected before the season began. Just not from the LA Galaxy.
With Lionel Messi and Inter Miami made to look mortal in their stunning Round One elimination, it’s another talisman with Blaugrana roots — the Galaxy’s Riqui Puig — whose side has already made MLS Cup Playoff history and is threatening more after their 6-2 demolition of Minnesota United in Sunday’s Western Conference Semifinal.
Consider what the Galaxy have already accomplished this postseason, having also defeated the Colorado Rapids 5-0 and 4-1 in their Round One series:
- Became the first team in MLS Cup Playoff history to win three matches in normal time by three or more goals. Only three teams previously had completed two wins by three-plus goals in a single postseason (2000 Chicago, 2001 San Jose, 2024 Vancouver).
- Became the first team in MLS Cup Playoff history to have three multiple-goal scorers in a single match, with Gabriel Pec, Dejan Joveljic and Joseph Paintsil all posting a brace in LA’s most recent victory.
- Became the third team in MLS Cup Playoff history to score six goals in a single playoff match (1998 LA Galaxy, 2000 Chicago) and the third team to score five or more goals in multiple matches in a single postseason (1998 Columbus, 2016 Toronto).
The Galaxy have a staggering +12 playoff goal differential, which matches what the 2001 San Jose Earthquakes posted in the run to their first MLS Cup title, a journey that remains arguably the gold standard for postseason dominance. Even the Quakes needed extra time in the conference final and MLS Cup final to hit that margin.
In 2016, Toronto FC posted a +11 postseason goal differential — with the benefit of one match that went to extra time — but ultimately lost its first MLS Cup final on penalties at home to the Seattle Sounders.
Fitting The Mold
After faltering somewhat down the stretch of the regular season to lose the top Western Conference seed to LAFC, the Galaxy weren’t the team expected to dominate when the playoffs began. While they were among oddsmakers’ favorites, they did not become the top name on the board until both Miami and LAFC were eliminated.
But maybe we should have seen something like this coming.
A common thread through the all-time great MLS Cup Playoff performances teams is an attack that is balanced with multiple stars — often three or more.
In the early days, it was D.C. United’s Magic Triangle of Marco Etcheverry, Jaime Moreno and Raul Diaz Arce/Roy Lassiter. At the LA Galaxy between 2011 and 2014, it was Landon Donovan, Robbie Keane and David Beckham/Gyasi Zardes. With the Toronto FC teams that reached three MLS Cup finals not long after that, it was Sebastian Giovinco, Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley.
And while the Galaxy may not have an MVP finalist on their squad, in the quartet of Joveljic, Paintsil, Pec and Puig, they had the first foursome in league history to score double-digit regular season goals for the same team in the same season.
It’s a diversity in attack no other 2024 playoff contender had — not even Messi’s star-laden Miami side.
Work To Do
That said, there is reason not to overreact to what LA has achieved so far.
Their first two wins came against a Colorado Rapids side that was seeded seventh in the Western Conference and without its two most important players in the first game of the series, a 5-0 Galaxy win. The Rapids were also spiraling, losing four straight to close the regular season before the playoffs began.
Minnesota United was a much-improved defensive team late in the season, conceding only twice in its last seven matches prior to their conference semifinal against the Galaxy. But before that they let in 48 goals in 29 league games.
Seattle’s MLS-best defense awaits in the conference final, not to mention an attack laden with veterans who have excelled on this stage before. If the Galaxy get beyond the Sounders, Orlando City or the New York Red Bulls could also present challenges that LA hasn’t seen yet this postseason in the MLS Cup final.
But make no mistake, this Galaxy side has a chance not only to lift MLS Cup, but to seal a legacy as one of the greatest playoff performers in league history. If they pull it off, they should get that credit, even if they weren’t the history makers we expected.
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