LAFC Wins El Trafico 3.0 and Advance
As the name implies, traffic jams bring impatience, tension, and, eventually, road rage. Both sides looked to get to their final destination (Championship), and they are stuck in gridlock, trying to break free and advance.
LAFC looked to break a five-game winless streak against the LA Galaxy, but the team from Carson looked to remain a roadblock for their northern neighbors once again.
The first half started slowly as both teams looked flat-footed as they were trying to find their rhythm. It only took 15 minutes before the league’s record goalscorer, Carlos Vela, found the back of the net. Vela found himself wide open and knocked down a well-placed ball towards the bottom right side of the net.
Vela added a second in the 40th minute thanks to an assist from Brian Rodríguez inside the penalty box. In less than a minute, the Galaxy countered with a goal from Cristian Pavón. The score came off a well-placed ball from Zlatan Ibrahimović.
The second half started in the Galaxy’s favor with a quick 55th-minute goal from Zlatan Ibrahimović. The soccer Gods looked down on Zlatan, and his direct shot inside the box went right through the LAFC goalkeeper Tyler Austin Miller’s legs.
LAFC took the lead once again, scoring within two minutes of each other, Rossi (66th minute) and Diomande (68th minute). Both goals gave the home team hope to finally break the streak.
The Galaxy did not quit and countered with their third goal courtesy of a Rolf Feltscher header in the 77th minute. The celebration was short-lived after an Adama Diomande reply put the home team in the driver seat with a comfortable 5-3 lead with 10 minutes to play.
Zlatan almost scored a brace, but his goal was revered by a foul committed by his teammate in stoppage time. The streak ended, LAFC finally beat their fierce rivals and advanced to the Western Conference Finals. LAFC Coach Bob Bradly said, “experience and mentality” gave them the win.
Next match: Tue., October 29th against Seattle Sounders (MLS Western Conference Finals).
