No two MLS teams met more often this season than LAFC and the LAGalaxy, who face off for the 4th time Thursday in the Western Conference playoff semis at Banc of California Stadium. Each team added several new players who could make an impact.
LAFC’s midseason additions made— so deep that Bale, once the most expensive player in the world, has started only twice. That depth is a big reason LAFC outscored opponents 45-15 in the second half during the regular season.
“It’s much like a World Cup,” said Cherundolo, who led his team to the league’s best record in his first season as coach. “It’s never the best team over the past four years that wins the World Cup. It’s the team who was in form for three weeks. And playoffs are much of the same. So what you’ve achieved in the season has no bearing on how the playoffs play out.
“This is the best soccer that we’ve been playing,” defender Raheem Edwards said. “We meshed at the right time, which is so important in MLS Cup playoffs, to jell at the right time.”