CARSON, Calif. -- One win is all that separates the LA Galaxy from moving one step closer to defending their 2011 MLS Cup title.
With a victory over the worst team in MLS, Toronto FC the Galaxy will clnch a berth in the 2012 MLS playoffs. LA head into the match as heavy favorites due to their 7-0-2 record in all competition while TFC have not registered a win since July 18th, going 0-6-3 in that span. But despite the completely opposite records of both teams as of late, the best way to describe is simple, "It's a trap." During the nine game winless run, Toronto has lost only one game by more than one goal, but throughout the season, TFC have shown an inability to close out games having conceded 17 goals in the last 15 minutes this season.
TFC are likely to be led by the attacking duo of Ryan Johnson and East Los Angeles native Luis Silva, who have shown an ability to create numerous scoring chances despite their poor finishing. A playoff berth hanging in the balance, Galaxy forward Landon Donovan and A.J. DeLaGarza admit that LA is not taking Toronto for granted.
DONOVAN: "We weren't exactly our best at the beginning of the year, but they're a much improved team even from when we played them and I think that Paul Mariner has done a really good job with them. You can tell that they have a different attitude and a different mentality. They really believe that they can win every game, regardless of where they are in the standings, when you watch them play, they believe that they can win every game. They've played a lot of good playoff teams very difficult, they've won some games, they've taken points from some teams so we have to be alert."
DELAGARZA:"It'd be nice to clinch no matter what, we have five games left and a single win would put us in. It'd defnitely be good to get it out of the way and out of our minds against a team that knocked us out of a competition that we thought taht we could have won or at least, gone pretty far. It's a big game, these are the most dangerous teams to play, they have nothing to lose so they can go after it. They don't have to sit and defend if they don't want to. We just have to be aware of that and limit their chances."
