Lineup Notes:
- The 2019 MLS postseason continues in Los Angeles as the LA Galaxy face LAFC at Banc of California Stadium Thursday evening under the bright lights and in front of a national audience.
- LA Galaxy Head Coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto will make no changes to his side that earned a 2-1 win on the road Sunday evening against Minnesota United FC.
- Goalkeeper David Bingham will once again start in net for the Galaxy after making 33 starts for the club and leading Major League Soccer in saves this season. He is the most famous David B in club history that hasn’t (yet) been named People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive.
- On the right side of the defense is Giancarlo Gonzalez, who has earned the trust of GBS to fill in at right back in the first two games of postseason play. Pipo put in a solid shift Sunday in Minnesota.
- Continuing in the center of defense is the Uruguayan Diego Polenta, who was named last week the 2019 LA Galaxy Defender of the Year. He has been the top Galaxy defender this season.
- Alongside Polenta in the center is Daniel Steres, who started in 30 games during the regular season. He has quietly racked up 102 MLS appearances since joining the club.
- Continuing out wide on the left is Dave Romney, who made 10 starts during the regular season for LA. Romney has started in all of the stretch run games of the regular season and continued in the postseason with Sunday’s start in Minnesota.
- Sitting deep in the midfield is MLS veteran Perry Kitchen, who logs his second-straight start for LA after missing over a month of action with a groin injury. Perry will look to do the dirty work Thursday and clean up the center of the field.
- In the center is Jonathan dos Santos, who continues his career year with LA, this time scoring the game-winning goal against Minnesota in another excellent performance. JDS will look to boss the middle of the pitch Thursday vs. LAFC.
- Also coming off a goal-scoring performance is Sebastian Lletget, who got the Galaxy on the scoresheet first on Sunday night at Allianz Field. He has scored 14 goals for the Galaxy in regular season play since joining the club from West Ham years ago.
- Out wide on the right is Cristian Pavon, who will look to play an integral role Thursday evening. Coming from Argentina’s Boca Juniors, he is no stranger to a big-time contest.
- Out wide on the right is Uriel Antuna, the speedster and engine who finished second on the team this year in goals with six on the season. Antuna battled a fever this week, but is 100% going into the contest vs. LAFC.
- Up top is Zlatan. He likes playing against this team.
Game Notes:
- The LA Galaxy are 2-0-3 all-time against LAFC.
- At Banc of California Stadium, LA have gone 0-0-2 vs. LAFC.
- During the regular season, LA went 5-10-2 with 22 goals scored and 34 goals conceded on the road.
- They are 1-0-0 with 2 goals scored and 1 goal conceded thus far in postseason play.
- Including playoffs, the Galaxy are 14-2-1 this season when scoring the game’s opening goal, and 3-13-1 when conceding first.
- When leading at halftime this season, LA has gone 7-2-1. They are 10-4-2 when tied at halftime and 0-9-0 when trailing at halftime.
Storylines:
- What craziness will the next edition of LA-LAFC bring?
- Will the Galaxy score first?
- How will the same lineup that played in Minnesota just four days to Thursday fare?
- Can the LA backline shut down LAFC’s attack?
- Will Zlatan score?
- How many minutes will Alessandrini see?
Quick Hits:
- Match preview: https://www.lagalaxy.com/post/2019/10/23/match-preview-presented-welchs-fruit-snacks-la-galaxy-face-lafc-mls-cup-playoffs
- LA x MURS pt. 2 #ChasingMore: https://www.lagalaxy.com/post/2019/10/23/you-cant-hide-behind-shield-murs-x-la-galaxy?autoplay=true
- Watch party at DHSP, pt. 2: https://www.lagalaxy.com/post/2019/10/21/la-galaxy-host-watch-party-oct-24-dignity-health-sports-park-s-legends-plaza-audi
- Lampson wins MLS Humanitarian of the Year: https://www.lagalaxy.com/post/2019/10/22/la-galaxy-goalkeeper-matt-lampson-named-mls-works-humanitarian-year
- Galaxy, Galaxy II, Galaxy Academy Team Awards: https://www.lagalaxy.com/post/2019/10/18/la-galaxy-announce-2019-team-awards
Fly Me To the Moon – Frank Sinatra
Fly me to the moon
Let me play among the stars
Let me see what spring is like
On a-Jupiter and Mars
In other words: hold my hand
In other words: baby, kiss me
Fill my heart with song
And let me sing for ever more
You are all I long for
All I worship and adore
In other words: please, be true
In other words: I love you
Fill my heart with song
Let me sing for ever more
You are all I long for
All I worship and adore
In other words: please, be true
In other words, in other words: I love you
