There are many things to doubt about the 2025 edition of the LA Galaxy, but fight back and grit aren’t among them.
In the final El Tráfico match of the MLS season against LAFC on Saturday night, the Western Conference last-place Galaxy clawed back a point in the final moments as former Japanese international Maya Yoshida scored in the seventh minute of second-half stoppage time to secure a 3–3 draw.
COMEBACK COMPLETE!
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) July 20, 2025
THE GALAXY HAVE DONE IT IN THE DYING SECONDS! pic.twitter.com/6i06EMly9n
While the Galaxy went through 20 games with just a single victory, they have amassed two wins, two draws and a loss in their last five, giving them a sliver of hope that the season might not be all over.
“One point, it’s a good one point,” Yoshida said after the game, with his goal complementing an earlier brace from Gabriel Pec. “It’s a derby, so it doesn’t matter the position where we are now, but to be honest, I feel like the goals we conceded were too easy. Good thing is my daughter doesn’t like LAFC, so at least I can go home with a smile and hopefully she’s going to be proud of me.”
For much of the season, finding any solace has been tough for the Galaxy. After all, the players can only look at hard-fought and close losses so many times before a fickle feeling sets in.
Unlike some struggling teams, the Galaxy have been in nearly every match they have played, but have lost by slim margins. Seven of their 14 defeats have come by just one goal. It’s that factor, and Saturday’s comeback draw to avoid a second straight loss, which made Yoshida’s tying tally a critical moment.
“This game shows again a little bit of the roller coaster this season,” Galaxy midfielder Marco Reus said. “Somehow, we keep our mentality. It shows in the game that we are not giving up, especially in this situation where we are away in a derby... I had the feeling that we could win this game if we played a little bit faster.”
Gabriel Pec 🤝 Marco Reus pic.twitter.com/rByi6PXmkh
— LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy) July 20, 2025
Despite picking up the point, the Galaxy remain last in the conference and 13 points short of the final MLS Cup Playoff spot, as they look ahead to their next match against the Houston Dynamo on Friday.
“We are not giving up until it’s over,” Reus insisted. “So it starts again Friday in Houston with another away game. If we want to continue, then we have to win.”
Bouanga Continues to Dominate Derby
No one's catching Denis Bouanga. 💨
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) July 20, 2025
He takes it himself to make it 3-1! pic.twitter.com/T6lMMUkFll
Of all the players that have graced the pitch over 26 El Tráfico matches, few measure up in influence to Denis Bouanga, whose counterattacking took focus again on Saturday night with a brace.
With his two goals, he became the second-highest goalscorer of all time in the derby, trailing only Carlos Vela, but passing Zlatan Ibrahimović, and the performance marked the sixth straight El Trafico that he has found the back of the net in.
“[El Tráfico] is like a final, you need to push your boundaries, and it’s a derby that’s always special, and so I hope that next year I’ll be able to score more and pass Carlos Vela for those records,” Bouanga said after the match.
“Vela is an icon in the past, and finding out I am getting closer to his records, I feel like it’s more of a team effort than an individual, so as long as the team is happy with what I’m doing, that’s what matters the most.”
Cherundolo’s Final El Tráfico
Barring an exceptional run from the LA Galaxy to qualify for the 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs, Saturday’s match likely marked the final El Tráfico clash for LAFC head coach Steve Cherundolo, who announced he will depart the club following the season’s conclusion.
While the veteran head coach was unable to secure the win for his record, he will leave the Black and Gold on the positive side of the rivalry, having coached LAFC to six wins, five losses and two draws since taking over in 2022.
Yet, he and his side won’t have too long to dwell on the two points dropped, as they look ahead to their next match against the Portland Timbers, where they will hope to bolster their position and move up from fifth in the Western Conference.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as El Trafico Thriller: Gritty LA Galaxy Fight Back, LAFC’s Bouanga Makes History.
