The LA Galaxy were on cloud nine last December, lifting their record sixth MLS Cup title with a 2-1 victory over the New York Red Bulls.
Fast forward four months and the vibes are decidedly worse in Carson, with LA losing their first two league games and dropping their Concacaf Champions Cup opener at Costa Rica's CS Herediano.
What's gone wrong, exactly? And can it be fixed when they host St. Louis CITY SC this weekend for Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire (7 pm ET | MLS Season Pass, Apple TV+)?
"I'm slightly dinging the alarm bells now for the LA Galaxy and it’s mostly because of the injuries that are starting to pile up for this team," Sacha Kljestan said on This is MLS. "A lot of quality is falling off."
Injury list
Most of all, DP midfielder Riqui Puig is out through the summer with a torn ACL suffered late last year and DP winger Joseph Paintsil is recovering from a quad injury he picked up in preseason. Right back Miki Yamane is nursing a thigh injury and two new U22 Initiative signings – striker Matheus Nascimento (thigh) and midfielder Lucas Sanabria (collarbone) – are sidelined.
LA also traded away key pieces from their MLS Cup 2024-winning side amid salary-cap constraints, including striker Dejan Joveljić (to Sporting Kansas City) and midfielder Mark Delgado (to LAFC), further clouding the team's outlook.
It's all left head coach Greg Vanney searching for answers in the 2025 campaign's early days.
"I wouldn’t say it’s alarm bells. I would say it’s the snooze button," said analyst Bradley Wright-Phillips.
"You know you have time and can change things if you want. But I don’t think the worry is in the results as they’ve lost [three] games. It’s more in the performances. I’m not seeing a dangerous LA Galaxy. They just don’t look scary. They obviously have injuries and that’s where you can have a little worry about them."
Who steps up?
Kljestan, a former Galaxy midfielder, points to another concern: a lack of production from midfielder Marco Reus. The Germany and Borussia Dortmund legend, acquired last summer, is yet to score or assist this year.
"The biggest one that’s missing is a guy that isn’t even injured – he’s healthy – and it’s Marco Reus," said Kljestan. "We just haven’t seen anything from him yet and he is the one who has to step up. This is why he was brought in, to be that added piece.
"We all know that Riqui Puig is their most valuable player and he’s out at least until the summer, but I think we’re realizing now, he’s even more valuable than we thought. He’s the heartbeat of everything that the LA Galaxy did last season and without him they look lost."
It all leaves LA craving a turnaround result, making Sunday's clash with St. Louis even more important.
"I’d be concerned in the short-term and specifically because of the pieces that are missing," said analyst Calen Carr.
