Galaxy, LAFC renew El Trafico rivalry for fourth time

The rivalry between the Galaxy and Los Angeles Football Club has delivered memorable moments in its three years of existence.

From Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Carlos Vela to Cristian Pavon to Diego Rossi, the stars haven’t disappointed and the games have lived up to the hype.

“Before I was at LAFC, this was the biggest rivalry in MLS for me, this was the game I always watched,” LAFC forward Danny Musovski said. “No matter what game was on TV, this was the game I always paid attention to.

“Coming here and being part of the team, I feel like it even amplified to another level how important it is. We want to win that game … it’s for L.A. and we want to be that team that represents L.A. and we want to be the best team here.”

On Sunday, the latest installment of the El Trafico series will take place at Banc of California Stadium (12:30 p.m., Ch. 7) as the Galaxy looks to climb out of last place, while LAFC looks for some separation in a crowded middle of the Western Conference standings.

“We know that every time we play the Galaxy, it will be a hard-fought match,” LAFC coach Bob Bradley said. “The history between the two teams, even though it’s not a long history, has had some incredible moments and I think every player looks at the matches versus the Galaxy in a different way. We understand how much it means to our fans, so that’s the focus.”

This is the fourth meeting this season between the rivals.

LAFC (7-7-4, 25 points) won the first game 6-2 at the MLS is Back Tournament in Orlando in July.

The Galaxy (5-9-3, 18 points) has responded with consecutive wins – 2-0 on Aug. 22 and 3-0 on Sept. 6. In a season that’s been so inconsistent, nearly half of the Galaxy’s victories have come against LAFC.

As MLS prepared for the final phase of the schedule and in sticking with its regional format, a fourth meeting was almost certain between the clubs.

“We need to think game by game and right now we need to be focused on LAFC and try to win,” Galaxy coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto said. “We’ve played the last two games (against LAFC), we played very focused and everyone the field was working. We know they have a really good team, really good coach, but we need to go and fight because it is important for our future.”

Thanks to Kai Koreniuk’s last-minute goal against Vancouver last weekend, the Galaxy snapped a six-game losing streak and enters Sunday’s game feeling a little better, although there is still work to be done to climb into the top eight and secure a spot in the playoffs.

“A bit of relief to get that win, but also a lot of guys are going to be determined now,” Galaxy midfielder Sacha Kljestan said after the win. “Like I said last week after the loss, in MLS anything is possible. You win three games in a row and you’re back in the playoff picture.”

Both teams could get some familiar faces back for the game. Schelotto said Jonathan dos Santos (Mexico) and Rolf Feltscher (Venezuela) will be available after returning from international duty and going through quarantine.

The same holds for LAFC’s quartet of Uruguayans Diego Rossi and Brian Rodriguez and Ecuadorians Jose Cifuentes and Diego Palacios. Bradley added that Tristan Blackmon (hamstring) and Carlos Vela (MCL sprain) could also be in the mix to see time. Vela has been sidelined since suffering his injury in the second half of the Aug. 22 game against the Galaxy.