It’s been a season full of déjà vu for the LA Galaxy.
Last year's struggles had the fairly logical starting point of playmaker Riqui Puig’s long-term knee injury, and at least some solace from the afterglow of 2024’s spectacular MLS Cup presented by Audi triumph, which added an unmatched sixth star above their crest.
After winter complications and another operation on Puig's troublesome knee resulted in more roster surgery, they’re in a similar predicament as the 2026 campaign enters its home stretch, even with the likes of Marco Reus and Joseph Paintsil on the pitch.
With Saturday’s emotional 3-1 loss at San Diego FC, their third defeat in three meetings with the SoCal newcomers, the Galaxy are 13th in the Western Conference table, three points below the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs line.
Just 26 points from their first 23 league matches leave them craving a victory as the New England Revolution visit Dignity Health Sports Park for Matchday 24’s Walmart Saturday Showdown (9:30 pm ET | Apple TV).
“If you take a look at the table,” general manager Will Kuntz wryly acknowledged to MLSsoccer.com last week, “it's not a shocker that we would feel like we needed to do something to freshen the group.”
Summer signings
Thus ensued their flurry of summer business.
A head-turning loan deal for San Diego’s out-of-favor superstar Hirving ‘Chucky’ Lozano and the recruitment of FC Barcelona-schooled midfield ace Sergi Roberto are the headliners. The Galaxy also signed free-agent winger Robert Taylor and swung deals for Japanese attacker Kyōgo Furuhashi and Real Salt Lake midfielder Pablo Ruiz, then reacquired Brazilian fullback Lucas Calegari, LA’s defender of the year during a loan stint three years ago.
There have been almost as many corresponding departures, the biggest of which was 2024 hero Gabriel Pec’s exit via a club-record transfer reportedly worth up to $13.5 million.
That sale, to Brazilian Série A side Cruzeiro, opened up the biggest hole in the starting XI, prompting a bold swoop for Chucky, the Mexican icon the Galaxy had tried to sign before he became a foundational piece in SDFC’s 2025 expansion launch – a relationship that endured a falling-out with head coach Mikey Varas last autumn.
“If you're going to lose somebody like Gabriel, there are not many better options – especially when you consider that he's a domestic player, because he's got his green card – than Hirving,” said Kuntz, adding that Chucky and Furuhashi were on LA’s radar since the winter.
“He's been in huge matches in Europe, with the Mexican national team; he had a fantastic year last year in San Diego. So when we looked at how you might go about replacing Gabriel after his departure, Hirving was a name that was at the top of the list.”
Puig-sized hole
Chucky is on loan through season’s end, at which point the Galaxy have the option to make the trade permanent. That’s just one of the myriad moving parts for Kuntz & Co. as they work to salvage the current campaign without hampering themselves in the future.
The elephant in the room remains Puig’s health. Head coach Greg Vanney’s squad and assertive game model are built around the charismatic No. 10. It’s an approach vindicated by the run to glory two years ago, yet it has imposed an awkward sort of treading water in the Spaniard's extensive absence.
That’s epitomized by the short-term replacement for Puig's Designated Player slot, target man João Klauss, who will have to vacate it if he is to stick around next year. It’s just the Galaxy’s luck that the lanky Brazilian has been ruled out by injury for most of the season to date, though he’s expected to be available again in the coming days.
Puig is slated to return to full training this month, providing an emotional boost amid a challenging season. Many around the club understandably want proof that the Barça product can be the elite, match-winning maestro of old again, though.
“It's now year two of waiting for Riqui to come back,” said Kuntz. “He is the heart of this club. He's the engine of the way we play, and a lot of the struggles that we've had collectively have been about, how do you try and replace the irreplaceable, while also making sure that you maintain fidelity to what you want the team to look like when Riqui’s back?
“It's those three aspects. How do you manage the Riqui [situation]? How do you manage the future and the incredibly exciting talent that's coming out of our academy? And then making sure that you also have a mix of veterans who provide the stability that you're going to need to compete down the stretch, now that we're chasing points.”
Moving pieces
You could say the Galaxy are getting older in order to get younger.
Exhibit A: Swapping defensive-midfield mainstay Edwin Cerrillo (25, sold to LIGA MX giants Club América for a reported seven-figure sum) for Roberto (34, a veteran of the sport’s biggest stages). And sitting amidst the largest youth talent pool in the United States – perhaps all of North America – LA aspire to craft a more hospitable environment in which their homegrown prospects can step up.
“We’re losing a key leader in our midfield and a guy who's very difficult to replace,” Kuntz said of Cerrillo. “But if you're going to do it, you can do worse than a seven-time Spanish league champion, two-time [UEFA] Champions League winner. I think [Roberto] is the first double Champions League winner in Galaxy history, and a guy who's got a history of just playing all over the pitch. So he brings really valuable insight into what's needed in more than one position.
“So if you have somebody like Harbor [Miller], his ability to talk to Sergi about the position is invaluable,” Kuntz added, noting that the performance department led by respected director Jim Liston is custom-tailoring a program to keep Roberto fit and healthy. “It's like having a PhD professor in-house, and the same goes for guys like Lucas Sanabria and Elijah Wynder in the midfield, even Justin Haak. There's so much to learn from a guy like this who's just who's been all around.”
Crunch time
No one has racked up more trophies in MLS’s three-plus decades of existence than the Galaxy, and the constant need to compete for hardware always fuels pressure.
Though a dramatic turnaround is required to climb into this year’s Audi MLS Cup Playoffs, they’re not quite ready to write off 2026 yet. Far from it.
“We need to start stacking three points, not one point,” said Kuntz. “So wins are going to be crucial, and we're running out of time to get them.
“We can't have any more moral victories.”
