This is one in a series of team previews preparing fans for the 2023 MLS season. Check out the full list; teams will be revealed in predicted order of finish from Feb. 10-24.
What LA Galaxy did last year
Well, it was certainly a better season for the Galaxy in ‘22 compared to ‘21, in that they made the playoffs after two years away. They handled Nashville in the first round, and then lost a heartbreaking match against their LAFC rivals in the conference semifinals. They also picked up a Barcelona-developed midfielder named Riqui Puig in the summer transfer window and he turned out to be transformational. Then, in the offseason, they got slapped with a significant penalty over how they managed should-have-been-a-DP-but-wasn’t Cristian Pavon (which we’ve covered) — it basically means that the ‘23 summer transfer window won’t be anything like the 2022 one.
Key additions
Forward Tyler Boyd (free agent signing), defender Chris Mavinga (free agent signing), midfielder Memo Rodríguez (free agent signing)
Key departures
Defender Julian Araujo (transfered, eventually, to Barcelona), forward Kévin Cabral (trade to Colorado), forward Samuel Grandsir (transfer to Le Havre), defender Sacha Kljestan (out of contract), midfielder Víctor Vázquez (option declined), defender Derrick Williams (trade to D.C. United)
Making the case for LA Galaxy
Even with Araujo off to Barcelona (after a comical transfer saga) and more players out than in, the Galaxy are left with a good nucleus — in addition to Riqui Puig, last summer brought d-mid Gaston Brugman (who has been no slouch), Chicharito appears to have at least one more good year in him (Galaxy fans think? hope?), and if his preseason injury is a harbinger of bad things to come, Dejan Joveljic can plug right in and be the future this season. (He awesomely declared himself the future of the Galaxy during a post-match interview in a nationally-televised match, he’s arguably the most delightfully swaglicious striker in MLS and I’d love to see him be a Golden Boot contender to see if he can top this celebration.
𝘿𝙀𝙅𝘼𝘼𝘼𝘼𝘼𝘼𝘼𝘼𝘼𝙉 pic.twitter.com/ay1mZAjrOz
— LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy) April 24, 2022
He can’t, by the way. Nothing ever will. But I think he’ll score a lot.
Players to watch
I’m really excited for a full season of Riqui Puig. Ink him in for an All-Star spot now, and expect great things. Also, a lot of the season’s going to boil down to how much Chicharito, how much Joveljic, how many goals from the center forward position total, and how much head coach Greg Vanney might try to play them together. (Note that playing them together has not worked out all that well in the past.) But, ultimately, seeing Riqui Puig cook should be a singular delight in 2023.
A nerdy tidbit
In both 2021 and 2022, the Galaxy underperformed their xG. But whereas LA had a 52 xG in 2021, compared to 47 actual goals, they ramped up to 59.6 in 2022, only slightly off the pace of their ‘22 xG with 57 actual goals.
A fun tidbit
Here’s Cozmo at the 2023 jersey release party. Cozmo’s the gold standard for MLS mascots. (Sorry, Tempo and Sir Minty and Tex Hooper.)
(Really, the FC Dallas mascot is nicknamed Tex Hooper.)
Projected finish
3rd in the West
I mean, are we worried about Séga Coulibaly as a starting center back in MLS? Are we alarmed that last year’s French starting wingers have moved on? (That’s a trick question for Galaxy fans who had a very pained relationship with Kevin Cabral, now playing for Colorado, which is a perfect MLS narrative arc.)
As a result of these questions, I had them slightly lower than the collective ranking, but still see them as a playoff team. After all, we saw an evolution from the Galaxy of several years past, a team essentially predicated on the four words “cross it to Zlatan,” and it feels like that’s going to continue to evolve in 2023.