By Jon Arnold
Marco Reus didn’t see any reason to mince words.
After a decorated career and an MLS Cup title last season, the former Germany international is calling it like he sees it.
Could a Leagues Cup title rescue 2025 for the LA Galaxy? “Not could. It would save the season. 100 percent,” Reus said in a news conference Tuesday. “When you see the season, it’s already a success that we’re in the semifinal. We played against Mexican teams, but how we played these games was really good. I wish we played like this in the league.
“We have one game left to go to the final. Then, let’s see. We’re really focused on (Wednesday).”
The defending MLS champions have struggled this season, earning only four wins from 27 matches and sitting on 19 points - last in the league. Yet, Leagues Cup has been a boon for the Galaxy, with Reus and his teammates able to focus on a quick-fire tournament. After opening the competition with a 5-2 win over Tijuana, the Galaxy went to a penalty shootout with Cruz Azul after a 1-1 draw.
On the final night of the competition, Los Galácticos knew they needed a win over Santos Laguna by multiple goals. They more than eclipsed the target, winning 4-0.
That led to a daunting quarterfinal against Pachuca, a team that was topping the Liga MX table at the time and had earned its place in the quarterfinals with wins over San Diego FC and the Houston Dynamo - plus a shootout loss across town to LAFC. Reus put in a great performance, with a cross knocked in for an own gal in the 27th minute and a goal of his own 10 minutes later. The Galaxy kept Pachuca off the scoreboard until a stoppage-time goal and held on for a 2-1 victory that put them into the semifinals.
The Galaxy are hoping to lift the two-bowl Leagues Cup trophy, though a return to the Concacaf Champions Cup with a win Wednesday or in Sunday’s third-place match would be a good consolation prize. The uptick in form during a difficult tournament has given manager Greg Vanney’s squad plenty of reason to believe that they’re a strong team - even after losing key players from the 2024 title team to injury or in winter transfers.
“I think it’s a fair statement to say it would save the season,” Vaney said Tuesday. “It gives something for this team to look back on as a legacy, gives our fan base something to celebrate.
“This is a big tournament. When you have the top teams in MLS and Liga MX coming together for a title, it’s a big deal. This is a huge opportunity for us to move into the final, hopefully. I think it’ll say a lot about this group. Even though we got off to a bad start, maybe it says that we just needed to find ourselves a little bit and really are a good group. I believe that, and tomorrow’s the opportunity to show everybody that.”
Their domestic struggles continued during the Leagues Cup run. The Galaxy faced semifinal opponent Seattle three days after the victory over Santos and fell 4-0. Next up was a trip to another team still alive in Leagues Cup, where the Galaxy fell 3-1 to Inter Miami. But after the victory over Tuzos, LA showed some of its Leagues Cup form last weekend with a 3-0 win over the Colorado Rapids at home - a game they hope will lead to more good results in the near future.
“Honestly, the last game against (Seattle), I don’t really care,” Reus said. “It’s a different competition. It’s a win or go home game. They’re different things in your mind when you go into these games. I’ve played a lot of these games, and am really really looking forward to (Wednesday).”
Vanney said he’s getting the right feeling from talking to his players, seeing that they understand how much this match - and the one that follows it - would mean to a club that is used to winning silverware and felt that it had reopened a ‘championship window’ with last year’s title run.
“I think it’s important for the organization. I think it’s important for this team because as the league season has gone we haven’t been competitive in the way we need to be inside of the league this season,” Vanney said. “There’s an opportunity for this team in this tournament to make a statement for itself as well that while things didn’t go well in the league or haven’t to date that this team still has the capacity to compete and win championships.”
Should the Galaxy get revenge on the Sounders and earn one more win, they’ll have something else to think about when they reflect on 2025. A Leagues Cup championship would be something to talk about, to brag about. Another international championship for the historic team? No need to mince words. It would save the year.
