CARSON, Calif. – The first year of LA Galaxy has been a complicated one with plenty of moving parts, but despite all the constant roster changes and lineup switches, the team finds itself poised to compete for the USL PRO title in Its first-ever season.
Throughout the 28-game USL PRO regular season, Galaxy II boss Curt Onalfo has been equal parts head coach, talent evaluator and trainer. In a juggling act rarely before seen in American soccer, Onalfo has had to balance the needs of those first team players needing minutes, young players both foreign and domestic who had to have their opportunity to shine, while also trying to field a competitive squad.
In the end, the result was a successful one as Galaxy II finished 15-7-6 which was good enough for third place in USL PRO and allowed them to host the Rochester Rhinos in the first round of the playoffs.
“There hasn’t been a player on our roster who hasn’t progressed. The project is working and it’s working well,” said Onalfo. “We’ve given young players minutes, we’ve kept first team players sharp, we’ve brought guys back from injury and we still finished in third place. We checked off a lot of boxes.”
Amid the constant roster shuffling, forward Chandler Hoffman has been the team’s most consistent asset. With 13 goals in 17 games for Los Dos, Hoffman’s goal per game average is the highest in the U.S. third division.
“It's been great for me to be able to get consistent minutes, and I feel like with consistent minutes I've consistently scored goals,” said Hoffman. “That's the idea, to prove that I can continue to score goals and keep moving up the ladder.
“When I step on the field out here, I feel like every game that I play I'm going to score a goal.”
French defensive midfielder Andre Auras has been another key component to Galaxy II’s success. The 22-year-old Senegal born Frenchman has been one of the breakout stars of Los Dos as his calming presence in the center of the park and lethal set pieces have allowed him to earn the moniker as one of the most “MLS ready” players in the USL PRO.
Auras’ passing ability and his gradual improvement defensively have led Onalfo to bill him as one of the team’s greatest developmental accomplishments.
“He’s been excellent,” said Onalfo. “A guy like Andre has shown that he can definitely play. He’s one of the better players in USL and he’s certainly a guy that can play in MLS.”
The success of internationals like Auras, Bradley Diallo, Jason Bli, and Dragan Stojkov has been another intriguing aspect of Galaxy II.
“It’s another platform for them to have a chance to succeed,” Added Onalfo.” Whether it’s adapting to the country or all the other things that they have to deal with [when they come to the U.S.].”
Even if the Galaxy II are not successful in their push to win a title in their first-ever season, the project has already shown itself to be a model across MLS.
However, for all the talk of player development, you can be Galaxy II are gunning for the USL PRO crown.
“Any part of the LA Galaxy, the goal is to win championships and now we have an opportunity to win three games and win the USL PRO championship in our first year,” said Hoffman. “That’s what we’ve talked about since day one and we’re motivated and focused.”
