The LA Galaxy played Friday against LAFC like a playoff spot was on the line.
In essence, it was.
Every game from here on out will carry such weight. Points earned are like gold while points dropped are points that could keep the team from reaching the postseason.
With the 1-1 draw against LAFC, the Galaxy took a point and climbed to 38 on the season. The club is in fifth place, level on points with fourth place with Real Salt Lake, but trailing due to a fewer number of wins. With seven games remaining though the club will need to turn efforts like Friday’s into three points instead of just one.
“Seven (games are left) so we have to take the points. We need to make the playoffs, but I think it’s too early to speak,” Zlatan Ibrahimović said. “I watch my team, and I like to be dependent on my team. We have everything in our hands, but hopefully, the other teams lose points, and we can make it.”
The Galaxy have played 27 games, the first Western Conference team to reach that mark. The club’s point total is solid enough for now but teams hovering around the Galaxy like Real Salt Lake (38 points entering the weekend), Portland (37), Seattle (35) and Vancouver (34) have played fewer games and can make up ground.
Still, the Galaxy know that much depends on what the club does.
“We’ve just got to focus on the next game. We know we need to win four or five. If we do win five, we’re in the clear. It’s still going to be tough,” Sebastian Lletget said. “It’s just a shame that we have those 27 games played and there’s team that are below us that have maybe three or four games in hand. Hopefully, those games don’t go against us.”
The Galaxy’s draw against LAFC meant the Galaxy went unbeaten in the first-ever season series against the expansion team. While that may mean more someday, the immediate focus was more on what the point earned meant rather than the significance of beating LAFC.
“That is the objective, to reach the playoffs, not to win the series against LAFC because the focus is not them, the focus is the playoffs,” Ibrahimović said. “Then from the playoffs, you take it further and try to win the whole thing.”
The Galaxy could stand to have other teams just below drop points but at the same time there are enough points left to play for that other team’s results may be a moot point.
“With our place in the standings, we don’t need to watch anyone,” Galaxy goalkeeper David Bingham said. “If we take care of our business than we’re fine.”
