The MLS Playoffs continue on Sunday night for the Western Conference Semifinals round, as the Los Angeles Galaxy will take on Real Salt Lake in the first leg in LA at the StubHub Center in Carson, California and the game will air live on ESPN at 9:00 pm and stream online on the WatchESPN website.
The matchup is much anticipated for the Galaxy, as they finished the season with a draw against the Seattle Sounders and now will have their first postseason matchup at home after being champions last year. The match comes after the Seattle Sounders and the Colorado Rapids played at CenturyLink Field on Saturday night and now the Galaxy will get their chance ahead of the second leg of the other series on Thursday and it also came after the Red Bulls and the Houston Dynamo played earlier on Sunday in the Eastern Conference Semifinals first leg. These two teams were finalists in the MLS Cup back in 2009 and now the Galaxy is looking to continue a streak of two straight championships and this could be the most crucial matchup for Landon Donovan, Robbie Keane and company, as they could take an early advantage in the series to set them up to advance to the next round.
The Galaxy are coming into the playoffs on a hot streak after not losing in four matches and they only allowed a single goal in the month and they also have the advantage after winning by two goals in the only matchup between the two teams. The Galaxy did not have to go through the knockout round at all and now they can start the playoffs at home with confidence and the time off also allowed players like Donovan to rest up for the stretch run and that time could be crucial for the team as they go for a third straight title in the MLS Cup and this playoffs there will be a new format, as the Cup will be at whichever stadium the team that had the best record from the regular season and that could be big for LA, as they have a great home crowd usually.
Keane has been hot scoring with nine in his past 10 matches and he leads the team with 16 goals and 10 assists this season, while Donovan had 10 goals and seven assists to rank second in both categories. Donovan has been playing a lot of minutes and that is why the break will be beneficial to the Galaxy and even without David Beckham in the fold the team should still be a strong contender in the West this season, along with the number one ranked Portland Timbers. The team hasn't lost since back in September to the Timbers and now they matchup with RSL and they could take a big advantage before the second leg comes up on November 7 and this matchup will be very tough for the team on Sunday night.
Keane was big in the final matchup with the Sounders, as his goal to get the draw enabled the team to avoid the knockout round and now that the Rapids are gone, LA is thankful they were able to get in as the third seed and that could end up being what propels the team to another MLS Cup appearance. The conference championships will come the next week after the second leg games and the Eastern conference game will be on the NBC Sports Network at 2:20 pm on Saturday November 9 and the following game for the Western conference finals first leg will be on Sunday the following night on ESPN starting at 9 pm and then the second legs will be a week later, again on Saturday and Sunday. After a break, the playoffs will pick up with the Cup on Saturday December 7 at the stadium for the team with the best regular season record at 4 pm.
