MLS Cup: 7 key questions that will decide LA Galaxy vs. New York Red Bulls

Two original MLS teams. Two teams from two big markets. Two contrasting styles. One team trying to lift their first MLS Cup. One team trying to extend their lead in the all-time MLS Cup race by winning their sixth. One injured superstar.

Saturday’s MLS Cup between the LA Galaxy and the New York Red Bulls isn’t short on intrigue. Today, we’re diving into the seven biggest questions that will decide this year’s final – and we’re not skimping on the detail.

Onwards.

1. How does losing Riqui Puig impact the Galaxy?

Yes, I know the LA Galaxy went a very respectable 3W-1L-1D in their five games without Riqui Puig in the regular season. No, I don’t think that makes how the LA Galaxy respond to Puig’s recent ACL tear any less of an utterly massive question for Saturday’s game. Why? Well, mostly because the regular season stakes are low enough in MLS that I think we’re basically talking about two different worlds when we compare and contrast it from the postseason.

And then there’s the small matter of Puig being the most dominant possession player in MLS this year:

The Galaxy will miss Puig. When you take out the guy collecting almost 15% of their touches out of the equation, how could they not? They’ll miss him all the more against the New York Red Bulls, who have morphed back into an aggressive, pressing team just in time for the playoffs, where Puig’s ability to drop deep, get on the ball, worm his way out of pressure from a truckload of defenders, and break two lines with a pass would’ve been hugely valuable.

What I just described wasn’t a fictional sequence by the way. Look at what the ACL gods took from us:

Without Puig, it seems likely Greg Vanney will opt for a midfield trio of Edwin Cerrillo, Mark Delgado, and Marco Reus. That’s a talented group, but one that has started together exactly zero times. Regardless of the specific personnel, how the Galaxy shift their in-possession responsibilities around in Puig’s absence will be a huge key. Who carries the load in buildup? Can they play through pressure at a high enough rate? Who will unlock the front three? 

"We have to kind of redefine who we're going to be and how we're going to win this game without someone like Ricky on the field," Vanney said on Tuesday. “It's not any one player who's going to step on and do what Riqui has done for us. That's for sure," he added later.

That sound you hear? Yeah, that’s the sound of the New York Red Bulls breathing a sigh of relief.

LA Galaxy star Riqui Puig tears his ACL, out for MLS Cup

Puig suffered the injury in Saturday’s Western Conference final, but still finished the match and provided the game-winning assist.

BackheeledJoseph Lowery

2. Just how much will the New York Red Bulls press?

If you ask Vanney, the answer is probably a lot. Here’s the LA Galaxy manager talking to the Apple TV crew right after his team’s Western Conference final win, previewing this MLS Cup clash with the Red Bulls: