Because the Los Angeles Football Club played its home finale like Fan Appreciation Day meant nothing, the team’s last regular season appearance on Saturday will be worth exactly that.
A week ago, LAFC could finish anywhere from third to ninth in the Western Conference.
By failing to perform in a 3-1 letdown at BMO Stadium against a 13th-place Minnesota United FC team on the verge of elimination, LAFC split the difference and locked up the sixth seed.
Another defeat on Decision Day in Seattle under interim head coach Xavi Tamarit will not change that, presuming the Galaxy don’t win and overcome a negative-19 goal differential.
“It doesn’t matter if we cannot be higher in the standings or lower in the standings,” Tamarit said. “For us, it’s a very important game because you need to build a strong mindset, a competitive mindset.”
Whatever intrigue there is at the close of LAFC’s most challenging regular season since 2021 – when they placed ninth and missed the MLS Cup playoffs for the only time in nine years – could manifest mostly inside the visiting locker room and between the players’ ears when they face the still-alive Sounders (11-12-10, 43 points) at Lumen Field.
The week began by trying to move past the shockingly bad effort against Minnesota. Tamarit had hoped to instill an identity into the team over this three-week stretch, but the more they train the worse they seem to struggle in competition.
LAFC (12-10-11, 47 points) has led 50 of the 450 minutes since Tamarit took over for the fired Marc Dos Santos on Oct. 1. No goals in the run of play for five consecutive first halves produced two leads for a group that flourishes when it jumps ahead and suffers, winless, from losing positions.
“Despite the change in coaching staff, we believe that Xavi has full confidence in us as players and as a team and that helps us move forward to give our best going forward into the playoffs,” Brazilian midfielder Igor Jesus said through an interpreter.
Compensating for a few poor stretches throughout the season, a fantastic start banked 16 of 18 points and propelled LAFC to a playoff spot it sealed with a 2-2 comeback against the Galaxy on Oct. 25.
When the subsequent loss to Minnesota spoiled the possibility for a higher seed, as far as LAFC was concerned, Decision Day intrigue shifted to what happens with San Jose, St. Louis and Houston.
If the Earthquakes win at Minnesota, they welcome LAFC to PayPal Park for Game 1 of the best-of-three series a couple of weeks from now.
Dropped points by San Jose opens the door for Houston or St. Louis, which clash in Texas, to claim the third seed.
Regardless, LAFC knows it must win away from home to have a chance at advancing out of the opening-round series for a fourth straight postseason. That prospect is colored by a season-long hardship on the road, where, as it stands, LAFC is a club-worst 3-6-7. The past three Steve Cherundolo-run squads accomplished the feat via home-field advantage.
“We want to finish with a win before the playoffs to get the good feeling in the squad and the confidence up,” attacker Leo Walta said. “It’s very important and also to prepare the way we want to play even better before the playoffs.”
LAFC forward Denis Bouanga needs two goals to lift his season total to 20 for an MLS-record fourth consecutive year.
Bouanga and his teammates can also accomplish something they haven’t this season: six points against a conference foe.
The Galaxy and Minnesota prevented regular-season sweeps the past two weeks, dropping the Black & Gold to 0-5-2 in MLS matches against opponents they beat the first time around.
Prior to pausing the MLS calendar for the FIFA World Cup, an exhausted LAFC beat Seattle 1-0 at BMO Stadium.
Saturday’s muted LAFC drama is counteracted by Seattle’s do-or-die situation.
After opening the year 7-1-3, Seattle lost eight straight and has gone 4-9-7 since games resumed on July 16.
On the outside looking in, the 10th-place Sounders cannot afford to lose like LAFC on Fan Appreciation Day. If Seattle avoids that and a slew of other results fall in line, it will clinch an MLS Cup playoff berth for the 17th time in 18 seasons.
LAFC (12-10-11, 47 points) AT SEATTLE (11-12-10, 43 points)
Where: Lumen Field, Seattle
When: 4 p.m. Saturday
TV/Radio: Apple TV, Tubi/710 AM, ESPN LA App, 980 AM, 1230 AM, SiriusXM Ch. 95