"El Trafico" is moving to Florida.
Perhaps the most anticipated match in the group stage of the "MLS is Back Tournament" happens Saturday night, when Los Angeles FC takes on the rival Los Angeles Galaxy near Orlando, Fla.
Though quite small in terms of sample size, this rivalry might be the most spirited in all of MLS. That's especially true when played at either side's home pitch. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, this season's first installment of "El Trafico" will be played within the confines of the "bubble" at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex during this World Cup-style tournament.
This match will also be quite different with LAFC superstar Carlos Vela not taking part in the tournament and Zlatan Ibrahimović no longer a member of the Galaxy. While LAFC is 0-2-3 all-time against the Galaxy during the regular season, it won 5-3 in the last season's highly anticipated playoff meeting.
At the moment, LAFC (1-0-2) is the only squad among the two that has a win this season. Down 3-1 at halftime against Houston on Monday, LAFC rallied back with goals by Diego Rossi in the 63rd minute and Brian Rodriguez six minutes later to finish 3-3.
"It was good to get back on the field, and I am very pleased that there were some moments of good football," LAFC manager Bob Bradley said. "Out ideas continue to go in a good direction."
The Galaxy (0-2-1), meanwhile, do not appear to be headed in the right direction, and could be in danger of not making it into the knockout round of the tournament if they don't turn things around. After opening with a 1-1 draw at Houston, Los Angeles lost 1-0 to Vancouver and 2-1 versus Portland in its first match of this event on Tuesday.
Though Chicharito finally scored his first goal with the Galaxy, it came in the 88th minute of a 2-0 game against Portland. Of course, the more glaring moment for the Mexican superstar came in the 12th minute when he failed on a penalty attempt that would have opened the scoring and given his team some confidence.
Instead, the Galaxy could not rebound from that missed opportunity and eventually lost points once again.
"Soccer, sometimes is about momentum," Chicharito told the Galaxy's official website. "Physically, we were prepared, but I think mentally, all of us, even myself, we need to overcome that…We finished the game how we're supposed to start."
Now, Chicharito looks to help his team bounce back while taking part in his first "El Trafico."
Meanwhile, Rossi aims to continue his strong start that's produced a goal in each of the last two matches. He's posted a goal with three assists in six career games against the Galaxy.