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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Sport
Alexander Abnos, Graham Ruthven, Joseph Lowery and Jon Arnold

MLS talking points: LA Galaxy’s awful start, Messi the super sub and more

Goalkeeper, John McCarthy #77 of the LA Galaxy dives for the ball in front of teammate Mathias Jurgensen #5 during their regular season MLS match against the Orlando City SC on Saturday March 29, 2025 at Dignity Health Sports Park Stadium in Carson, California.
The Galaxy are enduring one of the worst starts to a title defense ever. Photograph: Javier Rojas/PI/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock

Defending champions in a rut

The LA Galaxy know how to win. Or at least, they knew how to win. While last season ended with the club clinching a league-record sixth MLS Cup, they’re now making a different sort of history. Winless through their first six games of the season, Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Orlando City means the Galaxy have made the worst start to a campaign of any defending MLS champion ever. They don’t put a star above the crest for that.

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