MLS Cup hasn’t kicked off yet, but that isn’t stopping the teams from getting stuck in.
Speaking to reporters ahead of Saturday’s championship game (4:00pm Eastern, Fox/Univision/TUDN), Philadelphia Union captain Alejandro Bedoya offered a playful dig at Gareth Bale, whose fitness levels are unclear heading into the final.
The Union and LAFC haven’t squared off since May, and since then the Supporters’ Shield winners have added Bale, Giorgio Chiellini, Cristian Tello, and Designated Player Denis Bouanga.
Asked about how LAFC have looked since those moves, Bedoya couldn’t help but point out the major talking point when it comes to Bale’s time in MLS: he just hasn’t been on the field very much.
“Well, one of them barely plays,” deadpanned Bedoya. “He’s a big name. He’s a big guy, right? I mean, that’s a headline.”
Since making a stunning move to LAFC, Bale has played just 347 minutes, with only two starts among his 12 appearances. While that does mean he’s been in the large majority of the club’s 15 matches since making his debut on July 17, it also averages out to around 28 minutes per appearance.
Down the stretch, those figures have taken a nosedive. Bale’s last appearance was a five-minute cameo against the Portland Timbers on October 2. The Welsh star was not in uniform against Nashville SC on Decision Day or for LAFC’s bonkers 3-2 win over the LA Galaxy in the Western Conference semifinals. He did dress for the rampant win over Austin FC that booked their spot at MLS Cup, but was an unused substitute on the day.
Despite all that, and despite doubts over his own availability for the final, Bedoya praised Bale once the chuckles from media died down.
“No disrespect to Bale, he’s a fantastic player,” said Bedoya. “I’ll never forget that goal he scored when he was out of bounds, like five yards out of bounds and he just sprinted past and then was able to score the goal. He’s incredible.”
Bedoya name-checked Chiellini and MLS MVP candidate Cristian “Chicho” Arango as some of LAFC’s stars, before adding that he has a good relationship with head coach Steve Cherundolo dating back to their U.S. men’s national team days.
“I just saw Steve Cherundolo just now, I played with him on the national team,” noted Bedoya. “He was crucial to me during my time with the national team, because I played in front of him for some games, and I know how he sees the game, and just learning from the guy like him. So I’m happy for him in his first season as a head coach here, he’s in an MLS Cup final.”
Union have to ‘give them hell’
Bedoya also brought up recent meetings between the teams, which have tended to be as even as they’ve been entertaining.
Each of the last three clashes have ended in a draw, and the games have felt like two MLS titans duking it out. Back in May, the Union took the lead twice at the Banc of California Stadium, only for LAFC to fight back to equalize on both occasions in a 2-2 draw.
Just before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the two MLS Cup finalists played arguably the single best game in the league over the past three seasons, an epic 3-3 battle. The Union took three leads, only for LAFC to get level each time. That game might be best remembered for a Jakob Glesnes launching a missile of a free kick to score from 35 yards.
“I think we’ve given them some tough games,” said Bedoya. “I think some of the most exciting games in MLS, when you think about that 3-3 game, and then the 2-2 game we had earlier this year. We tied them at home too, 1-1. I mean, they’re always pretty exciting.”
For Bedoya, the key to a Union win boils down to which team can assert their style of play, and how hard Philadelphia can fight.
“We play our game, they have their game, it’s pretty much kind of different styles,” said Bedoya, noting that LAFC has become less possession-heavy under Cherundolo in 2022. “As long as we play our game, and our style, and give them hell, be hard to play against, I think we can get the job done.”
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