Training notes | Matchday 23

Cherundolo, who has played in the Bundesliga for 19 years and has witnessed dozens of rematches between his former club Hannover 96 and arch-rival Eintracht Braunschweig, was asked Thursday if LAFC-Galaxy was the best derby in MLS. “For me, it is hands down,” he said. “LA is a sports city and there’s one club that I think has won the most championships – traditionally the best club over the 28 years – and LAFC has been very strong over the last seven years. That makes it really interesting. I think also the history of the fans, both sets of fans are from LA – one from LA, the other from a little outside, but LA is pretty big, so I guess you could say that – that makes it very interesting. For me, it’s the biggest rivalry.”

“It’s like a final,” LAFC striker Denis Bouanga said in French, referring to the added atmosphere of a stadium that holds more than 100,000. “There’s nothing different about that, it’s just the two teams on the field. We want to win on Thursday. Last time (at the 2023 Rose Bowl), they won. So we hope we can win the second battle and continue what we did in the first half of the season.”

Sánchez added: “We want to convey to our fans the satisfaction and joy they feel when they can say that we are the best team in the city.”