Inside L.A. Galaxy's clever blueprint for shutting down Lionel Messi, Inter Miami
In a 1-1 draw Sunday against Lionel Messi-powered Inter Miami, the L.A. Galaxy showed it could compete against one of the league's better teams. It also showed a blueprint for how to defend against Inter Miami — a plan other MLS teams are sure to emulate.
Galaxy head coach Greg Vanney executed one of the greatest seasons in MLS history in 2017, when he earned a league title with Toronto FC. His secret? Beautiful, high-line, possession-based play in all circumstances.
"We have a way that we play," he told The Athletic in 2019. "You don't just get to throw guys onto the field. Those days of soccer in MLS are long gone, where it's just 11 against 11 and there aren't tactics and connections with players."
Vanney's recent signings for the Galaxy back up this philosophy. In 2024, he added Japanese fullback Miki Yamane, Ghanaian winger Joseph Paintsil and Brazilian midfielder Gabriel Pec — players who thrive in expansive, possession-based systems.
But when the Galaxy announced its starting lineup against Miami, things looked a bit ... different.
Gone were any notions of an attacking style. Vanney selected Maya Yoshida and Martin Caceres — veteran defenders with solid World Cup experience — over his younger, higher-pressing prospects. He also benched Pec for the reliable — and physical — Diego Fagundez.
One look at Inter Miami's first MLS game of the season, and it's easy to see why Vanney made the moves. Take a look at Miami's opening goal against Real Salt Lake.
Sergio Busquets got the ball in midfield and found Messi. Messi, seeing Robert Taylor running down the right flank, split the defense with a perfectly weighted pass. Taylor ran behind and slotted his shot underneath the outstretched goalkeeper.
Miami doesn't run through defenses. It finds space behind them.
The Galaxy countered that by offering no space for Miami to play into. Instead of pushing its defenders high up the field — a move Vanney would ordinarily choose to keep the game flowing — the Galaxy put its defense directly in front of goal, almost as if it was playing a game of Red Rover against the marauding Miami offense.
Veterans Yoshida and Caceres sometimes played so deep that they were right in line with their own goalkeeper.
No space behind the defense, no defense-splitting runs. The Galaxy countered Miami brilliantly and kept it from making much forward progress.
The Miami player who suffered the most in this environment was Busquets. To the naked eye, he had a horrible game against the Galaxy, and critics lambasted him on social media.
But it wasn't all Busquets' fault. The Galaxy made him look bad. Busquets thrives on placing passes into the opposition box for players such as Messi and Taylor. With no room in the box for Miami attackers, Busquets had nowhere to play the ball — and it showed.
Vanney's Galaxy are one of the most disciplined teams in MLS when it comes to style. It likes a high line, lots of possession and a clear focus on attack.
If the Galaxy can shun its principles to stifle Miami, perhaps others teams can, too. The Galaxy's clever tactics earned them a point Sunday and showed the league exactly how to defang Miami's star-studded lineup.
More must-reads: