CARSON, Calif. (AP) — Dejan Joveljic scored his fifth goal of the playoffs in the 86th minute and the LA Galaxy advanced to the MLS Cup final for the first time since 2014 with a 1-0 victory over the Seattle Sounders in the Western Conference final on Saturday night.
The Galaxy will host the New York Red Bulls in next Saturday’s MLS Cup final. The Red Bulls became the lowest-seeded to play for the title with a 1-0 victory over Orlando City in the Eastern Conference final.
The Red Bulls were the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference.
It will be a record 10th MLS Cup appearance for the Galaxy, who have won five titles. The Red Bulls are making their second trip after losing to the Columbus Crew in 2008.
“I’m super excited for these guys to lift a trophy but the objective is one week away. As one game ends, the anxiety for the next game emerges,” Galaxy coach Greg Vanney said.
Joveljic's goal was set up when the Galaxy intercepted the pass near the sideline. Mark Delgado got the ball and passed to Riqui Puig, who fed it to Joveljic at the top of the box. Joveljic then beat Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei with a shot to the near left post.
It was Puig's seventh goal contribution this postseason (four goals, three assists).
“I’m very happy and proud. This is the most important goal in my professional career,” said Joveljic, who has 20 goals across all competitions. “I knew the goalkeeper was going to make one step to his left. He almost made the save. I was a little bit lucky.”
John McCarthy made four saves for his eighth shutout this season across all competitions. Frei also stopped four shots. The Galaxy had a 13-8 advantage in shots.
“We did enough to not lose the game, but we didn’t do enough to win the game," Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan said. “What we saw tonight was what happened all year. We were struggling to generate chances.”
The Galaxy were the second seed in the Western Conference after not making the playoffs last year. They beat Colorado in two games in the first round and defeated Minnesota 6-2 last Sunday.
The Galaxy and Red Bulls did not face each other during the regular season.
This will be Vanney's sixth trip to an MLS Cup final. He made three with the Galaxy as a player and led Toronto FC to two as a coach, including a win over Seattle in the 2017 final.
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AP MLS: https://apnews.com/hub/major-league-soccer
Joe Reedy, The Associated Press
