Zlatan upstages Vela as the LA Galaxy beat LAFC 3-2

Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s hat-trick helped the Los Angeles Galaxy beat Los Angeles Football Club 3-2 on Friday, leaving Carlos Vela and company still searching for their first win in “El Tráfico”.

LAFC roared into the lead after just four minutes when Carlos Vela was tripped inside the box by Galaxy goalkeeper David Bingham. Vela made no mistake from the spot, drilling his shot for an early LAFC advantage.

But the LA Galaxy replied almost immediately through a stunning Zlatan Ibrahimovic goal. The 37-year-old gathered a pass between two LAFC defenders and then half-volleyed a shot into the back of the net.

The Galaxy created further chances, including a brilliant save from Tyler Miller on a Favio Alvarez header.

The Galaxy returned from the break with no signs of complacency and took the lead in the 56th minute when Zlatan Ibrahimovic netted his second goal of the night from a Diego Polenta cross.

LAFC then got a sniff of the equalizer after a corner ended with Diego Rossi hitting the side of the crossbar.

Despite Rossi’s chance, it was the Galaxy who showed more glimpses of fluidity, and they would capitalize moments later. From the edge of the box, Zlatan would blast the ball past Tyler Miller for his third goal of the night and his hat-trick.

The Galaxy looked set for a convincing victory, but in the dying moments of the game, Carlos Vela would find himself with an opportunity inside the box to put the score at 3-2.

At the end, however, his goal would only serve as decoration, with the Galaxy taking another “El Tráfico” victory.