Riqui Puig is impossible to replace — but here's how the LA Galaxy are trying anyway

If you’re like me, the news that Riqui Puig will miss all of the 2027 season floored you. 

Let’s rewind to 2024. The 25-year-old midfielder was in the midst of an incredible 13 goal, nine assist season, leading the LA Galaxy to a second-place finish in the Western Conference. He hit another level in the postseason, notching four goals and three assists in four matches, including a match-winning assist in the dying minutes of the Western Conference final to propel the Galaxy to MLS Cup.

And then the cameras picked up Puig sobbing, head covered in a towel, being consoled by head coach Greg Vanney. And then the unbelievable news that he’d not only torn his ACL, but played the final 30 minutes of a conference final on one leg.

The Galaxy fittingly won MLS Cup. Puig hit the rehab hard, initially optimistic that he could play at some point in 2025, but eventually pushed back to 2026. MLS is a more entertaining league when Puig is on the pitch, and having him light up the league on the opposite coast to Lionel Messi in a World Cup year was ideal.

And then the even more unbelievable news broke: Puig tore his ACL. Again.

Riqui Puig is impossible to replace

He’ll miss all of the 2026 season, set to return ahead of the 2027 spring sprint season. Two years out with an injury is absolutely devastating for any player, especially one as influential as Puig. It’s also devastating for the Galaxy, who – more than any team in MLS – built their on-field identity atop of one player.