His team is the best in MLS with the most goals scored (36), the fewest goals conceded (11), and a goal differential better (+25) than every other team in the Western Conference... combined. But do you want to know where Bob Bradley's head is at right now?
"We don't have any trophies yet," Bradley said when asked about his team's pursuit of history after defeating the Montreal Impact 4-2 on Friday night.
Going back to the way Bradley started his press conference that night provides a pretty good window into the mentality he's trying to create within his team.
"Very good first half. Didn't like the way we finished the game at all," Bradley said. "Talk about the first half, I thought the energy was good, I think we still found good ways to go forward and score some good goals. Started the game in a good way, pushed up the field, and put pressure on them.
"Still for the game, there's advantages where our final play still needed to get better. I think that's always something that even the best teams look at when you create a lot of chances, even when you score a lot of goals, you think about all the chances when you don't do well enough."
That pursuit of perfect is a constant from Banc of California to the training ground at the Performance Center. Good, even pretty good for that matter, just isn't good enough. Which is why Bradley vented a bit of frustration after his team gave up two late goals in the last match.
Now, with a difficult trip to Portland on the horizon (Sat., June 1 at 7:30pm on ESPN2), Bradley knows his players will need to be at their absolute best to extend their recent form of seven matches unbeaten.
"I think anyone that's ever been to Portland knows that the atmosphere is fantastic and if you take into account that it's their home opener after 12 games, you can multiply it by 10 or 20," Bradley said as he spoke after training of the upcoming match. "We know that we're going into a tough place.
"But all players love going there and love the idea that you're going to really be up to that challenge."
News & Notes
- Eddie Segura celebrated twice on Friday. The defender helped lead LAFC to its 10th victory of the season in the evening. Prior to the match, Segura married his longtime girlfriend Camila in a small ceremony in Los Angeles. The couple was joined by their young son Martín at the ceremony.
- Carlos Vela has continued his blistering pace this season with his 15th goal in 15 matches in the 4-2 win over Montreal. The MVP frontrunner set another record as the first MLS player with 24 combined goals and assists through the first 15 matches to start a season. The previous record was 21.
- Steven Beitashour missed Friday's match due to a hamstring strain. Asked about the defender's availability against Portland, Bob Bradley said Beitashour would not be an option in the match. LAFC has just two regular-season matches in June and they are separated by nearly four weeks. The team is in no hurry to rush the defender back.
