ClapThe legend of Carlos Vela continues to grow with each and every passing week, and that’s no exaggeration. The Mexican sensation is quite easily one of the best forwards in the history of Major League Soccer, and he hasn’t even really been around for that long.
His debut season left many fans and pundits wondering what he would be able to produce this year, and so far, we think it’s safe to say that he’s lived up to the hype.
He has now brought himself to 26 goals for the season in the MLS, as reported by Goal and GiveMeSport, with two strikes yesterday in LAFC’s decisive 4-0 win getting him to that point.
The train never stops
Now, at this stage of the season, it’s time to get selfish. Los Angeles are clearly on their way towards the regular season title and a pretty good spot in the playoffs. In terms of personal goals, though, Vela is just five goals away from breaking the record that was set by Josef Martinez last season: 31 goals.
It’s the kind of total that a lot of folks probably thought would take much longer to break, but this is no regular guy. He is in the prime of his career and he is taking this opportunity with both hands, to the point where we’d probably be more surprised if he didn’t break the record than if he did.
Everything about his game seems to improve with each and every game, and that rarely happens when you’ve been playing the game for as long as he has.
While a lot of people would probably prefer for him to focus on the task at hand for LAFC as opposed to the Golden Boot race, it must be hard to do so when you’re playing at the top of your game like he is.
How far can he go?
Plus, one of the goals he scored last night was so ridiculous that we had to pinch ourselves to even make sure it was real. He was able to weave in and out of several players before simply tapping the ball into the back of the net, humiliating the opposition in the process – which he’s done on more than a few occasions this season.
His attitude, too, is so professional when you consider what he could be like (and yes, we’re pointing our finger squarely in the direction of the other guy over with the Galaxy).
You could argue that the pressure is on him more than ever now, but his legacy has already been secured. There are certain forwards that go above and beyond in this league and do things that will ensure they’re remembered forever, and Carlos is a part of that elite class.
If you’re looking into the possibility of placing a bet or two once the actual MLS Cup playoffs roll around, you could do a lot worse then putting your trust into LAFC.
There are other options out there, as we all know, but they’re looking strong.
