At age 35, Marco Reus is just one game away from winning his first ever league title.
Six months ago, Reus ended his 12-year senior career with Borussia Dortmund on the wrong side of another Champions League final. Real Madrid celebrated its 15th UCL title just yards away from where the German bid farewell to his time in a black and yellow shirt.
Finishing as a runner-up in his final appearance for Dortmund encapsulated Reus's entire career with the Bundesliga giants. The Dortmund native signed with his hometown club in 2012 and recorded 301 goal contributions in his 429 appearances over the next 12 years. Despite winning two German Cups, two DFB-Pokal titles and the DFL-Supercup, Reus never added a Champions League or a Bundesliga title to his trophy cabinet. In fact, he finished second in the Bundesliga times and lost two Champions League finals.
Of course coming up short in the Champions League is heartbreaking enough, but perhaps no campaign delivered a harsher blow than Dortmund's failure to win the Bundesliga in 2023. Reus could do nothing but watch from the bench as Dortmund only managed a draw with VfL Bochum 1848 on the final matchday of the season, handing Bayern Munich what should have been BVB's title.
Fast forward a year and a half later, Reus is now on the cusp of yet another league title. But this time, he is playing with an LA Galaxy crest on his shirt. The midfielder signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with the winningest team in Major League Soccer back in August. Reus followed the footsteps of David Beckham, Lionel Messi, Gareth Bale and more as he headed to the United States after a career at the top of Europe.
Although he did not join LA Galaxy with an overflowing trophy cabinet like Beckham, Reus came with plenty of individual accolades. The midfielder was named Bundesliga Player of the Year on three separate occasions and also was recognized as German Footballer of the Year in 2012 and 2019.
It did not take long for Reus to hit the ground running in Los Angeles. The 35-year-old recorded a goal and an assist in his debut for the Galaxy in just 28 minutes on the pitch. Reus would go on to make five more appearances for Greg Vanney's side before experiencing his first ever MLS Cup playoffs. Much like his debut, his postseason berth with LA Galaxy is turning out to be another dream.
LA Galaxy made their first MLS Cup final since 2014 after securing two victories over Colorado Rapids in a best-of-three series in Round One, a 6–2 rout against Minnesota United in the Western Conference semifinals and a 1–0 win over Seattle Sounders in the Western Conference final.
Reus shined against Minnesota United, playing 69 minutes and bagging an assist along the way. The German earned his second consecutive postseason start in the following match, but had to come off at halftime due to a groin injury.
Injuries have plagued Reus throughout his entire career, relegating him to the sidelines time and time again. Just days before the 2014 FIFA World Cup, he suffered an ankle injury and had to withdraw from Germany's squad. Joachim Löw's team would go on to win the tournament. Reus, once again, was denied a piece of silverware.
Reus's current groin injury, though, does not appear to be serious enough to rule the midfielder out for the MLS Cup final. Without Riqui Puig, who tore his ACL in the Western Conference final, available, Vanney will need to call on Reus in the midfield against New York Red Bulls.
LA Galaxy come into the final as the favorites to lift the Philip F. Anschutz Trophy over the No. 7 seed, but the 2024 MLS Cup playoffs have proven that anything can happen over the course of 90 minutes. Reus, perhaps better than anyone, knows the harsh reality of finishing as a runner-up, and it will be on him and his teammates to avoid an upset against Red Bulls.
Reus might have imagined winning his first league title for his boyhood club, but helping secure LA Galaxy's record-sixth MLS Cup would etch his name in MLS history.
