Group D Preview: Can star-studded LA Galaxy get MLS over the hump? | CCL

This is the Group D preview as the 2015-16 CONCACAF Champions League gets underway on Aug. 4-6. For comprehensive CONCACAF Champions League coverage, bookmark this page.

LA Galaxy | HOW QUALIFIED: 2014 MLS Cup Champions | PREVIOUS BEST: Semifinals (Most recent: 2013-14)

Comunicaciones | HOW QUALIFIED: 2014 Apertura/2015 Clausura Champions | PREVIOUS BEST: Quarterfinals (Most recent: 2014-15)

Central FC | HOW QUALIFIED: 2015 CFU Club Championship winners | PREVIOUS BEST: First appearance

DAVID AND GOLIATH

Group D may be a group of champions, but heading into the tournament there are two vastly experienced powerhouses in their respective countries – LA Galaxy and Guatemala’s Comunicaciones – and a real newcomer, Trinidad & Tobago’s Central FC. The Caribbean club have gone through a remarkable rise since being founded in 2012, winning the TT Pro League title and the CFU Club Championship (a mini Champions League among Caribbean teams) this year.

Smart money says the Galaxy are frontrunners, with Comunicaciones more than capable of springing a shock in the group. But can Central continue their remarkable rise with a real upset or two along the way?

SCHEDULE

STAR POWER

Jose Villarreal, LA Galaxy: Given prior history, LA coach Bruce Arena will likely use nearly all of his squad across the group stage. One of the players who could play the most CCL minutes is Villarreal, who fought his way back into the mix earlier this season and has looked good. With the likes of Steven Gerrard and Giovani Dos Santos joining a stacked roster, Villarreal may be the odd man out in league play, so getting minutes in the CCL could help him build a case for Arena to squeeze him into the lineup once more.

Rolando Blackburn, Comunicaciones: The Panamanian international is coming off a Gold Cup tournament where he didn’t see a lot of playing time, but he’s settled in well with his Guatemalan club. After scoring four goals for Comunicaciones in the last edition of the CCL, Blackburn will be expected to add to that total this time around.

X-FACTOR

Could the final matchday, featuring the Galaxy traveling to Guatemala City to play Comunicaciones, be the decider for the group? On paper, the Galaxy appear to be clear favorites in the group, but as we’ve seen in the three-team group format, the margin for error is razor-thin. If the knockout stage berth comes down to these two teams, the final group game in Central America, coming immediately prior to MLS Decision Day, could suddenly become a daunting task for the Galaxy.

MLS/US CONNECTIONS

Central FC captain Sean de Silva played collegiately at the College of Charleston and for Minnesota United before returning to his native T&T … Fellow Central FC player Uriah Bentick also previously played in the US, for Liberty University, the Wilmington Hammerheads and the Carolina RailHawks … Defender Yohance Marshall, who played at the University of South Florida, played for the Galaxy (2009-10) and helped Central FC qualify for the Champions League in 2014 but has since moved on to Juventud Independiente in El Salvador …Retired Guatemalan midfielder Martin Machon played for both Comunicaciones (1994-97, 2002-06) and the LA Galaxy (1997-98).

CAN THE GALAXY WIN IT ALL?

The Galaxy appear to have the right combination of talent, potential and depth to make them the clear favorites among MLS teams. They’ve been struggling on the road in league play this season, however, and fully integrating all the new arrivals this summer into the lineup while playing in the CCL won’t be easy. As ever with MLS teams, the trick to having a shot at CCL glory is to win the group to advance, accumulate enough points to earn a high seed (and second-leg home game) in the knockout rounds next spring and hit the ground running after a short preseason. The Galaxy certainly are capable of riding that wave of skill and luck.