Breaks finally go LA Galaxy's way
First league win since July 4 a matter of inches
The club's last win in MLS play came back on July 4 against Chicago. Between that 2-0 win and Saturday, the Galaxy had played eight league games, dropping six and drawing twice.
But the victory against the Rapids didn't come out of the blue. In their last two matches the Galaxy had shown very well, but didn't come away with a result. Against Pachuca in the SuperLiga final, the Galaxy went to penalty kicks before losing. Then in their return to league play last week, they held an early lead against Real Salt Lake and dominated the game, but allowed two goals in quick succession for the loss.
Saturday, the bounces went the Galaxy's way.
"Tonight was a good night for us. I think we did well in most departments," said Galaxy head coach Frank Yallop. "Obviously getting the three points was the most crucial thing for tonight."
The three points came by virtue of the attack getting untracked. In recent weeks the Galaxy had been creating chances, but not putting them away. After a scoreless first half it looked as though it might be more of the same for LA, but just seconds into the second Gordon scored the game's opening goal. That sparked the Galaxy to life and provided the confidence needed to add a couple more.
"It's been a matter of inches pretty much for the most part of the season," said Martino about the team's struggles to score, "things not connecting, things being just off, the goalkeeper making a save or hitting the post. It's good to get the monkey off my back personally and get the three points that we really feel lately we deserved."
The entire Galaxy locker room seemed to have breathed a huge sigh of relief after the triumph. It relieved a lot of pressure for a team that was desperate for a result to go in their favor.
"It's been a while. It's not been easy," said Yallop about the team's recent struggles. "What I like about our players and the club as a whole is nobody has dropped their heads. I think we showed that in the performances we've had the last two games. In the end we got a good result tonight and it's been coming for a while I think. It was good to nearly get a clean sheet. It was a good three goals and good home win for us. It feels good."
That the Galaxy got the win with so many players missing made it that much sweeter. The list of players who weren't available included David Beckham, Landon Donovan, Chris Albright, Ante Jazic, Kelly Gray, Troy Roberts and Quavas Kirk. At least five of those players would surely have been starters if available.
"With seven guys missing I think we put in a great performance tonight. You have to give credit to all the guys in the locker room," said Joe Cannon. "We still made it a bit interesting at the end, like we always found a way to do this year, but at the same time it was good to get three points."
The Galaxy did give up an 89th-minute goal and allowed Colorado to take the game to them at the end, but overall, the defense was well organized throughout and limited Colorado's chances.
There will be little chance of a letdown in their next game either, as the Galaxy take on Chivas USA in the final Super Clasico of the season. The Galaxy are 12 points out of the final playoff spot with 10 games to play -- but they have three games in hand on Chicago, the current eighth-place club. The big picture looks bleak, but with Saturday's win there is at least a foundation to build on over the final third of the season.
Greg Daurio is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
