The LA Galaxy came back from behind to defend their undefeated streak at Dignity Health Sports Park against Chivas Guadalajara.
Chivas will be disappointed to have been knocked out of Leagues Cup while Greg Vanney will be satisfied to have won despite experimenting with the lineup.
The Leagues Cup continues proving to be an “interesting” tournament. From host clubs playing away at their own stadiums, to group-topping teams getting rewarded with additional travel, little is ever as it seems with this tournament.
That was very much the case throughout the most recent match as the LA Galaxy played visitor to Chivas Guadalajara at Dignity Health Sports Park. The Mexican fans made DHSP their home as about two-thirds of the 25,174 sell-out crowd was dressed in white and red.
Motivated by their supporters and the obligation to win in order to advance after losing to the San Jose Earthquakes on penalties, Chivas started the match at top-speed.
Greg Vanney lined up with a new-look back five made up of John Nelson, Martin Cáceres, Eriq Zavaleta, Emiro Gárces, and Mauricio Cuevas. Together they faced the brunt of Chivas’s desperation, as the rebaño pressed intensely to put pressure on Novak Micovic’s goal.
They wouldn’t have to wait long to see their pressure bear fruit as Mozo Alan found himself in an excellent spot to take a shot from close range in the ninth minute and give Chivas the early lead.
The goal seemed to wake up the Galaxy who responded with a goal of their own not two minutes later. They recreated Miguel Berry’s late winner against San Jose, but this time they played on the ground. Riqui Puig drew a perfect line with a cross-field pass to Mauricio Cuevas, who took a touch, lifted his head, and found Joseph Paintsil across the box to put the Galaxy level 1-1 in the eleventh minute.
From there the onus was once again on Chivas to bring the game to the Galaxy and they obliged relentlessly. Their high-press kept Los Angeles pinned into their own half for essentially the rest of the first half.
Vanney’s side stuck to its principles and continued trying to play out from the back but they were simply unable to break past Guadalajara’s midfield. For their part, Chivas were looking extremely threatening. Their combination play around the Galaxy’s box allowed them to slip in between the back five and test Micovic on multiple occasions.
Thanks to a combination of luck, poor finishing, and fantastic goalkeeping, the first half ended level at a goal apiece. Chivas’s dominance would continue into the second half, requiring more interventions from Micovic and the crossbar to prevent them from finding their second.
In a seemingly cruel twist of fate, the LA Galaxy scored the next goal completely against the run of play. Gabriel Pec looked all too aware that football rewards those who take their chances as he finished a counter attack with a beautiful shot into the bottom-corner from his favorite left foot in the 67th minute.
With the score 2-1 in favor of the Galaxy, Chivas felt even more pressure to find another goal. Even as the game opened up slightly in the Galaxy’s favor, Guadalajara kept coming until the 91st minute.
Their 20th and final shot of the game came just as regulation time was turning into injury time. Cade Cowell forced himself into a great position in the box to get his head to a cross first and place it just past the stand-out Micovic.
The stadium erupted and remained noisy until all six minutes of additional time were played and the teams began preparing for penalties.
The LA Galaxy enjoyed the luxury of knowing they were through to the next round regardless of the result while Chivas remained in a do-or-die scenario.
Fans in the Galaxy supporter’s section got a fantastic view of the shootout. They cheered as Gabriel Pec scored the first penalty and held their breath when Fagundez’s effort was saved. Chivas took the lead with a bit of luck on the following penalty as Micovic dived while the ball rocketed off of the crossbar and onto his back and into the goal.
Mark Delgado, Joseph Paintsil, and Riqui Puig scored the Galaxy’s remaining penalties. The pipes came into play once more but this time in favor of Los Angeles as Omar Govea hit the post on Chivas’s fourth penalty, leaving both sides level with four penalties each after five attempts.
Miki Yamane took the first sudden-death penalty for the Galaxy in typically composed fashion. He took his time with the run-up before passing the ball in the opposite direction of Chivas keeper Raúl Rangel’s dive. Gilberto Sepúlveda stepped up next for Guadalajara, needing to score to keep his side alive.
Unfortunately for him the giant Novak Micovic was in the way and got two strong hands behind the penalty to give the LA Galaxy the win after a topsy-turvy affair.
As the leaders of their group the LA Galaxy have earned the privilege of traveling to Seattle to face the Sounders in the Round of 32. Greg Vanney reported after the match that Emiro Gárces and Diego Fagundez both left the game with a rolled ankle and ankle contusion respectively, leaving their availability to that game in question. Regardless, the Galaxy have proven they have what it takes to overcome hostile environments and will be a team to look out for in the races for both the Leagues and MLS Cups.
PHOTO: LA Galaxy
The post LA Galaxy Try Something New and Find New Ways to Win appeared first on Los Angeles Sports Nation.