Jelle Van Damme went 64 minutes in his LA Galaxy debut on Tuesdan.
By Ivan Yeo
The moment the Los Angeles Galaxy had anticipated finally arrived on Tuesday night.
The Galaxy finally got in two new editions to the back line, Ashley Cole and Jelle Van Damme. And, while one game, particularly a friendly match against Club Tijuana may not have been enough of a sample size, Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena was satisfied with what he got from his two new players on Tuesday night at StubHub Center.
“It was okay. I haven’t played a competitive match in a long time so I thought it went alright,” Cole said. “I’m not a 100 percent fit yet, so hopefully in the next game I can play some more minutes and get ready for the start of the season.”
The two defenders made the routine plays on the Galaxy backline on Tuesday, marking their markers, recovering on defense, and making key plays on defense. Van Damme looked as solid as one could look in a debut match, asserting himself in the air and keeping his marker in sight. Van Damme did get himself in the score sheet, but not in a good way, as he was yellow-carded in the 37th minute as he went up for a ball, but also hit Armando Moreno from behind.
“This one was more difficult since we were playing at a real stadium,” Van Damme said. “The feeling is better; it feels more like a real game. I felt good and confident. ”
Cole also looked solid at the left back spot, breaking up plays and generating some counterattacks. Cole made one impressive move in the first half when he chased down an open ball towards the left touch line, Tijuana’s Hiram Munoz and Miguel Rodriguez chased down the ball as well and attempted to trap Cole, but the left back took the ball to the touch line, then nutmegged Munoz, thus freeing himself to lead an attack. The sequence didn’t amount to much, but Cole in that sequence provided a glimpse into the quality that he displayed in Europe that the Galaxy are still hoping is there this season.
“I felt okay. The more games I get under my belt the more confident I’ll get to how I know I can play because that was a problem before and I lost a bit of confidence,” Cole said. “I think the confidence will come and I think my teammates have been very helpful and welcoming and I hope we can win some trophies.”
Cole played 58 minutes on the night and Van Damme went 64 minutes. The remaining starters also played significant minutes in the second half, which would be considered unusual for a friendly match in pre-season, but with an all-important CONCACAF Champions League series against Santos Laguna set to kick off starting on Feb.24, Arena felt it necessary to get the legs of his regulars underneath them as much as he can, which he will have another opportunity to do on Saturday, as they play another exhibition against the Earthquakes in San Jose.
“I think you saw it for yourself. They were settled. They settled in for us very quickly,” Robbie Keane said. “You could see the team is starting to get in a bit of a rhythm and we’re only two games in. But, we need to get those minutes in because we have a big game in two weeks’ time.”
So the anticipation for Cole and Van Damme has passed for now. There is another anticipated arrival on the way in Nigel De Jong, and Arena said he should arrive this week. Nevertheless, the first two big editions to the Galaxy backline got to show themselves to the fanbase on Tuesday night, and while still early, Cole and Van Damme showed they will do whatever it takes to help the Galaxy contribute in 2016.
