Ashley Cole attempts a header deep in the SKC penalty area in the second half.
By Ivan Yeo
Sporting Kansas City relied on a combination of things on Saturday night.
West-leading Kansas City relied on a combination of a little bit of luck and also some individual brilliance in its match against the Los Angeles Galaxy at StubHub Center. A fortunate bounce on its first goal followed by a spectacular second goal by Ike Opara was all SKC needed to hold off the LA Galaxy for a 2-1 win on Saturday night.
“It’s always good to get three points wherever you are, home or away,” SKC head coach Peter Vermes said. “I thought we’ve had a couple of games at home where we gave up a few points to where we should’ve gotten three, not one. Getting this game on the road makes up for a little bit of that.”
The win by Kansas City (8-4-6, 30 points) leaves them with some separation between them and Houston for the top spot in the West, as SKC is now five points clear of the Dynamo. Despite the loss and its now 1-4-3 home record, the Galaxy (6-6-4, 22 points) are still in a playoff spot, though Seattle and Vancouver are hot on their trail. The Sounders are a point back of LA while the Whitecaps are two back.
The first big moment occurred in the 23rd minute. Espinoza received a ball from Fernandes, Espinoza took a few touches before firing what looked liked a harmless howler right at goal. Diop attempted to stop the ball, only to see it deflect off his firsts and into the back net, leaving Diop immediately distraught by what had just happened.
“My focus is not good and there is no else to blame,” Diop said.
Ashley Cole was the first of Diop’s teammates to console him after the gaffe.
“It happens. I’ve seen it happen to the best goalkeepers in the world,” Cole said. “Even as defenders, we make mistakes and you kind of get punished, and it’s even worse for a goalkeeper. Might as well keep your head up. He’s made some important saves for us this season and last season.”
Kansas City added a second tally in the 35th minute. Graham Zusi sent a free kick into the LA penalty area, Cole headed the ball out, Matt Besler collected the ball and sent a long ball right back into the box. Opara timed his run accordingly and thus was able to slip behind the Galaxy backline, but found himself a little ahead of the ball when it bounced. Diop came off his line, but Opara turned and made a bicycle kick that got past Opara and into the back net, stunning the Galaxy and the crowd at StubHub.
“I guess at the moment, I’m only scoring good goals, or crazy goals,” Opara said. “It was a decent ball from Bes (Matt Besler) to create some havoc, and I just wanted to time it. I didn’t think I was going to be able to get power from my head, so I just wanted to let it bounce at attempt and see what happens.”
Despite getting outplayed in the first half, the Galaxy looked much better in the second half. LA cut into Kansas City’s lead in the 77th minute, and it started when Romain Alessandrini sent a corner into the penalty area, Jose Villarreal’s header was parried off the crossbar by keeper Jon Kempin. The ball however stayed in the box, Dave Romney headed a ball towards goal, the ball crossed the goal line, and while it took a while to confirm the goal, it was confirmed following a brief get-together between ref Baldomero Toledo and the linesman. Despite the brief scare, Kansas City was able to hold on for the win.
“We dug a really big hole for ourselves, but credit to the team for the second half,” Galaxy head coach Curt Onalfo said. “The effort, the tired legs, the quality amount of possession, the amount of chances we created, I thought we came very close.”
There will be no rest for the weary as far as LA is concerned. First it’s a US Open Cup match against Sacramento Republic FC at the StubHub Center track and field facility on Wednesday, followed by its annual pre-4th of July showdown against the San Jose Earthquakes up north at Stanford Stadium. After that, it just two days rest before its annual Independence Day match against Real Salt Lake.
