Emmanuel Boateng was one of the few bright spots for the LA Galaxy on Saturday afternoon.
By Ivan Yeo
If Saturday’s game was any indication, the 2017 Los Angeles Galaxy have a lot of things to work on.
The new-look Galaxy finally got a chance to showcase themselves to their fans for the start of the season. However, after 90 minutes against FC Dallas on Saturday, which ended with a 2-1 loss, it appears it may take LA a while to get some chemistry established.
“Definitely frustrating,” Galaxy keeper Brian Rowe said. “I think we could have managed the game better and not put ourselves in that situation, to scramble to get a goal at the end.”
It will take a while, in part because the Galaxy were missing a few starters on Saturday. Striker Gyasi Zardes is still out with his foot injury and full backs Ashley Cole and Robbie Rogers are also still nursing injuries. Still, it appears that the Galaxy may need more time to get into a rhythm of sorts, particularly once Zardes, Cole and Rogers come back and have to blend in with the current Galaxy players.
Dallas clearly had the fresher legs on Saturday, having played a CCL match in Panama a few days earlier. Despite the short rest in between games, Dallas took the match to LA just two minutes into the second half, as Max Urruti sprinted for the penalty area virtually unmarked. Urruti then took a shot despite Jelle Van Damme’s last-minute defending and his shot beat keeper Brian Rowe far post for the game’s first goal.
LA did show some flashes of how good they can become from that point on. LA got its chance, starting in the 52nd minute when Dave Romney was fouled by Hernan Garcia from behind inside the penalty area and referee Kevin Stott awarded LA the penalty. Giovani Dos Santos stepped up the buried the penalty to the upper left corner for the equalizer.
The Galaxy were the aggressors from that point on, creating a flurry of chances, hoping to grab the two points. LA’s inconsistency however, came back to bite them again in the 69th minute, when Kellyn Acosta, after receiving a pass from Ronald Lamah, took a chance and made the most of it, getting a quick touch before taking a shot that snuck past Rowe near post.
“I think it’s still a work in progress,” Jones said. “If you watch the whole game, we controlled the game pretty good and gave up a dumb goal, we came back and at 1-1 we had a lot of chances, but we don’t put them in. And then, from a throw in, they come back with a shot.
Another bright spot for the Galaxy on Saturday was Van Damme, who showed that he will probably be just as vital for the Galaxy as he was last season. Van Damme displayed his usual defending and ability to be a threat forward, and also had a key play for LA in the first half, as Lamah crossed into the penalty area, Acosta missed on a header, but the ball fell to Michael Barrios and with Rowe having been drawn out, Barrios shot for the open net, but Van Damme cleared the ball at the line, saving a goal for the Galaxy.
“Try to do my best every game and give it my all,” Van Damme said. “I think that’s the minimum you can do as a player. It’s an honor to be captain. On my previous team, I was captain before. I try to give 100 percent every game.”
Surely you can’t draw conclusions after just one game, especially the season-opening game. LA is without three key pieces, the Galaxy have always started out seasons slow and Saturday’s game surely indicates that that tradition will likely be upheld. The obvious difference though between this season and past seasons is that the Galaxy in the past, under the steady hand of Bruce Arena and players such as Robbie Keane and Landon Donovan, just to name a few, have always found ways to get things right at the right time. You always knew the Galaxy were lurking somewhere, waiting to get things going. This time though, people will be wondering if Curt Onalfo will have what it takes to steer the Galaxy through the rough waters.
