Recap of May 22, 2015 Match: LA Galaxy vs. Houston Dynamo
- Updated: May 27, 2015
(Photo via Twitter User @LAGalaxy)
On May 22, 2015, the LA Galaxy played against the Houston Dynamo for their second match-up of the 2015 MLS regular season. The two teams will meet again on July 25, 2015, at the BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, Texas. Coming off of a horrible defeat in their last match against Orlando City SC, the Galaxy fared much better against the Dynamo.
Starting Lineups and Substitutions
LA Galaxy | Houston Dynamo | ||||
18 | GK | Jaime Penedo | 1 | GK | Tyler Deric |
36 | D | Oscar Sorto | 7 | D | DaMarcus Beasley |
22 | D | Leonardo | 4 | D | Jermaine Taylor |
4 | D | Omar Gonzalez | 18 | D | David Horst |
23 | D | Dan Gargan | 5 | D | Raul Rodriguez |
6 | M | Baggio Husidic | 11 | M | Brad Davis |
19 | M | Juninho | 13 | M | Ricardo Clark |
3 | M | Mika Vayrynen | 8 | M | Luis Garrido |
24 | M | Stefan Ishizaki | 27 | M | Oscar Garcia |
5 | F | Jose Villarreal | 10 | F | Giles Barnes |
11 | F | Gyasi Zardes | 12 | F | Will Bruin |
12 | GK | Brian Rowe | 31 | GK | Joe Willis |
21 | D | Tommy Meyer | 2 | D | Kofi Sarkodie |
7 | M | Robbie Keane | 6 | M | Nathan Sturgis |
25 | M | Rafael Garcia | 15 | M | Alexander Lopez |
34 | M | Kenney Walker | 33 | M | Leonel Miranda |
15 | M | Ignacio Maganto | 17 | F | Chandler Hoffman |
9 | F | Alan Gordon | 3 | F | Rob Lovejoy |
In the days, hours, and minutes before this match, Galaxy fans worried about what might come next after May 17, 2015. Would the Galaxy change their luck? Would the Galaxy make it to the playoffs this season? These questions still cannot be answered, but the Galaxy made a bit of a turnaround after their first ever game against Orlando.
Oscar Sorto started in his first MLS game and played fairly well. Since his career for the LA Galaxy started in 2013, Sorto has played 104 minutes—89 of them on Saturday May 22. Unfortunately, the referee ejected the young player six minutes into stoppage time. Off a corner kick, Sorto scrambled with David Horst (Dynamo) for the ball and ended up tackling Horst. Some say it should have been a penalty kick, and some say Sorto only deserved a yellow card. It’s hard to say whether or not the referee made the correct call, but what’s done is done. Sorto is ineligible to play against Real Salt Lake, but we might see him return against the New England Revolution on May 31.
Robbie Keane returned during this game as a substitute, and he definitely brought some much-needed change to the Galaxy’s attitude. Having him back on the field, I think, served as a bit of motivation for the team because they’d gone so long without him.
While he’s not up to par yet, Keane still worked his magic. He assisted Alan Gordon’s game winning goal in the 90+2 minute. It started with a deep cross from Leonardo to Alan Gordon who headed the ball to Keane. After a rebound off a Dyanmo player, Ignacio Maganto passed the ball back to Keane who then served the ball over the defense. Gordon tapped the ball with his head and sent it right over Tyler Deric. Gordon once again proved his worth to the LA Galaxy! Even though Alan Gordon does not start frequently, I think he is much better suited to coming off the bench in the second half.
The LA Galaxy will play Real Salt Lake on May 27, 2015, in their second matchup of the season. In the first game on May 6, both teams left the game with one point after neither team scored. Four days later, the Galaxy will play the New England Revolution—a rematch of the 2014 MLS Cup. It’ll be the first time they’ve played each other since December 7, 2014, and the only 2015 MLS regular season match where they will meet.
Since the Galaxy has two games this week, they have a possibility of earning a maximum of six points. Can the LA Galaxy continue this momentum? Will they earn all six points?
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