An Uncertain Future for the Galaxy

After what was felt to be a valiant fight for the short-handed LA Galaxy against cross-town rivals LAFC, the test proved to be too much.

A 2-0 loss, a missing designated player, and the body language of coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto as he walked off of the field after the game said it all.

His head was down, with a dejected look on his face that signaled the aura of a man whose otherwise most storied MLS team continue sitting dead last in the Western Conference standings.

From the onset, LAFC dictated the tempo of the game. They were able to cut and weave through the Galaxy midfield and defense easily, dominating possession throughout the match. In the early minutes, the Galaxy were lucky not to be behind after Diego Rossi was set up with a nice play right outside of the box, seeing his shot hit the crossbar.

Right around the 25^th minute of play, a penalty kick was called in favor of LAFC, and a red card is shown for Galaxy center-back Giancarlo Gonzalez as he clipped Diego Rossi, denying a goal-scoring opportunity. After video review, the penalty was waived-off but the red card still stood. The Galaxy’s battle continued as they were down to 10 men. Nick Depuy came on for Yony Gonzalez in the 31^st as a tactical change in order to stabilize the defense.

The controversy came in the 58^th minute after a ball that appeared to be out for a corner at the other end for the LA Galaxy was not called, and a quick build-up play saw LAFC score at the other end from Danny Musovski as he chipped the ball over Jonathan Klinsmann. Upon video review, it seemed that the ball was clearly out, but the referee allowed the goal to stand.

The last goal of the game came in stoppage time when Carlos Vela was able to find space between the Galaxy defense and lob the ball over Klinsmann to seal the win.

A Few Things Were Gathered From This Match

Despite being a man down for about 65 minutes, the Galaxy fought were able to fend off and keep the LAFC offense at bay, going in 0-0 at halftime and lucky not to be trailing by a higher margin in the second half. Nevertheless, the lack of depth on the team was evident as there was no real offensive threat from the Galaxy throughout the match.
The absence of superstar striker Chicharito Hernandez (hamstring injury) raises much speculation as to the physical and mental state of the player who was touted to be the face and future of the team. At this point, Galaxy fans are losing patience with the striker.

With hopes of reaching the playoffs slowly fading, the Galaxy need to turn this around very quickly if they are going to salvage what is left of the 2020 season.

The seat is hot for head coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto.