Down 3-2 in stoppage-time, the LA Galaxy battled back to earn a 3-3 draw against Seattle Sounders FC before 23,278 fans at Dignity Health Sports Park on Friday night. Javier “Chicharito” Hernández notched a goal for a third consecutive game, while Víctor Vázquez recorded a goal for a second consecutive match in the draw against Seattle.
LA Galaxy Players In Form
Chicharito tallied a goal for a third consecutive match dating back to Aug. 6, registering four goals and one assist during that span. With a goal in the draw against Seattle, Dejan Joveljić has tallied at least one goal or one assist in eight consecutive matches played at home (9 goals, 3 assists) dating back to May 29. During that stretch, Joveljić has tallied six goals and three assists as a substitute. Vázquez has registered two goals and one assist in his last four appearances dating back to July 24.
Debut For Riqui Puig
Riqui Puig, who joined the LA Galaxy from FC Barcelona on Aug. 4, played 28 minutes off the bench in his MLS and Galaxy debut in the draw against Seattle. Puig completed 25 of 26 passes (96% pass accuracy), while adding one chance created.
# Klien Out & Jovan Out flying above the stadium ahead of the match.
Goal-Scoring Plays
LA – Chicharito (Kévin Cabral, Julián Araujo), 10th minute: Working down the right flank, Cabral delivered a cross into the box to Chicharito, who controlled the ball and took a touch past a Seattle defender inside the penalty area, before firing his right-footed shot into the lower corner of the goal.
LA – Víctor Vázquez (Mark Delgado), 42nd minute: Vázquez received the ball out on the right wing and fired a curling shot off the far post and into the back of the net.
SEA – Kelyn Rowe (Raul Ruidiaz, Alex Roldan), 53rd minute: Raul Ruidiaz dribbled down the right side of the penalty area and cut a pass to the top of the box to Kelyn Rowe, whose first-timed was curled into the top right corner of the goal.
SEA – Raul Ruidiaz (Nicolas Lodeiro, Nouhou Tolo), 61st minute: Nicolas Lodeiro’s cross into the box found Raul Ruidiaz, whose strong header was redirected into the upper corner of the net.
SEA – Jordan Morris, 73rd minute: After Jonathan Bond made a save from point-blank-range on a headed attempt by Yeimar Gomez, Jordan Morris was first to the rebound and tapped in from close range.
LA – Dejan Joveljić (Penalty Kick), 90+2nd minute: After Seattle was whistled for a handball inside the penalty area, Dejan Joveljić stepped up to the spot and buried his second penalty-kick goal of the 2022 campaign.
POST GAME COMMENTS
LA GALAXY HEAD COACH GREG VANNEY
“We we’re up two goals in the first half, but we were still having some issues, just, organizing the defensive side of things so we could be more aggressive. We could dictate where they’re playing more than we did. We could recover balls in better spots. I just felt like we were a little disconnected in our movements.”
LA GALAXY MIDFIELDER VÍCTOR VÁZQUEZ
“What I said in the locker room after the game when I talked to the guys, I think it’s about consistency. Honestly it wasn’t the best first half for us. But we scored two goals. We were like, sharp in front of the goal. We really needed that, like we were saying the last couple of weeks. And then we were confident that the game was going in our [favor]. But like I said at the beginning, we started the second half a little casual again. We didn’t show that we wanted to score the third goal.”
LA GALAXY GOALKEEPER JONATHAN BOND
“everybody is a little bit disappointed in there. It’s kind of mixed feelings, because it could have been a lot worse. But, we’re disappointed to give the two up lead away. It’s one of those things, you know, we keep Seattle behind us. We get a point. So, we do take a small step forward, and we get to learn from some of the things that happened kind of thing. It’s not like we’re learning in a scenario where we’re getting booed off the pitch. And we’ve got to regroup and find something again. So, it’s really mixed emotions, to be honest.”
Postgame Notes
Following the draw against Seattle, the LA Galaxy (10-11-4, 34 points) stayed in sixth place in the Western Conference standings, four points behind fourth-place Minnesota United FC (11-9-5, 38 points).
Friday’s match marked the 45th all-time meeting across all competitions between the Galaxy and Sounders FC, with LA trailing the series 15-17-13.
In 18 all-time matches played at home against Seattle in league play, LA holds a 6-5-7 record.
When scoring the first goal in a match, the Galaxy improved to 9-1-2 during the 2022 campaign.
The Galaxy have converted six of eight penalty-kick attempts (75during the 2022 campaign
Javier “Chicharito” Hernández notched a goal for a third consecutive game dating back to Aug. 6, tallying four goals and one assist during that span.
Chicharito moved into a tie with Eduardo Hurtado for ninth place in Galaxy history with 30 goals scored in MLS regular-season play.
With a goal in the draw against Seattle, Dejan Joveljić has tallied at least one goal or one assist in eight consecutive matches played at home (9 goals, 3 assists) dating back to May 29. During that stretch, Joveljić has tallied six goals and three assists as a substitute.
Chicharito has tallied a goal in three straight MLS matches against the Sounders.
Joveljić’s seven goals scored as a substitute leads all MLS players in that category.
Víctor Vázquez tallied a goal in his 99th career MLS appearance in the draw against Seattle. Vázquez has registered two goals and one assist in his last four appearances dating back to July 24.
Julián Araujo has tallied three assists in his last two appearances dating back to Aug. 13.
Gastón Brugman notched a game-high 13 possessions won in the draw against Seattle.
Kévin Cabral registered an assist for a second consecutive match for the Galaxy.
Lineups:
LA: GK Jonathan Bond; D Julián Araujo, D Séga Coulibaly, D Nick DePuy, D Raheem Edwards; M Gastón Brugman, M Mark Delgado, M Kévin Cabral (Douglas Costa, 62), M Víctor Vázquez (Riqui Puig, 62), M Samuel Grandsir (Eriq Zavaleta, 71), F Javier “Chicharito” Hernández © (Dejan Joveljić, 70)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Jonathan Klinsmann; D Chase Gasper, D Kelvin Leerdam; M Efraín Álvarez, M Sacha Kljestan
TOTAL SHOTS: 11 (Three players tied, 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Chicharito, 2); FOULS: 10 (Samuel Grandsir, Víctor Vázquez, 2); OFFSIDES: 2; CORNER KICKS: 6; SAVES: 2
SEA: GK Stefan Frei; D Xavier Arreaga, D Nouhou, D Yeimar; M Nicolas Lodeiro © (Josh Atencio, 83), M Albert Rusnak, M Alex Roldan, M Kelyn Rowe (Jimmy Medranda, 78), M Danny Leyva; F Raul Ruidiaz (Jackson Ragen, 83), F Jordan Morris (Will Bruin, 86)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Stefan Cleveland; M Leo Chu, M Ethan Dobbelaere, M Dylan Teves, F Fredy Montero
TOTAL SHOTS: 16 (Raul Ruidiaz, 6); SHOTS ON GOAL: 5 (Raul Ruidiaz, 2); FOULS: 12 (Xavier Arreaga, Nouhou Tolo, 2); OFFSIDES: 4; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 1
Referee: Victor Rivas
Assistant Referees: Jeffrey Greeson, Cameron Blanchard
Fourth Official: Brandon Stevis
VAR: Jose Carlos Rivero
Weather: Clear, 72 degrees
Attendance: 23,278
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial
Next Game
Up next, the LA Galaxy travel to face the New England Revolution at Gillette Stadium on Sunday, Aug. 28. The Aug. 28 match kicks off at 5:00 p.m. PT
