Gabriel Pec scored a purpose and assisted on two extra Saturday because the Galaxy opened the second half of the season with a 4-2 win over a cussed Sporting Kansas City staff at Dignity Health Sports Park.
Dejan Joveljic, Joseph Paintsil e Miguel Berry he additionally scored for the Galaxy (8-3-7), who moved into third place within the Western Conference standings, three factors behind first-place Real Salt Lake. The win additionally stored them unbeaten in eight house video games for the primary time since 2016.
Only two different MLS groups – the New York Red Bulls and LAFC – are but to lose at house this season, whereas the 4 objectives equaled the Galaxy’s season excessive.
“Home video games are large,” midfielder Diego Fagundez mentioned. “That’s the important thing half, ensuring that once we go house, we make issues troublesome for the groups. And we’re doing it.
“We are scoring plenty of objectives, however on the similar time we now have to enhance a bit of in protection. It can be good to win a match 2-0 or 1-0. I preserve repeating it: if this staff performs 90 minutes, I do not suppose there’s a higher staff of us.”
The Galaxy, returning after a two-week break and enjoying with out attacking midfielder Riqui Puig, who’s affected by a groin harm, took the result in maintain onto Joveljic’s purpose within the fortieth minute. After a tedious begin through which the groups solely agreed to 2 photographs on purpose, the Galaxy managed three in a matter of seconds, the final a right-footed shot from Joveljic that discovered the again of the web.
The Galaxy’s Gabriel Pec scores a purpose previous Sporting Kansas City’s Robert Castellanos on Saturday.
(Shaun Clark/Getty Images)
The sequence started with Pec placing a right-footed shot into the purpose from simply inside the realm. Kansas City goalie Tim Melia saved with each palms, however the ball fell to the toes of Joveljic, who deflected it into the purpose. This time Melia saved together with his physique as he went to the bottom and the rebound hit Joveljic within the chest, permitting him to take management and dribble previous the goalkeeper earlier than sending a shot into the web from a proper angle.
The purpose was Joveljic’s tenth place of the season as staff chief.
Pec, who performed a improbable sport, then doubled the lead within the ninth minute of the second half, operating onto a chipped move from Joveljic, dribbling into the middle of the realm and kicking a low left-footed shot throughout his physique and simply inside the realm . close to the publish workplace.
The purpose was Pec’s fifth of the season, with Joveljic’s help the third.
Sporting Kansas City scored within the 66th minute when Stephen Afrifa got here off the bench to launch a left-footed shot previous a sprawling John McCarthy seconds after coming into play. But Paintsil restored the two-goal lead 9 minutes later with a breakaway tally.
Defender Miki Yamane arrange the purpose with a protracted diagonal ball to Pec. Two Kansas City defenders collapsed on him, leaving Paintsil, enjoying for the primary time in a month, open in the midst of the crease. Pec pushed the ball to him and the simple end gave Paintsil its fifth purpose of the season.
“It was nice to have Joe again,” Galaxy coach Greg Vanney mentioned of Paintsil, who entered the sector at halftime. “He has to get again into sport form and get match. He in all probability had three possibilities to attain. He might have had a hat-trick in half-hour.
“It does so many issues at excessive pace (so) repeatability is one thing you need to work on. It does not occur in a single day.”
But Kansas City (3-10-5), which has gained simply one among its final 12 video games, did not quit, bringing itself inside scoring vary once more within the 82nd minute when defender Robert Castellanos bounced a shot off the outstretched proper hand of McCarthy and within the subsequent publish.
That was as shut as Kansas City would get, with Berry closing out the scoring for the Galaxy two minutes into added time, sliding in to redirect a move from Pec together with his proper foot. The two-assist sport was Pec’s first in MLS.
