Galaxy Sprints Past Rapids, 6-1
Just as suddenly as it had vanished a few weeks ago, the Galaxy’s game returned Wednesday night.
“The track meet is back,” said Marc Rapaport, chairman and lead investor of Major League Soccer’s Western Conference leader.
Back indeed. An emphatic 6-1 victory over the Colorado Rapids in front of a disappointing and disappointed crowd of 9,342 at Mile High Stadium signaled that Los Angeles is ready to take wing once again.
On a night when the Galaxy offense finally clicked after a slump during which the team lost four of five games, three players were the key.
U.S. national team winger Cobi Jones scored a hat trick, his three goals bringing his season total to 12 in 15 games.
Brazilian striker Welton scored twice and moved into a share of the MLS lead with 15 goals in 22 games. Washington D.C. United’s Roy Lassiter and the New England Revolution’s Raul Diaz Arce also have 15 each..
Last, but certainly not least, Carlos Hermosillo finally found a niche he can successfully occupy. The veteran Mexican forward narrowly failed to record his first Galaxy goal, but he made the plays that led to three scores.
Galaxy Coach Octavio Zambrano had thought Jones might be suffering from post-World Cup doldrums, but Jones said that was not the case.
“I was playing the same way I always play,” he said. “It was just a matter of getting used to a new formation. When I came back [from France], it was definitely [to] a different position than I was playing in the first nine games of the season.
“It takes a little bit [of time] when you have key players not playing with each other. I left, Carlos came in, then I came back. So it kind of upset the balance. It took a little while for me and everyone to get used to Carlos. Now it seems to be clicking. Carlos played a very big game, playing balls through and getting assists.”
The Galaxy had gone scoreless for 194 minutes coming into the match, but it took Jones exactly two minutes and 20 seconds to end that drought.
Hermosillo, playing a little deeper and sometimes wider than usual, sent a pass out to Mauricio Cienfuegos on the right flank. Cienfuegos, the puppet master who pulls the strings all over the field for Los Angeles, immediately crossed the ball into the penalty area and Jones volleyed a shot off the crossbar and down into the Colorado net.
Six minutes later, it was 2-0. An errant pass from Rapid defender Sean Henderson was pounced on by Welton, who went around advancing goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann and steered the ball into the empty net.
At the 30-minute mark, Jones struck again, this time off a pass from Hermosillo. The Rapids were reeling, but hung on until halftime without falling further behind.
They even tried to make a game of it early in the second half, with Wolde Harris scoring his third goal in as many games and his ninth of the season, this one in the 64th minute off a pass from Marcelo Balboa.
But Colorado’s comeback attempt was effectively ruined by Cienfuegos two minutes later. Again, Hermosillo was the provider of the vital pass that allowed Cienfuegos the open shot. The Salvadoran midfielder’s goal was his 12th of the season in 21 games.
All that remained was for Jones to net his third of the night, in the 83rd minute off a pass from Martin Machon, who also assisted on Welton’s second goal four minutes later.
The victory gave the Galaxy a sweep of the teams’ four matches this season. Los Angeles won the earlier games, 1-0, 7-4 and 2-1.
“One of the deadly things that we use very well against the Rapids is our speed on the outside,” Jones said. “With Carlos dropping back, that opened up space for me and Welton to play like we were in the early part of the season.”
As Rapaport said, the track meet is back.
Notes
Joe-Max Moore had a goal and two assists as the New England Revolution beat the San Jose Clash, 3-0, to end an eight-game losing streak at Foxboro, Mass. ,
New England improved to 7-16, San Jose dropped to 8-14.
