Galaxy Breaks Records and Wins
“I win my bet,” Bora Milutinovic said Thursday night at the Rose Bowl, beaming the usual Bora beam.
Oh, yes, and what bet was that?
“I bet my friend in Mexico that I when I go to the game, Carlos would score,” Milutinovic said.
And the Galaxy’s Carlos Hermosillo obliged.
After going scoreless in his first 10 Major League Soccer games, the veteran Mexican striker found the net twice in a 3-0 victory over the Kansas City Wizards in front of 10,291, the Galaxy’s second-smallest crowd of the season.
The victory clinched a playoff spot for Los Angeles (19-6) and Hermosillo’s goals tied and then broke an MLS record.
Hermosillo’s first goal was the Galaxy’s 70th of the season, tying the MLS record held by Washington D.C. United. His second gave Los Angeles sole possession of the record.
“When you have a lot of opportunities but you don’t score goals, you begin to doubt yourself,” Hermosillo said. “I was starting to doubt myself just a little bit. This is the beginning of something good for the rest of the season.”
After the first goal, off a pass from Welton in the 76th minute, Hermosillo was mobbed by teammates. Running back to the center circle, he crossed himself and then held his finger to his lips.
“That was to tell all those people who have been criticizing me to be quiet,” he explained.
After the second goal, less than two minutes later, he was much more demonstrative, punching his fist in the air and shouting his delight.
“That was for all the people who never lost confidence in me,” he said.
Hermosillo, who scored 275 goals in 457 league games in Mexico, was asked afterward if this had been his longest scoreless streak.
“Even in my dreams, I haven’t gone this long without scoring,” he said, grinning.
Galaxy Coach Octavio Zambrano was subdued after the game, feeling that his team had not played well against the Wizards (10-13). But he was pleased for Hermosillo.
“Any time a goal scorer breaks out of a slump, then for sure it is a reason to be happy,” he said. “I feel happy for him and obviously for the team.”
But. . . .?
“We are not reacting well to tight marking,” he said. “These guys [the Wizards] were playing us basically man to man with all our players up front, and we really didn’t do a good job of getting out of those tight situations with ease. We struggled.”
It took the Galaxy more than half an hour to net the first goal. It came in the 32nd minute when Martin Machon looped a long pass from inside the Galaxy half and over the heads of three Kansas City defenders.
The trio turned to chase the ball, but Cobi Jones sprinted past them, dribbled into the goal area and then sent a low shot past goalkeeper Mike Ammann.
