Quijano Is Key in Galaxy Win

Marvin Quijano didn’t score a goal Saturday night, but it didn’t matter.

With the Galaxy’s big gun, Luis Hernandez, suspended and the Tampa Bay Mutiny’s “Big Mama,” Mamadou Diallo, benched because of illness and limited to only the final 27 minutes, the Rose Bowl stage was set for Quijano.

And Quijano, who replaced Hernandez, didn’t disappoint, flavoring the Galaxy attack with some high-speed dribbling and the sort of exciting moves that once were Cobi Jones’ sole property.

It was just such a run that set up Los Angeles’ third goal as the Galaxy came from behind to quell the Mutiny, 5-1, in front of 12,115.

The victory, combined with the San Jose Earthquakes’ 1-0 loss at home to the Chicago Fire, lifted the Galaxy (12-6-5) into first place in Major League Soccer’s Western Division.

Quijano, 21, doesn’t usually start, but Galaxy Coach Sigi Schmid might rethink that position. He admits that the youngster from El Salvador has turned his game around this season.

“He’s made especially good strides this year,” Schmid said. “I don’t really want to ask why, because sometimes that disrupts the process. Sometimes, the less you know the better it is.

“He’s become a much better passer of the ball. I think his turnover rate has gone way down. His decision-making process has improved a tremendous amount.

“Part of it, I think, is because Marvin realizes, ‘Hey, I’ve been at this for a while now. I’ve either got to put up or shut up.’ He’s found his own confidence, whereas [before] he was always looking for confidence from the coaches or confidence in some other manner.”

Confidence is what the Mutiny (4-18-1) has lacked this season. All the same, it took the most woeful team in the league exactly 3:41 to get the better of the Galaxy.

With the Los Angeles defense scrambling unsuccessfully to clear the ball out of its own area, Tampa Bay’s forwards struck.

Ali Curtis sent the ball out to Devin Barclay on the right and the 18-year-old crossed it immediately to the far post, where an unmarked Steve Ralston headed it into the net from a few yards out.

After a close call when a loose ball rolled just wide of Galaxy goalkeeper Kevin Hartman’s right post, Los Angeles took command.

It tied the score in the 18th minute when defender Greg Vanney moved up into the attack and executed a not-so-neat give-and-go with Jones.

Vanney passed to Jones on the run, Jones’ return pass was behind Vanney, but he turned to recover it and then hit a shot on the turn that flew past Adin Brown in the Tampa Bay net.

The assist was the 50th of Jones’ career and made him only the third player in MLS history to have 50 goals and 50 assists.

The Mutiny contributed to its own downfall in the 21st minute when defender Joseph Addo accidentally deflected a Sasha Victorine shot into his own net.

Victorine got a goal of his own in the 29th minute, but it was Quijano who created it. He dribbled past Tampa Bay defender John Maessner and into the box before cutting the ball back to an unmarked Victorine, whose shot gave Brown no chance.

Jones scored a 79th-minute goal to climax a 50-yard run and Victorine added the fifth two minutes later as the Mutiny crumbled.