After Hours Thriller: LA Galaxy salvage a point in 3-3 draw against Austin FC
Galaxy gets point from 3-1 deficit in Sunday's late-night match in Austin
The chaotic weather at Q2 Stadium in Austin foreshadowed Sunday’s night game in the Lone Star State.
Following a three-hour delay due to lighting in the area, the LA Galaxy and Austin FC kicked off a vital showdown between 13th and 12th place in Western Confrence at 11:30 p.m. local time in Texas.
The home side got on the scoreboard first via Alex Ring in the 11th minute of the match. His low-driven shot at the left side of the goal had no chance of being saved by Bond.
LA’s injury issues flared up in the first 45 minutes as Riqui Puig went down early in the game and left the pitch momentarily to get treatment on it. He walked gingerly and moved less dynamically than we’re used to - it was more of a discomfort issue rather than a serious injury. Chris Mavinga left the game early due to a groin injury after an awkward landing from a clearance header.
The Galaxy tied the match through a penalty converted by Puig two minutes into the second half. That tie didn’t last long as Ethan Finlay took advantage of LA’s poor defensive play with the final touch of the half.
Despite having some chances in the second half, Emiliano Rigoni’s goal in the 75th seemed to be too much of a cushion for LA. Dejan Joveljic scored in the 89 minutes off a header to breathe life back into the game. It would substitute Micheal Barrios who tied the game four minutes into stoppage time with a header at the far post - his first goal for the LA Galaxy.
“I thought all the guys who came on did excellent. That’s a lot of credit to the subs who came on. I thought all of them brought energy and brought value to the group. They helped us get a point out of this, when it wasn’t looking great for chunks there,” said coach Greg Vanney after the game.
Here are the current Western Confrence standings:
Agents of Chaos
LA’s last two games have been quite chaotic both offensively and defensively. The Galaxy has scored seven goals and allowed six between their games against Austin and Minnesota. In both matches, it seemed like the Galaxy was going to be defeated and take another dent in their playoff hopes.
In just a span of five minutes, the momentum of the game totally changed though LA’s late goals. It was a much-needed point to still remain five points behind the playoff line.
“Anything is possible in this league when you have belief and you play with a lot of heart, and you just leave it all out there and just believe. Play the game the right way, let the ball move and this is MLS. Things will happen right. Especially when you’re giving it your all and you play honest on the day,” said Mark Delgado to reporters.
“This is MLS… It’s crazy, but it’s what makes this league special.”
The three-hour delay affected both teams as according to Vanney, the team was in the tunnel ready and substitutes were already on the bench. It’s always hard to get that rhythm and get back in the zone with a long delay.
“I think we kind of started the game a little slow given the delay and the long day as well. Just kind of a step behind everything in the beginning of the first half,” noted Delgado.
With Riqui Puig not at 100% and Delgado still affected by an ankle injury, it was not a surprise to see the team look less dynamic in the middle of the park. Puig played 80 minutes on the night and per Vanney, he wasn’t “worried about further injury, it was more just how comfortable he was or wasn’t on the field trying to move around”.
Given the 3-1 deficit again, it felt like the Galaxy already channeled their luck in their last game. Fortunately for LA, chaos was on their side at the end of the game.
The Super Subs
This comeback was undoubtedly due to Vanney’s substitutions in the second half. Their entrance into the game brought new life and dimension to a Galaxy squad that needed a spark in the After Hours.
Barrios entered the match during halftime to replace Tyler Boyd. Vanney explained he saw Boyd not at his usual level and elements of fatigue during the first 45 minutes. The 32-year-old Colombian made plenty of runs on the backline and began to look to get touches inside the box.
Fellow substitute Jonathan Perez came onto the game to add more width, pace, and crosses into Austin's penalty area. He created two chances and set up Barrios’ header for the game-tying goal in 10 minutes of action.
“First, I saw Dejan [Joveljić] making the run, but then after I saw Michael [Barrios] and that he was open. I was just hoping that when I whipped it in, the goalie was not going to touch it. The good thing is he didn’t touch it and Michael was there to finish it,” said Perez to reporters after the game.
Vanney’s most important tactical change was setting up Joveljic and Sharp together up top. It’s not often you see the two-striker approach work for LA, it was Sharp who set up the header from Joveljic to get the second goal of the game and his first open-play goal since May 15 versus the Earthquakes.
“I thought they had some good actions together,” said Vanney. “I felt like at that point in the game, [Austin] were kind of just sitting in a lower block anyways, so we had enough numbers and time to build our attacks instead of what we were trying to set up, which enabled our forwards to really kind of do their work in front of the goal.”
Getting Joveljic going will be a major boost to getting a reliable bench threat once again. Sharp’s been dangerous and a threat to the backline he goes up against due to his movement and poacher instincts in front of goal. Given this dup combined for a goal, let’s how often it’ll be deployed by Vanney going forward.
Defense taking more hits
While the comeback is great, the Galaxy conceding at least three goals in each of their last four games is not. That’s not the sign of a good team and quite frankly most teams with that record are ones that usually don’t make the postseason.
With Mavinga’s injury, the Galaxy defense keeps taking hits. Calegari and Martin Caceres are out for the year and Jalen Neal is out indefinitely. A lot of changes and partnerships make it easy to understand why there isn’t much consistency on this end of the pitch.
“The backline is ultimately trying to do their best. They’ve had a lot of changes. A lot of new faces. There are a lot of new partnerships. Tonight, there was a couple plays that our backline has to deal with, but I think our front group needs to do a better job tonight of making the game a little more predictable, cleaner for them so they can do their jobs,” assessed Vanney postgame.
He added, “There was a number of situations where the backline was overloaded in plays, and they were having some not easy decisions. And, having to manage some – what I call – crisis situations that just aren’t super clear.”
“We’re outing so much pressure on ourselves to get three points. Proud of the guys fighting back, but we can’t allow two, three goals in games if we’re going to make it to the playoffs.” - Greg Vanney
The Galaxy needs to stop conceding so many goals, it’s so simple to state but it’s truly needed. LA has the whole week to analyze film and work on the training ground to get better in this capacity. With a leaky backline, Vanney’s squad is going to rely on getting in a shoot-out every game. This sector of the pitch will determine LA’s playoff status, that’s something I can guarantee.
“We were starting off winning, but off our mistakes, they took advantage of that. [And in this game] that’s what happened to us. I think we just need to do a better job as a team and individually. Just do our roles so we can start winning the games because right now it’s very crucial. We need every point right now to make the playoffs.” - Jonathan Perez
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I had my issues with it!
https://verdeallday.substack.com/p/austin-fc-la-galaxy-draw-feels-like-loss