Four Thoughts from the LA Galaxy's 2-2 Draw in Minnesota
Looking through the good and bad from the first midweek match of the season
The LA Galaxy and Minnesota United draw 2-2 in a Wednesday night clash at Allianz Field. The Galaxy has now recorded three straight draws in MLS play.
The Galaxy struggled to get a rhythm in this game and Minnesota made sure to take advantage. Bongokuhle Hlongwane scored with an excellent shot that hit the crossbar and bounced in and then out of the Galaxy goal. The shot went to VAR and was awarded as a goal of the South African forward in the 30th minute.
The Galaxy found a way back into the game through substitute Dejan Joveljic in the 61st minute of the match. LA grabbed the momentum of the game following the goal and Diego Fagundez scored minutes later in the 68th minute.
The home side had the final say as Kevin Arriaga scored from a back post header off a corner kick in the 80th minute of the match. The Galaxy had to settle for a draw as they now hit the road to Charlotte this weekend. Here are my four thoughts on this midweek game.
Set Piece Problems Continue
The Galaxy’s issues defending dead situations had cooled down since the start of the season but were once again at the forefront of LA’s defensive issues. Hlongwane's shot came off corner clearance (not really calling this a set piece goal but still part of the play) and Arriaga beat his man to the far post to score the equalizing goal for the Loons.
LA has conceded eight goals from set-piece situations so far this season. That’s not ideal at this point in the season as this problem is the biggest issues of the Galaxy’s defense.
When asked if he would consider bringing in a set-piece coach, Vanney quickly said he wouldn’t bring one to the club at the moment.
“We’re gonna keep training, keep working and keep getting better at them. I know it’s been an issue for us but it’s something that we have to keep working on. It’s not bringing in somebody to make a difference”, he told the media postgame.
It would be interesting to see how a set-piece coach would change things for the Galaxy. Aside from LA’s well-noted defensive issues, it could also lead to the club becoming more of a threat in those scenarios as well.
Winless in Four Games
The Galaxy is going through its first real rough patch of the season with one in the club’s last four games. LA looked liked a team that was setting itself to be on course to compete for the Supporters Shield but now teams are catching up and LA could start to fall behind.
“I want to say that we should have won this game. In the first half, actually, I thought it's going to be impossible to win here because we could not create anything. But in the second half, game just opens up and we had everything, 2-1 for us, and again corner kick and we couldn't manage the numbers and they scored," said Joveljic to reporters.
The Serbian striker also acknowledged that he should’ve scored his chance in the 82nd minute when he had a one-on-one opportunity with goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair.
It isn’t time to fully panic about the Galaxy but these next couple of games will show us what this team is really made of. How long does this rough patch continue? and who are the players that will step up the most? Great teams in MLS usually answer those quickly.
Getting Something Out of Nothing
The first half was atrocious from an LA Galaxy perspective -no shots and no touches in the opponent’s box sum up the struggles in the attack. It felt like LA was going to have a game similar to their travels to Austin where the opponent would get another goal and shut down the Galaxy.
The Galaxy clawed their way back through some well-worked goals from Joveljic and Fagundez. LA had momentum after taking the lead as Minnesota was looking for a game-tying goal. Vanney’s decision to insert a more defensive lineup in the last 15 minutes was an interesting wrinkle that would’ve worked had the Galaxy not allowed a set-piece goal.
Nonetheless, good teams in MLS get road points and that’s exactly what happened. Is it the most satisfying road draw, no. But the Galaxy got it done. Road points in any way are important, take Fagundez’s word for it.
“Look in this league, being here for so long, these points are actually important. It doesn't matter if you get one or three. At the end of the day, we all want three, of course, but one point is huge,” he told reporters.
“If we can leave with something, we're going to be happy and then we're back at home,” Fagundez added. The Galaxy has another road game soon as they face Charlotte FC at Bank of America Stadium on Saturday night.
“After 1-0 down, one point is okay. I don't want to say that I'm happy, but let's go for the next one”
- Dejan Joveljic
Getting back in the groove
Joveljic made his 100th LA Galaxy appearance on Wednesday night at the stadium where he made his first appearance for the club back in 2021. The Serbian led the charge in the second half for the Galaxy with his goal in the 61st minute of the game. This was his first goal since April 13 against the Vancouver Whitecaps.
This was his seventh goal of the campaign, which surpassed his tally of six goals scored last season.
“My confidence is always high. But it's even better when we create a lot of chances when we play good and when I score. So this season is different story. We are creating more and I'm scoring more. It's (as) simple as that.,” said Joveljic postgame.
LA’s striker has dealt with hip/thigh issues throughout the season and it kept him from appearing in three games this season. “The coaches made the decision for me (that) it's better to play the game from the bench, and I feel every day better and better and hopefully after a few more games I'm going to be back,” he told reporters.
The Galaxy flow better offensively with Joveljic on the pitch and that was visible on Wednesday night. Once he entered the pitch, LA found its footing and produced much more promising attacks until they played it more defensively in the final 15 minutes.
Joveljic was happy to reach 100 games played for the LA Galaxy and ended his presser by saying he’s “Going to go for 200 [appearances].”