Player Ratings: LA Galaxy lose Leagues Cup semifinal to Seattle
The LA Galaxy’s dreams of winning Leagues Cup are over following a 2-0 loss to the Seattle Sounders on Wednesday night.
Pedro de la Vega and Osaze De Rosario each pounded on moments of uncertainty in the Galaxy’s penalty box. The Galaxy played most of the match looking for a goal, but was unable to crack through the Sounders’ backline. It was another night where Seattle got the best of the Galaxy at home -especially with the absences of Emiro Garces and Matheus Nacsimento.
Not all is lost yet for the G’s as they will play in the third-place game at home against Orlando City SC - the last chance to book a spot in next season’s Concacaf Champions Cup. Here are the player ratings from last night’s match:
N. Micovic 3.5/5
You really can’t put much of the blame on the Serbian keeper for this loss. The entire backline wasn’t up to par and allowed Seattle to pounce on those mistakes and score soft goals. He made great saves in one-on-one scenarios when Seattle broke through Galaxy’s backline multiple times. The result could’ve looked a lot worse if he hadn’t made those stops.
Julian Aude 2.5/5
An interesting game from Aude for a couple of reasons. He tended to play as an inverted full back in this game, which is a look we haven’t seen often this season. Aude and Paul Rothrock both got yellow cards due to a confrontation in the first half. The Argentine was likely hooked at the half due to playing with a yellow card, even though Aude had some good individual defensive plays.
Zanka 2/5
The Danish defender found himself in some bad spots and was at the center of Seattle’s second goal of the game. He spent much of the tournament next to Emiro Garces, which helped him make up for his lack of athleticism.
The second goal conceded will be the lowlight of Zanka’s season. He got outmuscled and beaten to the ball by De Rosario in a soft goal to give up at that stage of the game. He was building a good run of form, but that didn’t translate to the semifinal showdown.
M. Yoshida 2.5/5
Like with Zanka, there was a lot of emergency defending and times when he looked slow. It was a physical game and Yoshida was taking a lot of hits and pushes through the 90 minutes. Despite his best efforts in this game, Yoshida just wasn’t able to be a force against Seattle’s attackers.
M. Cuevas 2.5/5
The great form he was in during the early stages of this tournament dwindled in the last two games. His lack of urgency to clear the ball out for Seattle’s first goal was the only blemish on Cuevas’ performances in this tournament. In the attack, he didn’t add much and the Galaxy looked a bit better with Miki Yamane late in the second half.
E. Cerrillo 2.5/5
When looking for a goal or two, Cerrillo isn’t going to have much say in the game. He’ll help with building up but not add much in the final third. It would’ve been nice to see him hit a couple of shots outside the box, but he hesitated in those scenarios. He didn’t have a bad game, but his playstyle isn’t going to add much when a team is searching for a goal
D. Fagundez 2.5/5
He brought some energy and work to the midfield for the LA Galaxy. But his impact on the attack continues to be inconsistent. He will run, track back, and press the opponent, but he has not excelled as the secondary playmaker.
M. Reus 3/5
The German had a lot on his shoulders on Wednesday night. He was the Galaxy's main creative force and had to adjust to how well Seattle was defending LA’s wingers on the night. The lack of chemistry with Miguel Berry was evident - Reus has started to build a good connection with Nascimento over the last few months. At a time when the Galaxy needed gamechangers, he wasn’t able to provide that moment of magic.
G. Pec 2/5
The Sounders continue to be Pec’s cryptonite. Whether that’s playing on the left or right wing, he was never able to get going in dangerous areas. He’s not able to cause danger to the Seattle backline and is forced to get so many of his touches deep in the field.
J. Paintsil 2/5
Like with Pec, Paintsil just couldn’t get into gear in the attack. The Sounders gave little to no space for him to run in behind the backline, plus they forced him to get his touches in combination play.
Toward the end of the match, Paintsil struggled to get the ball in dangerous places. His decisions in the final third were consistent, and he once again proved he’s not going to shine when teams bunker down.
M. Berry 2/5
With no Nacsimento, Berry was supposed to be the reference point in the frontline. He struggled to get into the game and have any impact. Just two touches in Seattle’s box and no real danger provided. He wasn’t expected to be the game-changer, but he really didn’t add any danger between the center back.
Other Notes:
Miki Yamane had to adjust to playing with Paintsil on the right side for a portion of the match. The Japanese full back is good in combination play but Paintsil isn’t going to look to play in tight spaces. Once Pec got on the right again, he was much better
John Nelson played as the third center back when LA was pushing forward with everything. Not much he was going to do to impact the game going forward.
Christian Ramirez was a bit better at being a reference point but he didn’t have much to contribute or make Seattle worry about. He had a moment in the box late in the game, but was unable to control the ball and test the goalkeeper.