SAN JOSE, Calif. – The preseason may be over, but the LA Galaxy understand that the team is very much a work in progress ahead of next Friday’s MLS regular season opener at StubHub Center.
The Galaxy closed out the preseason with a 3-2 defeat to the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday at the brand new Avaya Stadium. Despite falling behind early, the Galaxy rallied in the second half with goals from Jose Villarreal and Robbie Keane to fall just short of stealing a draw on the road.
LA finished the preseason with a 5-2-0 record, and a series of questions heading into the first game of the 2015 campaign against the Chicago Fire.
“I don’t think that we’re quite there yet to be honest with you. Some players have played 90 minutes which has certainly helped for next week, but I don’t think that we’re there yet,” said Keane. “This is what preseason is for though because the results don’t matter. … You want to put things into practice for the upcoming season, but conceding goals especially on set pieces shouldn’t happen, but it was an OK [performance].”
Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena agreed, “It was a little sloppy, but it was OK. It was beneficial for both teams, but I wouldn’t try to market it as being a good game. The most important part at this time is to get players some extended minutes, and we were able to accomplish that.”
At times, the Galaxy were sharp in their build-up play against the Earthquakes and were able to string t passes together that caused the Earthquakes’ defense fits. However, where LA struggled was in the final third as the finishing touch from forwards like Keane and Alan Gordon was lacking despite numerous scoring opportunities.
Even though the Galaxy could not capitalize on their chances against the Earthquakes, don’t expect this LA team to hit the panic button. They know that they’ve got plenty of time to find their scoring touch.
“We can get a little sharper in the final third, but I always think that’s the last thing to come,” said Gordon. “It’s the most difficult thing to get sharp, and you need real games to do that. This was a good stepping stone for the start of the season. I think we’ll be alright once the season starts. We’ve got a lot of good goal scorers and I’m not terribly worried about us scoring goals.”
But now that the preseason is over and the Galaxy are set to begin their title defense, are they ready for the season ahead?
We’ll see on Friday.
“I don’t know,” said a smirking Arena. “Ask me after our first game.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog at LAGalaxy.com/Insider and contact him at LAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com.
