CARSON, Calif. – The LA Galaxy won’t be lacking in motivation as they face the Columbus Crew on Saturday at MAPFRE Stadium (4:30 p.m., Time Warner Cable SportsNet, Time Warner Cable Deportes).
Not only will the defending MLS Cup champions be looking to rebound from their first home loss in more than a year, last Saturday’s 1-0 setback to the Vancouver Whitecaps, they will attempt to bring an end to road woes that seem almost never-ending.
They have not won away from home since last Aug. 20, when they earned a come-from-behind 4-3 victory over the Colorado Rapids in Commerce City, Colo.
The Galaxy (5-5-6) are 0-7-7, including MLS Cup playoffs, outside of StubHub Center since that surprising win. They also have been outscored 23-11 in those away games.
“We’re very due,” Alan Gordon said of the Galaxy’s need for a road victory. “We’re going to give our best effort to get three points.
“That’s what we’ve been doing all year.”
They’ll have to get that win at the expense of a Crew team that routed them 4-1 last Aug. 16. Columbus (4-6-4), coached by former Galaxy standout Gregg Berhalter, boasts the league’s leading goal scorer in Kei Kamara (10 goals), but the Crew are winless in five games, including a 2-1 loss to visiting Montreal last Saturday.
The Galaxy, who had a 23-game regular-season unbeaten streak at home snapped by the Whitecaps, will have to make do without striker Robbie Keane, who is with Ireland’s national team for Saturday’s Euro2016 qualifier against Scotland. But players insist they’re eager to get back on track this weekend.
Continuing frustration, however, clearly has taken its toll.
“It’s tough,” the Galaxy’s Stefan Ishizaki said. “At times we play well and a lot of times we don’t. Consistency is a big thing, and obviously changing the lineups isn’t optimal for us.
“We’re professionals and we try to do the best we can, and sometimes it just doesn’t work out.”
There may be some welcome news on the injury front. Left back Robbie Rogers, battling ankle and Achilles tendon problems, played 61 minutes for Galaxy II in last Saturday’s USL Pro match and said he feels fit.
“I think that I’ll be ready to play this weekend go forward from there,” he told reporters.
The Galaxy’s Omar Gonzalez remains optimistic better days are on the horizon.
“Obviously no loss is easy,” he said, referring to last Saturday’s defeat to Vancouver. “We’re all winners here so we never take losing easy. We just have to move on and recognize what needs to get better.
“Going on the road is never easy and this loss just makes everyone a bit more focused, a bit more ready to come back and hopefully get the result we want.”
COLUMBUS CREW SC vs. LA GALAXY
MAPFRE STADIUM, Columbus, Ohio
June 13, 2015 (WEEK 15, MLS Game #148)
4:30 pm PT (MLS LIVE)
- Crew SC suffered their second consecutive loss and saw their overall winless streak extended to five games in their 2-1 home loss to the Montréal Impact on Saturday evening.
- The Galaxy had their league home undefeated streak put to an end after 23 games – the third-longest such streak in MLS annals – in their 1-0 loss to Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Saturday evening at StubHub Center. It was their first loss since the 2014 season opener, March 8 vs. Real Salt Lake; it was their first loss in Carson in 27 games in all competitions.
- Crew SC took the only meeting between the teams a season ago, a 4-1 win in Columbus on Aug. 16 that was their first victory against the Galaxy since 2009. The Galaxy had won five of the six meetings in between, with one draw.
- The Galaxy had come away with points on their three previous trips to Columbus, with two wins and a draw, before last year’s Crew SC win. The Galaxy have a four-game home undefeated streak alive vs. Columbus dating back to 2007, with two wins and two draws in that time.
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