CARSON, Calif. – The LA Galaxy may be lacking in victories this season, with just five in 15 games, but they definitely don’t lack in perseverance.
There’s no other way to explain how they’ve managed to keep getting results despite a heavy travel schedule, international departures and injuries that have ravaged the defense.
It’s enough to understand their collective optimism as they prepare for Saturday’s game against the Vancouver Whitecaps at StubHub Center (7:30 p.m., Time Warner Cable SportsNet, Time Warner Cable Deportes).
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“You look at the amount of stuff we’ve gone through this year,” said striker Robbie Keane, who has been limited to just six games because of injuries, “injury-wise and stuff, where we are in the table is not too bad.”
The Galaxy are 5-4-6 and tied for third in the Western Conference with FC Dallas and Sporting Kansas City. Head coach Bruce Arena likes to say his team is “keeping its head above water” despite injuries that, along with Keane, have limited versatile defender A.J. DeLaGarza to eight games and left backs Todd Dunivant and Robbie Rogers to two and 10 games, respectively.
Things had gotten so desperate that midfielder Baggio Husidic was forced to fill in on the back line, a position he’d never played before until two days of training prior to a 4-0 loss at Orlando City on May 17.
But now there may be a proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. Rogers, according to Arena, had a “good day of training” Thursday and could be ready to go Saturday. DeLaGarza, who has been battling nagging foot and groin problems, appears set to go as well.
In fact, he wanted to play in last weekend’s rain-soaked, 2-2 tie with New England but was held out as a precautionary measure.
“The six-hour flight and turf wouldn’t have benefited me very well,” he said. “And the conditions definitely weren’t great.
“I’m ready for this week.”
The Galaxy will be facing a Vancouver team that soundly defeated them 2-0 on April 4 thanks to second-half goals from Octavio Rivero and Kekuta Manneh. The Whitecaps (7-6-2, second in the West behind Seattle) and coached by Keane’s good friend Carl Robinson, have dropped their last two games on the road and
have lost all six regular-season games with the Galaxy at StubHub Center
. The Whitecaps have been outscored 13-1 in those games.
Galaxy defender Omar Gonzalez said he has been impressed with the Whitecaps.
“We’re going up against a fast Vancouver team,” he said. “I think we have to keep the ball and manage the game properly. We have to be aware of the space behind us.
“They have to take care of space, too. If they send too many numbers forward hopefully we’ll catch them and score a few goals. It’s going to be a fun game, a fast-paced game.”
The Galaxy have a 23-game home unbeaten streak during the regular season – their last loss at home was last season’s opener against Real Salt Lake – and remain confident their best days are ahead of them once their roster shores up.
“We’re not fully healthy, we’re missing guys and we’re still in the middle of the pack right now,” DeLaGarza said. “You know we always start slow. Then when everyone’s here, everyone’s healthy and we’re all clicking I think we’re going to be a very dangerous team.
“It’s important to keep getting points, no matter where, no matter how.”
LA GALAXY vs. VANCOUVER WHITECAPS
STUBHUB CENTER, Carson, Calif.
June 6, 2015 (WEEK 14, MLS Game #143)
7:30 pm PT (TSN2, MLS LIve)
The LA Galaxy and Vancouver Whitecaps FC meet for the second time this season in a critical match in the Western Conference when the clubs face off at StubHub Center on Saturday evening. The teams are separated by just two points in the ever-tighter division standings, with Whitecaps FC sitting just two points out of first. The Galaxy return home after their undefeated run went to three games in a 2-2 draw at the New England Revolution in an MLS Cup rematch. Whitecaps FC return home following a 2-1 defeat at the Montreal Impact in a Canadian Championship preview.
- The Galaxy extended their undefeated streak to three games with a 2-2 draw at the New England Revolution on Sunday evening. The draw extended the Galaxy’s league road winless streak to 12 games, the fourth-longest in club history; they have not lost at home in 23 regular season games, the third-longest streak in MLS history.
- The teams are meeting for the second time this season. Kekuta Manneh and Octavio Rivero scored 10 minutes apart in the second half to give Whitecaps FC a 2-0 win, April 4 at BC Place.
- The first meeting victory for Whitecaps FC ended a five-game winless run vs. the Galaxy, just their second win in the series in 12 matches all-time in all competitions. The Galaxy have won all six regular season meetings with Whitecaps FC in Carson, outscoring them 13-1; they also took a victory there in the 2012 MLS Cup Playoffs, a 2-1 win in the Knockout Round.
REFEREE: Ricardo Salazar. AR1 (bench): Frank Anderson; AR2 (opposite): Craig Lowry; 4th: Baboucarr Jallow
MLS Career: 202 games; FC/gm: 26.7; Y/gm: 3.4; R: 58; pens: 69
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SUSPENDED: none
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: LA: Alan Gordon, Juninho … VAN: Sam Adekugbe, Gershon Koffie, Pa-Modou Kah, Kendall Waston
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: LA: Baggio Husidic, Mika Vayrynen
DISABLED LIST: LA: Brian Perk (season-ending injury)
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: LA: Gyasi Zardes (USA; 6/5 vs Netherlands; 6/10 vs Germany); Bradford Jamieson IV (US U-20); Jaime Penedo (Panama; vs Ecuador 6/6) … VAN: Deybi Flores (Honduras U-20)
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (12 meetings): Galaxy 8 wins, 23 goals … Whitecaps FC 2 wins, 10 goals … Ties 2
AT LA (5 meetings): Galaxy 6 wins, 13 goals … Whitecaps FC 0 wins, 1 goal … Ties 0
- The teams are meeting for the second time this season. Kekuta Manneh and Octavio Rivero scored 10 minutes apart in the second half to give Whitecaps FC a 2-0 win, April 4 at BC Place.
- The first meeting victory for Whitecaps FC ended a five-game winless run vs. the Galaxy, just their second win in the series in 12 matches all-time in all competitions.
- The Galaxy have won all six regular season meetings with Whitecaps FC in Carson, outscoring them 13-1; they also took a victory there in the 2012 MLS Cup Playoffs, a 2-1 win in the Knockout Round.
- Coaches record: Carl Robinson vs. LA: P4 W1 L2 D1 … Bruce Arena vs. VAN: P12 W9 L1 D2
LAST MEETING (MLS)
4/4: VAN 2, LA 0 (Manneh 56; Rivero 66)
- Whitecaps FC took the lead in the 56th minute on the counterattack. Pedro Morales played a sublime pass through to Kekuta Manneh, who hared forward into the penalty area and drilled the ball past LA goalkeeper Jaime Penedo.
- The 'Caps doubled their lead in the 66th minute. Nicolas Mezquida played a nice takeover in the left side of the area with Octavio Rivero, and charged to the byeline before firing a shot towards goal. Penedo could only parry the ball into the path of Rivero, who poked home the rebound from close range.
- Whitecaps FC goalkeeper David Ousted was called upon to make just one save in extending his club's winning run to record proportions.
- VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC (4-2-3-1): David Ousted - Steven Beitashour, Kendall Waston, Pa-Modou Kah, Sam Adekugbe - Matias Laba, Russell Teibert - Nicolas Mezquida (Deybi Flores 82), Pedro Morales, Kekuta Manneh (Darren Mattocks 78) - Octavio Rivero (Erik Hurtado 86).
- LA GALAXY (4-4-2): Jaime Penedo - A.J. DeLaGarza, Omar Gonzalez, Tommy Meyer (Alan Gordon 78), Todd Dunivant (Edson Buddle 64) - Stefan Ishizaki, Juninho, Mika Vayrynen (Robbie Rogers 40), Baggio Husidic - Gyasi Zardes, Robbie Keane.
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