CARSON, Calif. – LA Galaxy newcomers Ashley Cole and Jelle Van Damme received their first test under the bright lights at StubHub Center and passed with flying colors.
The Galaxy’s newest defenders each got the start in the club’s scoreless preseason draw with Liga MX side Club Tijuana. Although the Galaxy were unable to convert their dominance in possession into their second preseason win, the two defenders were widely praised for their showing in LA’s first preseason shutout.
“This was a good exercise especially for our newcomers to get to see them with our team and get to understand our team a little bit,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena told reporters after the draw. “[Cole] played very well. He’s a good player; obviously, we had to be smart about his minutes because he hasn’t played that much over the last six months, so we’re being smart. He’s a player with a lot of experience and quality.
“[Van Damme] did well. He’s got good experience and communicates well. He’s a leader back there; I think that the more games that he gets, the better that he’s going to get. He’s a good addition to our team.”
Despite not playing a competitive match for several months, Cole put forth a confident 58-minute shift in the scoreless draw. Not showing any rust from his long layoff, Cole was a two-way threat against Tijuana, shutting down their right side of the flank while also repeatedly contributing to the attack.
Fitness remains an issue for the 35-year-old left back, but Cole was left encouraged by his performance on Tuesday.
“I don’t feel 100 percent sharp in terms of getting into the attack or dealing with runners, but fitness is going to come. We’ve got two preseason games left and I’m going to have to work on the training field to get fitter. I don’t think that I’ll be able to catch up just yet in terms of fitness, but I’m going to work with the team, and fitness will come… I hope that it comes together very quick because you need a strong back line to win things.”
As for Van Damme, the towering Belgian defender appeared settled alongside Leonardo in the Galaxy central defense. Throughout his 64 minutes on the field, Van Damme frequently used his size and positioning to shut down the Tijuana attack.
With the Galaxy’s CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal series against Santos Laguna looming, the Belgian is confident that Los Angeles will be at full-strength by the time the matches begin to count.
"We kept the zero today which is always a good feeling for defenders to keep the clean sheet," Van Damme said. "We have important games coming up but we're on a good schedule. We have time."
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog at www.LAGalaxy.com/Insider and contact him at LAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com
