Houston Dynamo at LA Galaxy: Highlights, stats, and quotes
(image via Houston Dynamo FC)
The Houston Dynamo fell 2-1 to the LA Galaxy late Saturday night in Southern California. Houston led early but LA came back with two goals to take the victory.
MATCH SUMMARY
LA Galaxy 2-1 Houston Dynamo FC
Saturday, May 25, 2024
Venue: Dignity Health Sports Park - Carson, California
Referee: Allen Chapman
Assistants: Jeremy Hanson, Felisha Mariscal
Fourth Official: Elijo Arreguin
VAR: Younes Marrakchi
Attendance: 21,707
Weather: 63 degrees, partly cloudy
SCORING SUMMARY
HOU: Latif Blessing (unassisted) 18’
LAG: Gabriel Pec (Miki Yamane) 44’
LAG: Riqui Puig (Gabriel Pec) 59’
DISCIPLINE SUMMARY
LAG: Gaston Brugman (caution; foul) 90+4’
LINEUPS & STATS
Austin FC: John McCarthy; Julian Aude (John Nelson 66’), Martin Caceres, Maya Yoshida (C), Miki Yamane; Riqui Puig, Gaston Brugman, Mark Delgado; Diego Fagundez (Daniel Aguirre 84’), Dejan Joveljic (Edwin Cerrillo 84’), Gabriel Pec
Unused Substitutes: Jonathan Perez, Mauricio Cuevas, Jalen Neal, Carlos Garces, Miguel Berry, Novak Micovic
Total shots: 12 (Riqui Puig 4)
Shots on goal: 6 (Riqui Puig and Gabriel Pec tied with 2)
Fouls: 10 (Gaston Brugman 4)
Offside: 1 (Riqui Puig 1)
Corner kicks: 7
Saves: 2 (John McCarthy 2)
Houston Dynamo FC: Andrew Tarbell; Daniel Steres (Jefferson Valverde 78’), Griffin Dorsey, Erik Sviatchenko (Franco Escobar 90’), Micael; Artur, Amine Bassi, Hector Herrera (C); Adalberto Carrasquilla (Gabe Segal 83’), Latif Blessing (Brad Smith 46’), Aliyu Ibrahim
Unused substitutes: Ethan Bartlow, Jan Gregus, Tate Schmitt, Brooklyn Raines, Xavier Valdez
Total shots: 13 (Latif Blessing 5)
Shots on goal: 4 (Latif Blessing 2)
Fouls: 12 (three players tied with 2)
Offside: 2 (Latif Blessing and Aliyu Ibrahim tied with 1)
Corner kicks: 5
Saves: 4 (Andrew Tarbell 4)
HOUSTON DYNAMO HEAD COACH BEN OLSEN
On the result:
“That was a tough one because it was a good performance overall. The first half was one of the best halves I’ve seen this team play. In the second half, it turned into a transition game, which we wanted to avoid. We put a lot into the first half, and I wanted to see more discipline from the group, but it was an even game, and we had plenty of chances that could have changed the result.”
On Latif Blessing and Aliyu Ibrahim’s performances:
“Latif (Blessing) was fantastic, and Aliyu (Ibrahim) showed good flashes. They both had strong performances, made good plays and had chances they could have finished off. Overall, I am pleased with the arrangement we used today. We have plenty of games and will get back to work to face Colorado and Portland next week. We can take some good from this performance and learn how to get more results.”
HOUSTON DYNAMO DEFENDER ERIK SVIATCHENKO
On the result:
“I am disappointed. The first half was a textbook of how we wanted to play, and we were dominant on the ball. We slowly lost the feeling of control in the second half, and then it turned into a transition match, which we did not want. It’s annoying, but we created chances, including two goal line saves. Everyone did their job, and we are getting close.”
On how the team will regroup:
“We had a week to prepare for this match, but games come really fast in this league. Now we have a couple of days to prepare for Colorado, which is a crucial, must-win game for us. We are used to having a congested schedule with back-to-back games, and now we have an opportunity to show that we can get back to winning games. We need some more points instead of leaving empty handed after good performances.”
