CARSON, Calif. (May 30, 2018) – FC Dallas win again, extending their unbeaten streak to five in a row. Thanks to some great play from Mauro Diaz and the supporting cast, Dallas defeated LA Galaxy 3-2 at the StubHub Center on Wednesday night.
FC Dallas win midweek game at LA Galaxy 3-2
The game started off at a frenetic pace with both teams trying to score. Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Romain Alessandrini combined well to create chances for each other and win several corners. On the other side, Dallas played in a 4-3-3, trying to exploit the Galaxy on the wings.
Dallas opened the scoring in the 33rd minute. After some excellent short passing at the top of the box, Diaz found Ryan Hollingshead open in Zone 14, who took a touch to control then scored. Five minutes before halftime the two combined again to score. Diaz found Hollingshead out wide, who sent in a cross the back post. No Galaxy player picked up Cristian Colman who headed the ball past David Bingham to score. The half ended 0-2.
The Galaxy pushed for a goal in the second half with Ibrahimovic and Alessandrini again trying to will the team back in the game. Zlatan was called offsides on a goal in 61st minute. Just two minutes later, Perry Kitchen had a header cleared off the line.
It was Dallas however who scored against the run of play in the 66th minute. Kellyn Acosta sent a great cross towards Michael Barrios on the run. David Bingham came off his line to stop him point blank but Carlos Gruezo cleaned up the rebound.
The Galaxy got on the board in the 69th minute when Ibrahimovic beat goalkeeper Jesse Gonzalez after Dallas turned the ball over in the final third.
Things got heated in the 80th minute when Cristian Colman was given a straight red card for violent conduct. At the time of publishing, the ESPN+ stream had not shown a conclusive angle as to what Colman did to earn the red card. It wasn’t enough help for the Galaxy as the match ended 2-3 after Ibrahimovic volleyed a shot into the net in the final minutes of stoppage time.
Three takeaways:
Defensive mistakes burn the Galaxy: The Galaxy’s man marking was poor in this game and they were caught ball watching on the first two goals. When overwhelmed by numbers and intricate passing from Dallas, they broke down. The defensive performance and focus just weren’t good enough.
Diaz the Magician: Mauro Diaz showed once again why he’s one of the best young No. 10’s in MLS right now. He pulled the strings for Dallas all night long and made two great passes on the first two goals. He sucked in the Galaxy defense to make space to distribute.
Zlatan and Alessandrini frustration: Both players for the Galaxy made a tremendous effort to try and win this game. Zlatan showed his frustration with himself, the officials, and his teammates throughout the night. Alessandrini looked upset with the scoreline at times as well. Both appeared to have their energy pointed in the wrong direction as they forced it at times, especially late in the match.
