FC Dallas 2, Los Angeles Galaxy 1
April 13th, 2007 . 5:36 am . By: Jamie Fougerousse
After an opening thirty minutes in which Dallas could not find any meaningful possession, an injury to holding midfielder Marcelo Saragosa seemed to spark the team to two goals in the final fifteen minutes of the first half. The Galaxy pulled one goal back late in the game, but it was too little too late to stop the boys from Dallas getting their first ever win against Los Angeles at the Home Depot Center. LA enjoyed most of the possession and a few good chances early on, earning several corner kicks and free kicks in the Dallas half of the field. Then Saragosa went down with what looked to be a significant knee injury all alone on the near sideline, Aaron Pitchkolan entered the game, and the team began knocking the ball around well. Dallas began to dictate the pace of the game, and smart work by Nunez and Toja helped get the ball into dangerous positions. The Galaxy still threatened with counterattacks, but the Dallas back line stayed organized and responded with a performance much improved over last Saturday’s at Salt Lake. As the Hoops began to possess the ball, Toja, Nunez, and Dax McCarty started to find channels to get forward in the center of midfield. In the 34th minute, as Dallas attacked, Juan Toja ripped a shot from the top of the box that hit LA defender Ty Harden in the arm. Referee Terry Vaughn pointed to the spot, and Captain Carlos Ruiz stepped up to face Joe Cannon. Ruiz put the ball alarmingly close to Cannon, but the former Rapids keeper could not get down fast enough, and Ruiz finally found his first goal against his former team. Dallas continued to dominate possession and dictate pace for the remainder of the first half. Nunez was beginning to make a habit of holding on to the ball too long, but doing that drew a foul in the 42nd minute on the right side of the field about 30 yards from goal. Nunez took the kick, curling the ball to the far side of the six-yard box, where Kenny Cooper’s crashing run found a first-time volley into the net to bring the score to 2-0 as the half ended. At halftime Galaxy Coach Frank Yallop made his first change, replacing Ian Russell with Kevin Harmse. In spite of the change, Dallas continued to dominate possession as the second half ticked along. The back line seemed to gel and put on one of the best defensive performances Dallas has seen in years. The key to this half and perhaps the match was their effective shutdown of Landon Donovan. Alex Yi and Clarence Goodson both earned yellow cards for hard fouls on Donovan, but they were all done safely at midfield and they succeeded in limiting Donovan’s contributions. As the second half wore on, the Galaxy pressed more and more and Dallas began to bunker to try and ride the two-goal lead to a victory. The defense continued to impress, but the ease with which FCD conceded corners, eleven in all, finally punished the Hoops in the 86th minute. Donovan sent a good corner to the far post, and rookie Robbie Findley buried the header after slipping away from Alex Yi to make the score 2-1. Dallas weathered the storm for the last four minutes of regulation and over four minutes of stoppage time to earn a well-deserved three points for the first time ever against LA at the Home Depot Center. The victory moves Dallas into the top of the Western Conference with four points heading into the weekend. The Galaxy, still with one point, is in a three-way tie for fourth place. Their goal differential puts them at the bottom of the Western standings. The Hoops travel to New York to face the Red Bulls Sunday on Telefutura. Tonight’s game was the only one for Los Angeles this weekend. 12 Comments Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI Leave a comment |
Bobby Rhine had Findley on the set pieces not Yi who had Chris Albright. The team showed lots of bite and a strong will to finish the game.
Very big win for the boys. I agree w/ Hank…they played tough, good possession at key times, and definitely finished strong.
Four points on a three game road trip is pretty good. And we still have a chance to get another one or three…albeit on that godforsaken turf in NY/NJ.
RUIZ IS HORRIBLE! As a USA fan, I hate him. I try to like him as a member of FC Dallas but he did nothing last night. His dives are embarassing and his play is even worse. I didn’t see anything from him, but of course the fans will still rally with him because he scored a goal! YAY FOR RUIZ!
G – Ruiz’s diving can be a bit much at times, but he is an excellent forward. He’s not the biggest guy, but plays a great point striker, winning possession and distributes nicely with defenders all over him. He’s also deadly when given a little room to shoot. The partnership he’s formed with Coop makes the FCD front line one of the most dangerous in the league.
Jamie, it was Ruiz’s first goal against LA in LA. He’s scored two against them at PHP.
Hey G,
You might have made a wrong turn to land here. This is the victory celebration for FCD over hated LA and Carlos Ruiz is one of our hero’s. You might be right but you’re wrong here my firend, especially today.
Sorry hank! But i didn’t make a wrong turn today! I’m an FC Dallas fan and thats my opinion. If you don’t like it, sorry! I’m just as happy with the win, and i’m happy with the midfield and the defense. And i might make you angry but suggesting that Rhine is better off the bench as well, if at all. Nevertheless, can’t wait for the Red Bulls
No worries, if we don’t have opinions we don’t have these boards so carry on.
a few things…..
was it me or was Juan Toja’s touch a little heavy last night? I noticed it during the RSL game but they blamed it on the turf. nothing to blame it on last night.
was it me or was Dax awesome? he was all over the field and showed some speed and grit. he also showed he’s light in the britches, so eat some grits and eggs for breakfast son.
was it me or was Gbandi on his Gbutt for most of the game? he fouled in the first 15 seconds and flopped around like a dead Pescadito all night long and just watched Albright dribble past him.
was it me or were Yi and Goodson awesome last night, marking tight and clearing out of the box?
was it me or is Toja the exact opposite of ROB with the totally left footed game? he got better and was really good in the second half.
was it me or did the formation seem to change into a 4-4-2 with a diamond midlfield shape? or maybe it was still 4-5-1 and Coop just got higher faster from the right.
G, Ruiz is great. He does dive a lot and is one of the best actors in MLS but he also does what a striker is supposed to do and that’s score goals. Sure he couldn’t do it without his team but neither can any player in history of soccer except maybe Maradonna
Thanks buzz for putting the pic, appreaciate that.
Now for G: I respect your opinion but this is not a USA soccer macth, I dont know why you are bringin that up, wait for an article about the US natinal team against Guatemala. This was a FCD game, how can you say that about one of our best players in the field. Talking about dives, I think that last dive in the game was essential, it killed the fury the galaxy had in those last minutes of the game. It was an intelligent move. Think about it. You say he didnt do nothing in the game, I was there, everytime there was a corner he ran to cover up, he was doing defensive work too. You must be on something bro for saying that about Ruiz.
For the rest of you guys I uploaded a mini video I recorded yesterday during the game. Enjoy it.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Iucp3sFpbPk
We’ll see about Ruiz, theres going to be a time when the ref’s aren’t going to put up with it anymore. And if you’re talking about defense, well done on Landon for jumping into and causing a free kick from 25 yards out. That was realllllll Great! defensive work. I understand supporting your favorite actor, but you’d hate this guy if he weren’t on FC
You are right, G. I hated Ruiz’s diving and whining when he played for LA, and I hate it now. I thought he tempered it some during the Colin Clarke years, but he might be returning to flopping fish form this year…