Galaxy Once Again Finds Way to Beat San Jose
Laurie Calloway knew going into Sunday’s Major League Soccer game at the Rose Bowl that the San Jose Clash faced a problem.
How dangerous is it, he was asked beforehand, to come up against a Galaxy side that is 1-7, that has lost four games in a row, that has been shut out in its last three matches and that was trounced, 4-1, the last time the teams met?
“It’s obviously very dangerous, and that’s part of what we’ve been talking about all week--[the danger of] lethargy or complacency,†the Clash coach said.
“And the other thing is that we’ve still got something to prove from last year’s [1-7] record against these guys. The players still have that burning inside of them. So hopefully one will balance the other out and we’ll go out and try to win our first game in L.A., which we’ve never done yet.â€
And still haven’t.
The Galaxy, perhaps inspired by the benching of striker Eduardo Hurtado and midfielder Danny Pena--both of whom were angered by the moves--played the Clash to 1-1 tie in front of 10,338, then won the resulting shootout, 3-2, to end its four-game slide.
The victory improved the team’s record to 2-7, while San Jose, losing in a shootout for the second time in three days and the fourth time in six attempts this season, fell to 4-6.
It was an incident-filled game that offered hints that the Galaxy might be emerging from its early season woes. For example:
--Greg Vanney hammered two fierce shots that were well-saved by Clash goalkeeper Tom Liner.
--Robin Fraser upended Dominic Kinnear with a brutal tackle that knocked Kinnear into the air, out of the game and onto crutches with an injured right ankle.
--David Kramer made an astonishing save, tumbling backward into his net to snare a header by Lawrence Lozzano but holding the ball out in front of him to prevent it crossing the goal line.
--Coach Lothar Osiander, who finally signed a new contract with the club Friday, breathed a huge sigh of relief.
The Galaxy took the lead in the 32nd minute when a long diagonal pass from Vanney on the left flank reached Cobi Jones on the right wing. Jones cut the ball across the face of the goal and Welton, running in at the far post, was on hand to slide it into the net.
Two minute into the second half, San Jose tied it. A lapse by the defense allowed Daniel Guzman the time to get into the penalty area and send a pass to Lozzano, who beat Kramer from close range.
“If this was my last game for a while, at least I ended on a win,†Kramer said afterward.
The reference was to a game that took place in Mexico City Sunday, where Necaxa defeated Atlante, 3-1, in the quarterfinals of the Mexican League playoffs.
The loss eliminated Atlante, which means that goalkeeper Jorge Campos will be free to return to the Galaxy this week. It probably will not be in time for Wednesday’s Rose Bowl game against Aston Villa of the English Premier League, but Campos will play Sunday against the Columbus Crew in what already is being referred to as “Opening Day II†by Galaxy staffers.
Meanwhile, the ongoing saga of Paul Caligiuri took a novel turn Sunday when a small plane circled the Rose Bowl towing a banner that read: “Let Caligiuri Play, We Need Him.â€
The defender might well be in the lineup Wednesday, where he could have the unenviable task of marking Stan Collymore, bought this week by Aston Villa from Liverpool for $12 million--the size of the entire MLS player budget.
