The LA Galaxy had to hold on for dear life after a scintillating first half display, but managed to see out a 4-2 win in wild encounter with the New England Revolution on Sunday afternoon.
The Galaxy looked to be firmly in control of the 2014 MLS Cup rematch after Robbie Keane’s two tap-ins in his first appearance since March sandwiched a stunning volley from Giovani dos Santos.
The Revolution game storming back in the second half, though, and scored twice in four minutes thanks to quality strikes from Kelyn Rowe and Juan Agudelo. The Revs continued to give the Galaxy fits in search for an equalizer as Agudelo rattled the crossbar with his curling shot in the 83rd minute, but Steven Gerrard showed great control to finish off a stoppage-time counterattack.
With the victory, the Galaxy became the first team to win 300 games in MLS.
Box Score
- 13’ – LA – Robbie Keane (Gyasi Zardes)
- 24’ – LA – Giovani dos Santos
- 45+1’ – LA – Robbie Keane (Gyasi Zardes, Giovani dos Santos)
- 67’ – NE – Kelyn Rowe (Gershon Koffie)
- 70’ – NE – Juan Agudelo (Femi Hollinger-Janzen)
- 90+3' – LA – Steven Gerrard (Mike Magee)
- Full box score
- Stats
- Watch highlights
Three Things
OH, CHRISTMAS TREE:
With Robbie Keane back in the fold, Bruce Arena opted for what could be a termed a 4-3-2-1 (or “Christmas Tree”) formation, with Keane and Giovani dos Santos operating centrally behind Gyasi Zardes at the tip of the attack:
In reality, the formation was much more fluid, with plenty of interchange between the front three. This led to some pretty passing moves, including Zardes getting out wide twice to cross for a Keane tap-in at the back post.
Next Up
- LA: Wednesday at Philadelphia Union (7 pm ET, MLS LIVE)
- NE: Saturday vs. Chicago (7:30 pm ET, MLS LIVE)
