CARSON, Calif -- With the LA Galaxy getting their first draw of the season Saturday night against the Philadelphia Union in a scoreless affair, there’s some hope that this is a righting of the ship.
Not that the Galaxy season was capsized eight games in, but with a minus-3 goal differential at home on the year, their defensive performances had become cause for concern.
Head coach Curt Onalfo is certainly aware that this team is falling short of expectations, and hopes that any momentum gained here can help them overcome some of the building frustration.
“We have a group that, let’s be honest, we feel pressure," he said. "When you feel pressure sometimes you force things, you don’t have that extra pause and that extra amount of relaxation that you need where you just put a play away.
“It’s been a very frustrating difficult start for us. We’ve worked very, very hard -- it’s not been for a lack of effort. The results haven’t gone the way we wanted them to go so I feel like we saw a little bit of that tonight in the guys.”
That pressure spurred Onalfo to make two changes from the team that lost 3-0 to the Seattle Sounders last time out -- bringing in Baggio Husidic and Bradley Diallo for Gyasi Zardes and Nathan Smith. Zardes was left off the team sheet due to illness, and this allowed Onalfo to use both Husidic and Emmanuel Boateng, leaving Giovani dos Santos alone at the top of a 4-2-3-1 formation.
“We had just been bleeding goals,” said Onalfo. “When you win the middle of the field and you’re able to press more efficiently, which if you saw our team I thought we pressed well tonight, it gives you a better chance to be better going forward -- it gives you a better chance to win games.”
Getting control of possession and out-passing the Union were an improvement from week to week, but 10 of the Galaxy's 13 shots on the night were off-target or blocked, and nine came from inside the box. Dos Santos, who has only registered one goal -- off a penalty kick in the season opener -- and no assists, it’s not about making excuses. To him, the team just needs to execute.
“It’s difficult to talk about when teams are in a bad way,” said dos Santos, “you can say anything. I think we’re not in the time to talk or make excuses. We have to keep trying, keep working, and believe in ourselves.
“We’re [the] Galaxy. We have to keep working and come back.”
