Real Salt Lake hand LA Galaxy its 2nd consecutive defeat with a 2-0 win in Utah.
The Galaxy were looking to regroup after suffering their first loss since mid-July after last weeks loss vs the Colorado Rapids. With that in mind, they hit the road to face Real Salt Lake. For today’s game, Chicharito made his second consecutive start after being injured over a month, with fellow compatriot Jonathan Dos Santos also in the starting line-up. Christian Pavón and Sebastian Lletget had been stepping up in the absence of Chicharito and Dos Santos.
The game started off evenly matched. Both teams began with a 4-2-3-1 line-up. The 5-time MLS champions didn’t just park the bus in this game, they came out attacking, but Real Salt Lake showed to be well prepared for this. The mid-field comprised of Everton Luiz and Pablo Ruiz was up for the challenge. The first half was an at even keel. Both teams had opportunities to score, but the ball just never made it to the back of the net. Both teams went into the half with a 0-0 tie.
The game resumed, and just like the first half, it remained stagnant. However, things changed for the home team in the 65th minute. Justin Meran from Real Salt Lake drew a foul in the penalty area. Albert Rusnák converted the penalty kick with a right-footed shot to the bottom left corner of the net. This appeared to be the spark the team needed because in the 72nd minute, they scored yet again. This goal was scored by Damir Kreilach, a right footed shot from the center of the box to the bottom right corner, this time assisted by Albert Rusnák. At this point, the Galaxy was running out of options as they were not able to generate any offense. Los Angeles made attempts to create opportunities, but they were stifled by multiple offside calls in the second half. The game ended 2-0 as Real Salt Lake handed Galaxy its second consecutive defeat.
