February 27, 2022 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – LA Galaxy News Release
LOS ANGELES – In their 2022 MLS regular season home opener, the LA Galaxy earned a 1-0 shutout win over New York City FC behind Javier “Chicharito” Hernández’s game-winning goal in the 90th minute before a sell-out crowd of 25,174 fans at Dignity Health Sports Park on Sunday afternoon. Raheem Edwards, who made his debut for the Galaxy, tallied the game-winning assist, while goalkeeper Jonathan Bond registered his first shutout of the 2022 campaign.
LA Galaxy In Home Openers
Since MLS’ inception in 1996, the Galaxy hold a record of 17-8-2 in 27 home openers. Sunday’s match marked the 14th time the Galaxy opened their home schedule against an Eastern Conference opponent. In his last two home openers with the LA Galaxy at Dignity Health Sports Park, Chicharito has tallied four goals. In last year’s home opener at Dignity Health Sports Park against the New York Red Bulls, Chicharito’s hat trick powered the Galaxy to a 3-2 win on April 25, 2021.
LA Galaxy Debuts
Three players made their debut for the Galaxy in the match against NYCFC: Douglas Costa, Mark Delgado and Edwards. Costa started and played 67 minutes in his Galaxy and MLS debut. Delgado started and played 90 minutes in his 219th MLS regular-season appearance, while Edwards started and played 90 minutes in his 93rd MLS league match.
Goal-Scoring Plays
LA – Javier “Chicharito” Hernández (Raheem Edwards), 90th minute: After Raheem Edwards intercepted the ball just outside NYCFC’s 18-yard box, he immediately slipped a pass into the path of Chicharito down the left side of the penalty area. Cutting onto his right foot, Chicharito evaded a defender’s tackle and rifled his shot into the far corner of the net.
Postgame Notes
Since MLS’ inception in 1996, the Galaxy improved to 17-8-2 in 27 home openers at Dignity Health Sports Park.
The match against NYCFC marked the 14th time the Galaxy opened their home schedule against an Eastern Conference opponent.
Following the win over New York City, LA improved to 2-4-0 in six regular-season meetings against NYCFC.
In four regular-season matches played against NYCFC at Dignity Health Sports Park, the Galaxy hold a record of 2-2-0.
Chicharito tallied his third career game-winning goal in the win over NYCFC.
In Chicharito’s last two home openers at Dignity Health Sports Park dating back to 2021, he has tallied four goals.
Chicharito has notched a goal in three consecutive regular-season matches played dating back to a 2-2 draw against FC Dallas on Oct. 23, 2021.
In eight regular-season matches dating back to Sept. 29, 2021, Chicharito has tallied seven goals and two assists.
Three players made their debut for the Galaxy: Douglas Costa, Mark Degaldo, Raheem Edwards.
Following the result, LA Galaxy head coach Greg Vanney improved to 5-5-5 record in 15 regular-season matches managed against NYCFC.
In his MLS and Galaxy debut, Douglas Costa was tied for a game-high two shots on target.
Víctor Vázquez finished the match with a team-high three chances created.
Jonathan Bond finished the match with one save and notched his first shutout of the 2022 campaign.
Rayan Raveloson ended the match tied for a game-high nine recoveries.
Séga Coulibaly registered a game-high three tackles won.
Next Game
Next up, the Galaxy travel to face expansion side Charlotte FC at Bank of America Stadium on Saturday, March 5. The March 5 match kicks off at 4:30 p.m. PT and features a national television broadcast on FOX.
LA Galaxy (1-0-0, 3pts) vs. New York City FC (0-1-0, 0pts)
Feb. 27, 2022 – Dignity Health Sports Park (Los Angeles)
Goals by Half 1 2 F
LA Galaxy 0 1 1
New York City FC 0 0 0
Scoring Summary:
LA: Chicharito (Edwards), 90
Misconduct Summary:
NYC: Acevedo (caution), 14
LA: Costa (caution), 41
NYC: Amundsen (caution), 54
NYC: Callens (caution), 90+4
Lineups:
LA: GK Jonathan Bond; D Julián Araujo, D Séga Coulibaly, D Nick DePuy, D Raheem Edwards; M Mark Delgado, M Rayan Raveloson, M Douglas Costa (Efraín Álvarez, 67), M Víctor Vázquez (Sacha Kljestan, 81), M Kévin Cabral (Samuel Grandsir, 75); F Javier “Chicharito” Hernández ©
Substitutes Not Used: GK Jonathan Klinsmann; D Kelvin Leerdam, D Jalen Neal, D Jorge Villafaña; M Daniel Aguirre, F Dejan Joveljić
TOTAL SHOTS: 15 (Nick DePuy, 3); SHOTS ON GOAL: 6 (2, Douglas Costa, Chicharito); FOULS: 22 (Douglas Costa, 4) OFFSIDES: 0; CORNER KICKS: 7; SAVES: 1
NYC: GK Sean Johnson ©; D Maxime Chanot, D Alexander Callens, D Alfredo Morales, D Malte Amundsen, D Tayvon Gray (Heber, 90+4); M Maxi Moralez, M Santiago Rodriguez (Andres Jasson, 75), M Nicolas Acevedo (Keaton Parks, 63), M Talles Magno (Thiago, 63); F Valentin Castellanos
Substitutes Not Used: GK Luis Barraza; D Chris Gloster, D Thiago Martins, D Vuk Latinovich; M Gedion Zelalem
TOTAL SHOTS: 9 (Valentin Castellanos, Tayvon Gray, 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 1 (Tallles Magno, 1); FOULS: 22 (Valentin Castellanos, 5) OFFSIDES: 4; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 5
Referee: Joe Dickerson
Assistant Referees: Frank Anderson, Mike Rottersman
Fourth Official: Elijio Arreguin
VAR: Kevin Stott
Weather: Clear, 76 degrees
Attendance: 25,174
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial
LA GALAXY POSTGAME QUOTES
LA GALAXY HEAD COACH GREG VANNEY
On his general thoughts after the match…
“I thought it was a hard fought game. I think both teams were very competitive. I don’t think there was a ton of space for either team through large stretches. Neither team had a ton of chances. For us, it looked a little bit like our first competitive game, just in terms of the work was there, the competition was there. Some things just needed to be a little sharper, a little more dynamic. I think us still getting our 90 minutes of MLS match fitness is still a work in progress for everybody. But I was super pleased with just the effort. And through there, there was some great moments. And, I thought the most important thing, and I’ll say this every, single Zoom… We defended our goal, we defended our box and we defended our hearts out. And if we do that, we’re going to be fine. Some of the attacking stuff I think was just a little bit of… just needed to be a little be sharper, a little bit quicker at times. Maybe a little bit more decisive a few moments. But, very pleased with it. I mean, 1-0 against a team that has played two competitive games in [Concacaf] Champion’s League and who have started a little earlier than us.. Who played until the final day last year and won a championship… To come out here and defend the way we did and play the way we did, for 90 minutes. I’m super proud of these guys. This is a good step for us learning how to win games like this and becoming a better group.”
On his decision to put Raheem Edwards in the lineup:
“Raheem [Edwards] has been good all preseason. Again, just his athleticism, his craftiness, all those things that are there. He’s a very good soccer player. Again, there’s nuance in the position that he’s still learning a little bit on the fly sometimes. But, he’s learning it. He deserved to start, and he was out there. And, again, he has the capacity to make plays over the course of the game, and he certainly helped us to make one there at the end.”
On Douglas Costa and his combination with the players around the field:
“Good. Again, I think you see his quality and some of his actions on the ball. Some of the moments that he does things. You see quality and he’s an intelligent player. Again, this is the first match he’s played in a long time. He didn’t have a lot of preseason matches. The only way we’re going to get him with continuity in the group and get his legs under him, is to get him out, and have him playing. He’s got to work through some of that in front of everybody, in front of the crowd, and that’s part of it. So, I think, again, there’s just a little continuity that has to build. His fitness is still coming along in terms of getting match fitness. But, he put in a good shift on the defensive side. He was connected to the group. He did all of those things. And then, obviously in possession, he was capable of all of those things will continue to come as his legs get under him more and more through the process.”
On the chance creation side, and if his squad generated enough chances that were played throughout the game:
“I don’t think we created enough chances for what we’d like to do. But, I also thought it was a tight game. Neither team created a lot of chances. Neither goalkeepers had to come up with many saves. Really, if any saves. That’s what, sometimes, what you get, when you get two good teams early in the season, where, maybe some of the attacking stuff just isn’t quite as sharp as it will become in time. The field also is really slow when you play midday. And, it was a little bumpy because a lot of things have been played on it over the last month. And so, it was a little bumpy and a little slow, which is to the benefit of the defending team. I mean, the chances they got, a lot of them were just off very direct play, where they just launched the ball up to [Valentín] Castellanos, who is a handful, and they play off of that. For us, we’re trying to play through things. Sometimes it’s a little direct. I just think it was a challenging game from that way, and both teams were at a little bit of a stalemate in terms of chance creation through large stretches of the game.”
On his thoughts on Javier Hernández and Kevin Cabral’s performances today:
“Again, they put in the shift. They put in the work today. And, today is the day. Again, it’s a tight game. Two teams who are organized. Neither team is so easy to play against. That’s the most important thing for me right now. I know the attacking stuff will grow with our group, but we showed the ability to protect our box, to protect our goal. To not have our goalkeeper have to make five saves for us to be in a game that is, you know, 1-0. And for us to win a tough game against a tough team, 1-0, is a huge statement for our group. But, in terms of Javi [Javier Hernández] and Kévin [Cabral] they both contributed to that. To that effort. Both to the defensive side. For Javi, the fight to hold up balls, to bring people in the equation, the continuous work for 90 minutes, to make a difference in the 90th minute, is sometimes the life of a forward. And he just kept working through it, you know. And he kept competing for the entire game. And he found his moment and he made the difference. For Kévin, I felt some of his running was there. Early in the game and in the first half, he made some good runs, where I feel like maybe we opted to keep possession instead of slip him through and let him get on it. I think he got himself into one really good chance, where he ran by [Maxime] Chanot, and was able to get into the depth, and then just didn’t put the cross where it needed to be to give us a chance to finish it. But, again, he stays connected to the group defensively. He works hard. He’s smart about reading the game and staying connected to the group. He’s part of why we were able to get a shutout today. Both of those guys. The work that they did. And, ultimately, we worked for 90 minutes and got the goal that we needed to make the difference.”
LA GALAXY FORWARD JAVIER HERNÁNDEZ
On what he thought about the team’s performance in the win over NYCFC:
“It’s not a prepared speech, but that’s how I see this sport and that’s how it happened last season. I scored 17 goals and then I was on my couch watching the Playoffs, watching these guys lifting the trophy you know. So, the beauty of sports is like, most of the time you have the opportunity to redeem yourself. Now, if you are doing pretty good, you have to try and get better and if you need to improve in so many ways you can do as well. So, I’m very glad, very happy that my goal helped the team, but my goal wasn’t like anything. You know, we need to consider all the effort of my team. That we had a clean sheet in our home, the way that we fought back against the best team of MLS last season. And so I think we grind pretty well all together and LA Galaxy won.”
On Greg Vanney saying his grind and effort off the ball for 90 minutes was the difference maker and his thoughts about Greg’s comments:
“In a way I agree with him because I don’t play just for scoring goals, you know, I am a soccer player, I’m not in a position that it says, score goals only position, you know. The strikers normally score goals, but that’s strikers have functions as a first defender. As well as the goalkeeper is the first attacker in the way soccer is being played. So, I’m always for the service of this team. I’m going to do the best that I can every single time to help my team to win balls. That’s the most important thing. And today, if another player would have scored the goal, I would be just as happy and I would have my tears out as well, because in the way that we win, in the way that we grind and yeah, we got the result at the end. So it was a pretty, a pretty sweet win.”
On the play of his game-winning goal:
“I thought in the split of a second that I had the opportunity to shoot with my left and because in the other chance that the goalkeeper saved, the shot that I did with the first touch, so I thought that the defender was going to dive trying to, to, to stop the shot you know. But then I was lucky enough to that the other defender just had a slight touch of the ball. He didn’t deflect it completely. He did a good challenge too, you know, the second defender. Sorry. So in a split of a second, I decided, it went well and then the finish was pretty well and it was on the back of the net, so yeah. I was very happy, but I want to give so much credit to Raheem [Edwards] because, the way for him to see that goal, the pass that he did, he’s a left back. And he did a pass of a number 10, you know, I want to praise him so much because, that’s the talent that we have. That’s how well we want to give everything to all of our teammates, you know, because in the way that I want to chase balls, in the way that I want to defend, to make fouls to stop the other team advance, etc. Our defenders trying to be allowed to do good passes, to cut lines and move forward, you know, so yeah. That’s the thing that we want to show every single game and every single opportunity that we have.”
On his celebration with his teammates:
“We deserved this and we know how soccer is, sometimes you can work and do everything that is in your hands and sometimes the result doesn’t come your way. That’s the beauty of it because it’s not predictable. But we played against the best team of MLS last season in our home, it was our home opener and we won in the last minute, you know? So yeah. The feelings are pretty positive. But like always, tomorrow we need to turn the page. We need to start focusing on Charlotte that is going to be a difficult game. We’re going to go to the east. It’s a long travel. It’s a team that is new. They have everything to win, nothing to lose. We need to go step by step. We earned the first three points, but this is not over. This is just the beginning. And we learned from last season. You know that one play matters. One goal matters. One clean sheet matters and one sprint matters”
LA GALAXY DEFENDER RAHEEM EDWARDS
On his game-winning assist for Chicharito’s goal:
“I thought the subs we made had a huge impact. We continued to play football and continued to play the way we wanted to play. We were playing in the middle of the park and had a quick turnover. I got a lucky nick of the ball and I saw Chicha [Chicharito] was in an onside position and I tried to slip him though. Chicha did what Chicha does. He puts the ball in the back of the net.”
On playing at left back:
“This is my first year officially playing left back as my number one position. I played a couple of positions, so it’s not like I’m not used to it. This is a position that I now have to hone in and take accountability for because this is the position they see me in. Playing in multiple positions has helped. I was in the middle of the park and I was able to see a pass. Left back is my main position now.”
On Greg Vanney instilling the importance of defense throughout the preseason:
“It wasn’t just this game, it started from the first day of preseason. They knew from last season that the team defending as a whole wasn’t good enough, so it was something that we honed in on in preseason. We made sure that we’re tight as a unit, compact and communicating and setting ourselves up for the best way possible to defend the goal. I thought today was pretty good. [They had] maybe one or two chances, but nothing too much. It’s good to keep the zero and we got the clean sheet. It’s great, but we look forward to building on it. It’s not done. This is the first game of 34. We’re just going to keep building our defense, and not just from the back, but the whole team in general… Staying compact, staying tight and making it hard to play against us.”
• Discuss this story on the Major League Soccer message board…
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
