PASADENA, Calif. – The largest crowd ever to see a club soccer game at the Rose Bowl was treated to a fantastic show as the LA Galaxy fell 2-1 to European giants FC Barcelona in front of 93,226 fans on Tuesday.
Luis Suarez and Sergi Roberto scored for the European giants while Tommy Meyer added a goal in second-half stoppage time to put the Galaxy on the score sheet. Despite all the action on the field, the true show took place in the stands, however, as the crowd in Pasadena was the largest to ever see a match involving an MLS club.
For the Southern California born players like Bradford Jamieson IV, to play in front of that many hometown fans was truly a sight to behold.
“It's awesome. It is a privilege to be able play in front of many fans for back-to-back years,” Jamieson told reporters after the game. “I have a lot of family and friends that were able to come out and a lot of guys telling me, guys from the past, guys that I haven't seen in five years talking about watching me on TV against the best team in the world and it is something that is heartwarming.”
Whether it was A.J. DeLaGarza’s brilliant run midway through the first half or Luis Suarez’s stoppage-time goal, everyone in attendance had a reason to cheer. Whereas a year ago, the Galaxy were overmatched by Manchester United, on Tuesday, they challenged the UEFA Champions League winners for 90 minutes.
In the second half in particular, a youthful Galaxy squad took the match to Barcelona, and in stoppage time were rewarded for their efforts as Meyer nodded in a Mika Vayrynen corner to put the Galaxy on the board.
The goal was Meyer’s second professional tally, but undoubtedly one the 25-year-old central defender will remember for a lifetime.
“It's something you dream about. I'm pretty excited,” Meyer said. “Mika [Vayrynen] served a great ball and I was luckily there to put my head on it.”
And to score that goal in front of such a crowd of 93,226 at a venue as famous as the Rose Bowl simply left Meyer speechless.
“When you walk out for warm ups you think, ‘alright there is going to be a lot of people here,’” Meyer said. “Then when you actually come out and the game starts and you kind of hear them you think that this is a pretty cool experience.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog at LAGalaxy.com/Insider and contact him at LAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com.
