SEATTLE – LA Galaxy Insider Adam Serrano provides his Three Things We Learned from the Galaxy’s 1-1 draw with Seattle Sounders FC. Sebastian Lletget scored the lone goal for the LA Galaxy.
LA GALAXY DO JUST ENOUGH TO GET A POINT
It took everything that they had, but the LA Galaxy snatched a point from Seattle Sounders FC on Sunday.
Sebastian Lletget’s goal in the 78th minute gave the Galaxy a 1-1 draw in a match that was dominated by the Sounders. Bolstered by their coaching change and the addition of new signing Nico Lodeiro, Seattle took an early lead in the second half but were unable to hold on thanks to Lletget’s first tally of the 2016 MLS season.
Lletget may have scored the equalizer, but the Galaxy owe the point to the defensive fortitude of Jelle Van Damme. The Belgian put in a man of the match performance, as he made not one, but two goal-line clearances and helped stifle an energetic Sounders attack.
DESPITE THE POINT, THE GALAXY MISS GYASI ZARDES
Gyasi Zardes’ presence in the attack was sorely missed during the LA Galaxy’s sometimes frustrating performance on Sunday.
With Zardes out due to a muscle strain, the Galaxy turned to Ema Boateng to play the forward’s role in Bruce Arena’s 4-2-3-1 system. Although Boateng had plenty of room to roam about the field, he was unable to create attacks and link up with Robbie Keane and Giovani dos Santos. It wasn’t until Lletget replaced Boateng midway through the second half that the Galaxy attack really came to life.
Ahead of a crucial month of August, all eyes will be on when Zardes will make his return to the lineup.
DRAW CAPS AN EXCELLENT MONTH OF JULY FOR THE LA GALAXY
The LA Galaxy didn’t get the victory, but Bruce Arena still has plenty to smile about his team’s performance in the month of July.
Following Sunday, the Galaxy end the month of July with a 5-0-1 record across all competitions and an 8-0-1 record in their last nine matches. Despite the draw, the Galaxy are still in prime position in the Western Conference, remaining just six points behind first-place FC Dallas.
Los Angeles will need to keep their run of form up into August and beyond if they’re going to mount a challenge for the Supporters’ Shield.
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog atLAGalaxy.com/Insiderand contact him atLAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com.