CARSON, Calif. – All the headlines from Saturday’s friendly Club América centered on new English Designated Player Steven Gerrard but it was Alan Gordon who stole the show by scoring the game winner in the Galaxy’s 2-1 victory over the Mexican giants.
Gordon helped kick off LA’s International Champions Cup campaign with a victory, when in the 80th minute, he out leapt over two Club América defenders in the penalty area and nodded a pinpoint Raul Mendiola cross off the far post, and into the back of the net.
“It's vintage Gordo, I guess,” said Gordon with a sly grin after the match. “I told Raul two minutes earlier, I said, 'You know, next time you get the ball on the right-hand side, play it far-post and I'll be there.' And that's exactly what he did, and I was fortunate enough to get that ball in the goal.”
The 33-year-old’s goal was the fitting conclusion to a half that saw a Galaxy reserve squad stand toe-to-toe with Club América. With the match being played a feverish pace, young guns like Rafael Garcia, Kenney Walker, Ignacio Maganto and Mendiola terrorized América on the counterattack, leading the Mexican giants to become more frustrated—and physical—as the game wore on.
Although the veteran Gordon got the goal the burly striker understood that it was the performance of the Galaxy’s youngsters that truly helped sealed the victory.
"We’ve got a good little squad. We got young players that are excited to play and enthusiastic,” Gordon said. “Tonight we came out with a lot of energy and enthusiasm and we've put together two good [halves]. It's fun to play. We are all having a good time and we are glad we got the win."
Veteran defender A.J. DeLaGarza agreed, “We have a lot of young guys who have played quality minutes this year, it showed out there tonight. They’re exciting to watch.”
Although the match will count for nothing in the league standings, Gordon is hopeful that his first goal since May 22 will help him start a scoring run as the Galaxy head down the stretch.
“I’m just glad to get on the score sheet again. It’s been a little while, so I was just looking to get a goal,” Gordon said. “The team has been scoring a lot of goals lately, but I wanted to get in on the fun, and I had my fun tonight.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog at LAGalaxy.com/Insider and contact him at LAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com.