Los Angeles Galaxy, San Jose Earthquakes Deliver Fireworks In Draw At StubHub (VIDEO)

Aug 8, 2014; Carson, CA, USA; Los Angeles Galaxy defender Omar Gonzalez (4) celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the San Jose Earthquake during the second half at StubHub Center. The game ended in a draw with a final score of 2-2. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports

To be fair, the contest between Bruce Arena’s Los Angeles Galaxy and Mark Watson’s San Jose Earthquakes could have delivered a more decisive scoreline than a 2-2 draw on Friday night at StubHub Center. The Galaxy had the best chance of coming away winners, but the Quakes’ defending could have also paid off late with a match winner.

Still, you have to credit both sides for bringing the fireworks before the de facto fireworks and laser lights show after the game. However, Los Angeles had more to lose from this match, and this draw feels like a defeat…for now.

“Yeah, it feels like a loss,” said midfielder Landon Donovan to LAGalaxy.com’s Larry Morgan. “But I think when we wake up in the morning we’ll realize one point is better than none, and to come back twice from a goal down is still good. We did everything we could. The ball just didn’t find the net in the end.”

Here are six things we learned, followed by player ratings, for the match between the Los Angeles Galaxy and San Jose Earthquakes.

1. Chris Wondolowski keeps on rolling

The best player for the San Jose Earthquakes, by far, is Chris Wondolowski, who showed his abilities as a poacher by finishing off a delivery from Shea Salinas to add to his goal tally and open up the scoring in this game. Omar Gonzalez, who I will mention later in this piece, was guilty of not marking Wondo. It does make you wonder how the MLS All-Stars would have done if Gonzalez did play that match.

2. Gyasi Zardes continues to improve

On the other side, Gyasi Zardes continues to add to his scoring tally and was wise enough to sit out the Homegrown Game a few days ago in Portland. He finishes off the initial miss from Keane and taps in the rebound to keep his hotstreak going. Take a look.

3. Hola, me llamo Matias. Encantada.

How do you make a strong introduction to a new league? Take advantage of a misplay from a veteran. Landon Donovan was his own enemy, as a poor pass from Donovan combined with worse play from A.J. DeLaGarza and a bad save attempt from Jaime Penedo gave Matias Perez Garcia his first MLS goal.

This may be a candidate for Goal of the Week because of the velocity of the shot and the way it was created: all from three mistakes by the Galaxy, who I continue to argue will come up empty-handed this year because of sequences like this one below.

“That was part of the game plan, to get out on the counter,” Perez Garcia told MLSSoccer.com’s Geoff Lepper. “We knew they were very good with the ball, were going to have possession. We needed to get out quickly and create chances, and we did that with both of the goals.

“We did have a couple other chances to score goals, but we didn’t take advantage of them. We’ll get out of here with a point and a good result.”

4. Omar Gonzalez redeems himself early in second half

On the other hand, the second half was all Los Angeles Galaxy, as they looked to press the ball and finish their chances. On a corner kick, Gonzalez hammers one past Jon Busch for the final goal of the night.

5. Stat domination for Los Angeles irrelevant to result

The lack of consistent defending from the Los Angeles Galaxy on Friday, combined with poor finishing and a few debatable decisions by the men in the middle, makes these statistics flattering for the San Jose Earthquakes. In fact, with these stats, the Quakes can consider themselves extremely fortunate to come up with a draw.

Team Statistics

Los Angeles Galaxy in blue, San Jose Earthquakes in red

24	Shots	3
6	Shots on Target	3
9	Shots off Target	0
9	Blocked Shots	0
10	Corners	0
49	Crosses	4
4	Offsides	1
10	Fouls	15
0	Yellow Cards	2
0	Red Cards	0
541	Total Passes	240
87 %	Passing Accuracy	67 %
69.8 %	Possession	30.2 %
42	Duels Won	42
9	Tackles Won	10
1	Saves	5
19	Clearances	43