Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Real Salt Lake: Live Blog

Nov 1, 2014; Sandy, UT, USA; Los Angeles Galaxy defender Omar Gonzalez (4) and Real Salt Lake forward Joao Plata (8) battle for the ball during the second half at Rio Tinto Stadium. The match ended in a 0-0 draw. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

Bruce Arena’s Los Angeles Galaxy and Jeff Cassar’s Real Salt Lake face off in the second leg of the 2014 MLS Western Conference Semifinals at StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. Both teams fought to a scoreless draw in the first leg on Nov. 1 at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah but RSL just need a 1-1 draw or better to advance. As for the Galaxy, it’s win or offseason, and nothing else.

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• Douglas Costa Leaves LA Galaxy: Opportunity or Premature Farewell?

Kickoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. PT/7:30 p.m. ET and will be televised by ESPN2, WatchESPN, ESPN Deportes, TSN2, and RDS2. The Live Blog will begin at approximately 2:30 p.m. PT/5:30 p.m. ET. Keep it right here on the MLS Multiplex for continuing coverage of the 2014 MLS Cup Playoffs.

Refresh the screen for updates!

T-120: Welcome to the Live Blog between the Los Angeles Galaxy and Real Salt Lake, live from StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. My name is Jo-Ryan Salazar, co-editor of the MLS Multiplex alongside Sean Maslin. Glad to have you on board.

Well, it’s now or never for both of these teams. For the Galaxy, it’s win or go home. As for Real Salt Lake, a 1-1 draw is enough. RSL have the away goals edge, but it could be all for naught if the Galaxy win tonight.

Here is the preview from MLSSoccer.com.

WESTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS – SECOND LEG
LA GALAXY v REAL SALT LAKE
Sun., Nov. 9, StubHub Center (7:15 p.m. PT; ESPN2/Deportes; TSN2/RDS2)

The LA Galaxy and Real Salt Lake have left it all to play for in the second leg of their Western Conference Semifinal Series on Saturday evening at StubHub Center. The teams played to a scoreless draw in the first leg at Rio Tinto Stadium last weekend. It’s the second consecutive year the teams are meeting in the MLS Cup Playoffs and the fourth time since 2009 they’ve met in the postseason, when they met in the MLS Cup Final – which each winner of their playoff meeting reached in 2011 and 2013.

REFEREE: Jair Marrufo.
AR1 (bench): Eric Boria
AR2 (opposite): Adam Garner
4th: Juan Guzman

SUSPENDED: none
WARNINGS (suspended next yellow card): LA: Omar Gonzalez, Robbie Rogers … RSL: Tony Beltran, Chris Wingert

LEAGUE HEAD-TO-HEAD:
LA 11 wins, 42 goals … RSL 11 wins, 45 goals … Ties 6
2014 HEAD-TO-HEAD: LA 1 win, 2 goals … RSL 1 win, 2 goals … Ties 1

AT STUBHUB CENTER:
3/8: LA 0, RSL 1 (Plata 80)
7/12: LA 1, RSL 0 (Zardes 20)

MLS CUP PLAYOFFS: LA 2 wins, 5 GF … RSL 1 wins, 4 GF … Ties 2

As always, you can join in on the conversation; just scroll down to the Comments section below and sound off. Remember: you need a Disqus account to get in on the fun.

T-105: So, how did we get to this point? Los Angeles and Real Salt Lake played to a scoreless draw in the first leg. RSL need a 1-1 draw or better to go through. As for the LA Galaxy, a one-goal win will be enough. Actually, it is required.

T-104: In the knockout rounds, FC Dallas defeated the Vancouver Whitecaps 2-1 and the New York Red Bulls defeated Sporting Kansas City by the same score. Other first leg scores…Columbus Crew 2, New England Revolution 4…New York Red Bulls 2, D.C. United 0, FC Dallas 1, Seattle Sounders 1.

T-103: D.C. United are eliminated after just a 2-1 victory over the New York Red Bulls in the second leg. New England and Columbus are currently scoreless in the second leg.

T-102: Tomorrow, the Seattle Sounders host FC Dallas in the second leg. A scoreless draw will be enough for Seattle, but they will be looking for a win, as will Dallas.

T-75: New England now lead Columbus 1-0 in the second leg.

T-60: An hour to go before kickoff here at the Hub.

T-57: Odds from oddschecker…

Los Angeles Galaxy 4/6
Draw 10/3
Real Salt Lake 5

T-54: Only two picked Real Salt Lake to progress to the Conference Final.

T-53: New England now leads Columbus in the second leg, 2-0. They now lead on aggregate, 6-2.

T-52: Check that, it’s 2-1 New England. Revs lead on aggregate, 6-3.

T-48: Columbus are playing with 10 men as Ethan Finlay was sent off in the 61st minute for a serious foul. Both teams begin warmups.

T-45:

T-44: Lineups…

Lineup

Bench

Officials

T-40: New England now lead Columbus in the second leg, 3-1. 7-3 lead on aggregate for the Revs.

T-39: Real Salt Lake’s fans are out in full throat today.

T-35: Something to chew on…

T-31: Justin Meram has been sent off for a second yellow card. Won’t matter really; New England are through to face New York.

T-30: A half-hour to go to kickoff here at StubHub Center.

T-28: Final…New England Revolution 3, Columbus Crew 1. New England win on aggregate 7-3. An American football score.

T-20: Both teams conclude warmups.

T-17: One more watering of the pitch to ensure that the grass is fast and fluid.

T-15: 15 minutes to go to kickoff here at the Hub.

T-14: One final look at the odds…

Los Angeles Galaxy 4/6
Draw 10/3
Real Salt Lake 13/2

T-7: Both teams enter the pitch to the strains of the MLS Anthem by Audiobrain.

T-5: National anthem by Will Champlin.

FIRST HALF START: 4:30 P.M. PT/7:30 P.M. ET

1′ – We’re underway here at StubHub Center.

2′ – Nick Rimando had to come off his line for the first shot of the game, from the Galaxy. Rimando had a fantastic game in RSL’s only win against the Galaxy at StubHub in March. Joao Plata wins a free kick for RSL.

3′ – Robbie Rogers with the bad touch. No advantage; Leonardo will have the restart here.

4′ – The partisan Galaxy crowd wanted a foul there; not gonna happen. Chris Schuler, mask and all, pickpockets Gyasi Zardes.

5′ – Zardes’s header misses wide right. Goal kick for Rimando.

6′  – The first goal from Real Salt Lake will be huge. Robbie Rogers with composure.

7′ – Stefan Ishizaki plays it forward. A.J. DaGarza with a speculative attempt on goal.

8′ – Leonardo with the read. Landon Donovan is held in check. Marcelo Sarvas’s ball for Zardes is cleared.

9′ – Throw-in, RSL. Here’s Tony Beltran.

10′ – So far, it looks like the 4-4-2 diamond is working nicely for RSL, forcing a ball possession battle from both teams.

11′ – GOAL! Los Angeles Galaxy 10 Landon Donovan
Now this puts Real Salt Lake in a good position, believe it or not. They need to equalize, and they have the ascendancy.

12′ – Long ball for Zardes has too much pace. Strategy for LA: be like the Revs and pile on the goals. Sarvas and DeLaGarza teamed up for that goal.

13′ – Tony Beltran plays this forward. Oh, that is too wide but the danger is not averted.

14′ – Beltran to throw. Now here is the first corner of the match for RSL, at the southwest corner. Morales. That misses. Ishizaki clears, and that will be a goal kick.

15′  – Well if you’re just joining us, the Galaxy are leading Real Salt Lake 1-0, but remember, RSL just need an equalizer and they will be ahead on away goals. Here’s Rimando.

16′ – Here’s Rogers. To Keane. He’s double-teamed with Kyle Beckerman, RSL’s captain, on his tail.

17′ – A bending shot from Keano misses the top right corner.

18′ – Real Salt Lake with the throw. The long delivery. Cleared. And Marcelo Sarvas concedes a throw to Beltran.

19′ – For LA, this could go down to positioning and timing. There is a reason why the practices for LA are closed.

20′ – Offsides, Keane? Nope. And a possible handball is waved off.

GOAL! Los Angeles Galaxy 7 Robbie Keane
Sweet revenge. It’s 2-0 LA.

21′ – LA are giving no quarter tonight. You want to go through, LA asks, you’re gonna have to take on all of us and step your game up. RSL aren’t doing that. They are behind the 8-ball.

22′ – This is Luke Mulholland, the Englishman. DeLaGarza gets the Galaxy defense to reset here.

23′ – Zardes was almost in the clear. Juninho now. LA are looking to pile it on and make things really hard for RSL. They get it back. And then they lose it, the visitors.

24′ – Sarvas! Offsides. And that will draw the boos from most of the supporters here, except for the RSL bunch who applaud. Rimando plays it forward.

25′  – Chris Schuler, with the disfigured nose that is still healing as of right now. He has a mask on to protect that schnoz. Here’s Beckerman.

26′ – I don’t think the Galaxy will be satisfied with this lead. Donovan! Over the bar.

27′ – Donovan was looking for a brace there. Back come the visitors. RSL will need to go uptempo for the rest of this match, but that will play into LA’s hands. Mulholland now. And the Galaxy break that up.

28′ – Mulholland is away, but he is double-teamed. Seems the Galaxy will take their time to pad this lead.

29′ – Here’s Beckerman. Jair Marrufo will let the players play here. Expect the cards to come in later. Man down for the Galaxy.

30′ – Ishizaki is shaken up but does get up. A relief as we head into the half-hour mark.

31′ – Rogers doesn’t have the legs to catch up to that dribble. Beltran takes that. Donovan now. A foul. And a whistle from Marrufo.

32′ – This free kick will be about 25 from the end line, directly in front. Ishizaki or Juninho to take.

33′ – Taken short, and the header from Omar Gonzalez misses. Sarvas had the delivery there.

34′ – Donovan…Sarvas! Cleared. Beltran will take this throw. LA have been peppering the net but haven’t been breaking the resolve of this RSL backline as often as they want to.

35′ – And you have to believe that, as Leo clears, RSL still have a puncher’s chance but they need to get some work done. Now Leonardo is shaken up. May be an knee issue. Trainer is out.

36′ – And it looks like Leonardo may be done here. Really tough injury to take when you’re leading 2-0 but they have options in Tommy Meyer and Dan Gargan.

37′ – Substitution Los Angeles Galaxy
IN 21 Tommy Meyer
OUT 22 Leonardo

38′ – LA were almost away on that chance but Beltran is there to bail Real Salt Lake out of a bigger hole.

39′ – So Leo is able to get up and don his warmup jacket, but he’s going to have to get some scans on that knee.

40′ – Robbie Rogers will throw this into play. Times two…and Gyasi Zardes loses that duel. Can Tommy Meyer make the most of his chance tonight and preserve the lead for the Galaxy? Stay tuned on this Live Blog…

41′ – Here’s Omar Gonzalez, to Zardes. He’ll need a look or two on goal. Marcelo Sarvas. Back to Jaime Penedo, who could be doing work in the second half.

42′ – The long pass. Not gonna work. Back come LA, and that’s too far for DeLaGarza.

43′ – Zardes loses the 1-v-1 with Rimando and Joao Plata is just going to get a talking to here from Jair Marrufo.

44′ – This may or may not affect the big picture, but this may not be Gyasi Zardes night.

45′ – How many minutes, from Juan Guzman? Really loose match from Marrufo tonight. A free kick for RSL is cleared. Three minutes, says Guzman.

45′ + 1′ – Kyle Beckerman with the don’t argue. Wide right, the volley. Goal kick, Penedo.

45′ + 2′ – These are speculative “pray for intervention” clearances from LA. They just want the whistle to come to regroup. How they are not up by more is anyone’s guess.

45′ + 3′ – A few clamors for the whistle from the fans. And Marrufo complies, after another ball possession battle.

HALFTIME
Los Angeles Galaxy 2
Real Salt Lake 0

Team Statistics

Los Angeles Galaxy on left, Real Salt Lake on right

Goals and Assists

Assisted By: A.J. DeLaGarza, Marcelo Sarvas

20′

Robbie Keane

Assisted By: Landon Donovan, Juninho

Disciplinary

None

For the Galaxy, they need to add to this lead while try to preserve a shutout. Late in the match, Jaime Penedo’s heroics will be mission-critical. As for Real Salt Lake, they have their work cut out for them, but scoring two in the second half against Los Angeles is not impossible.

Just in case, watch for Alan Gordon. You know he’s itching to send RSL back home in style.

SECOND HALF START: 5:34 P.M. PT/8:34 P.M. ET

46′ – The second half begins.

47′ – Chris Wingert to throw. Zardes is away. Wide right. And the boos ring out. Next time, he’ll just be a provider for what might be the last half of the season for LA. RSL with urgency. Ishizaki with the pick. Ned Grabavoy wins a free. Here’s Landon Donovan. More tiki-taco.

48′ – Touch of the night from Robbie Keane. Yep, be sure to put that on Vine or Instagram.

49′ – Ishizaki’s cross is collected by Nick Rimando. Here is Wingert for the next sequence. Maybe a regular 4-4-2 will work out for RSL because LA are figuring out how to break up their diamond formation.

50′ – While milking the clock is not advised at this point, the possession is working out for LA. Zardes is triple-teamed on his run.

51′ – Thus, RSL have figured out a way to neutralize Zardes: get three on his tail. Keane. And Schuler concedes the first corner to LA. Ishizaki will take this.

52′ – Headed away. Tried to find Gonzalez. The second chance is collected by Rimando.

53′ – Donovan with the dribble. The layoff to Keane! High. And RSL will be counting its blessings. It IS Sunday, you know.

54′ – Keane. And advantage is played to Real Salt Lake. Juninho lets that go for a throw to DeLaGarza.

55′ – DONOVAN!!!! YES!!!

GOAL! Los Angeles Galaxy 10 Landon Donovan
The Galaxy could be home and dry here. It’s 3-0.

56′  – Substitution Real Salt Lake
IN 21 Luis Gil
OUT 19 Luke Mulholland

57′ – 3-0 is a tough result for any team to equalize on. But now Real Salt Lake have less than 34 and stoppage to get their act together and get scoring.

58′ – Here’s Kyle Beckerman. Jaime Penedo with his first save of the night. Omar Gonzalez forced to clear. Solid composure. Zardes gets challenged.

59′ – And that shows you right there how tough it is to win at StubHub Center. You have to be of Monterrey’s caliber to get a positive result here.

60′ – Donovan clears that chance for Plata, who crossed it into a bunch of land mines. Stefan Ishizaki is offsides, and the fans don’t like that. Hour mark. 3-0 LA.

61′ – Penedo swoops for the collection. That’s a bad pass from Donovan. But Penedo is there to reset. DeLaGarza plays it forward.

62′ -This is Nat Borchers, but Omar wants none of that.

63′ – Zardes. Oh my! What a goal!

GOAL! Los Angeles Galaxy 8 Marcelo Sarvas
This is a mule-kicking! This is not the result from last weekend.

64′ – First meeting between these two teams…a RSL victory here at the Hub. Tonight, at the Hub, it’s a tail-whooping. Galaxy up 4-nil!

65′ – Corner for RSL. Plata wins it. This is Javier Morales, one of the club’s most celebrated players. Here he goes…

66′ – Substitution Real Salt Lake
IN 10 Robbie Findley
OUT 20 Ned Grabavoy

Corner is cleared. Take two. That’s also cleared. Jeez Louise, RSL can’t buy a goal tonight.

67′ – Man down for RSL. It’s Morales. Here’s Wingert. Saborio has been a nonfactor through 67 minutes. Impressive defending from LA.

68′ – Beckerman. Gonzalez clears, but the danger is not averted. However, a whistle for LA, and Jaime Penedo will play this forward. Oh yes, he’s made some obligatory saves.

69′ – Right to Omar? Boy, it seems they’ve missed the plot, RSL, and we have 21 and stoppage to go!

70′ – Substitution Real Salt Lake
IN 23 Sebastian Jaime
OUT 11 Javier Morales

71′ – Here’s Nick Rimando. He’s had a rough night at the office.

72′ – If you’re just joining us on this live blog, the Galaxy are on their way to the Western Conference Final against possibly their current nemesis, the Seattle Sounders.

GOAL! Los Angeles Galaxy 10 Landon Donovan
It’s a brace. This is Landon Donovan. Hail to the King!

73′ – This is too easy. Way too easy. It’s 5-0 LA. Watch out New England, the Galaxy are looking to knock you down in the MLS Cup Final for a third time.

74′ – Ishizaki just got hacked there by Wingert. “One More Year!” chant the Angel City Brigade.

75′ – Substitution Los Angeles Galaxy
IN 33 Dan Gargan
OUT 14 Robbie Rogers

76′ – Zardes could have been away there, but they’re slowing it down for a bit. Ole time. Next thing you know, we’ll have the Wave.

77′ – So maybe Alan Gordon may not be needed after all. Robbie Findley concedes a throw.

78′ – A lot of Robbies in this match: a Robbie Findley, a Robbie Keane and a Robbie Rogers. Keane now. Double-teamed and fouled. They’re desperate now, Real Salt Lake are.

79′ – Yellow card 15 Alvaro Saborio
Real Salt Lake

That’s just frustration there, understandably. Sabo will cop the slice of cheese from Jair.

80′ – That would have been an awesome chip right there. Rimando taps that out and concedes a corner. Real Salt Lake are slowed down on the transition.

81′ – Yellow card 10 Landon Donovan
Los Angeles Galaxy

Chris Schuler will read this one. I’ll have to check this, but I reckon that means Donovan is out for the next match. Checked, he’s fine.

82′ – Substitution Los Angeles Galaxy
IN 9 Alan Gordon
OUT 10 Landon Donovan

83′ – So Gordon’s role will be to secure this lead and prevent a miracle rush from RSL. In short, score a very late goal, something he’s used to. Ishizaki’s asking for a free and he won’t get it.

84′ – I reckon at training later this month, Keane and Gordon will work on their communication.

85′ – Wingert gets the “don’t argue” from Gordo.

86′ – Yellow card 2 Tony Beltran
Real Salt Lake

87′ – More frustrations for Real Salt Lake. This is going pear-shaped for them. Luis Gil to throw. Some fans have decided to call it a night and head to their family caves. Also knows as houses.

88′ – Corner for the Galaxy. Taking it short would be smart, and they do so. Gargan…Gordon…GORDON! Hit the post. Goal kick, Rimando.

89′ – Another chance…and Juninho with an almost-spectacular goal. Corner!

90′ – And Gargan will see his volley go to Rimando. If Marrufo and Guzman are smart, no stoppage time will be needed.

90′ + 1′ – One minute. This should go quickly.

FINAL
Los Angeles Galaxy 5
Real Salt Lake 0
Los Angeles Galaxy advances on aggregate 5-0

Team Statistics

Goals and Assists

Assisted By: A.J. DeLaGarza, Marcelo Sarvas

20′

Robbie Keane

Assisted By: Landon Donovan, Juninho

54′

Landon Donovan

Assisted By: Robbie Keane

63′

Marcelo Sarvas

Assisted By: Robbie Keane, Robbie Rogers

72′

Landon Donovan

Assisted By: Robbie Keane

Disciplinary

Reason: Foul

81′

Landon Donovan

Reason: Foul

86′

Tony Beltran

Reason: Foul

Substitutions

Match Information

MLS Playoffs at StubHub Center

Attendance 27000

Weather Sunny

Thanks for following this Live Blog on the MLS Multiplex. Stay tuned on Monday for a recap of tonight’s action.