LA Galaxy 3-0 Chicago Fire: No more parties

The Los Angeles Galaxy made a successful return to MLS action on Saturday night as they beat the Chicago Fire 3-0 at Dignity Health Sports Park.

A flattering scoreline at the end, the key moment of the contest game when Gastón Giménez was sent off after only 27 minutes. LA capitalized, scoring immediately after before making it 2-0 in the 72nd minute. A third goal in stoppage time was the icing on the cake, securing three important points for the home side in the process.

What happened

The start of this contest was a hectic one.

LA almost shot themselves in the foot right off the bat, as a goalkeeping error led to Xherdan Shaqiri getting the ball in the box. His ensuing effort was saved, though.

Up the other side of the pitch, the Galaxy then had an opportunity of their own when they were awarded a free-kick in a promising spot. Douglas Costa had a decent effort, but it was blocked by a flying Chris Brady.

There was another chance moments later. The ball bounced fortunately to Brian Gutiérrez, who was denied from close range. The rebound fell between him and a defender, and the two collided. There was a VAR review, but no penalty was given.

Chicago came close on two more occasions early on. Kei Kamara went for an audacious turning volley, and it flew just a bit high and wide of the woodwork. Gutiérrez then had a go from distance, but his effort wasn’t on frame either.

Things kicked into another gear near the half-hour mark. First the away side were reduced to 10 men, as Gastón Giménez recklessly committed to a challenge while already on a yellow, and he was correctly shown a second yellow after stamping on the opponent’s foot.

LA then scored off the resulting free-kick. It was whipped into the area, and the ball wasn’t cleared properly, which allowed it to fall to Tyler Boyd. He made the most of the break, converting from a few yards out to put his side in front.

The hosts dominated proceedings from this point until the end of the half, having almost all of the ball. Boyd came close to grabbing a second right before the break, but his shot rolled a little wide. Dejan Joveljić then had a go soon after, but his effort was tipped onto the crossbar.

The Fire were better in the second half, finally gaining some sort of foothold in the contest. However, they failed to carve out any real openings.

The Galaxy did, and it led to them doubling their advantage with about 20 minutes to go. Douglas Costa found Riqui Puig in the box, and he did the rest, settling the ball before curling a shot into the corner of the near post.

The contest really slowed up after that, but Chicago nearly pulled one back in the 83rd minute. Substitute Jairo Torres drove forward with the ball and made sweet contact on his strike, but he could only rattle the crossbar.

LA grabbed the next and final goal. Awarded a penalty when Daniel Aguirre was brought down in the box, debutant Billy Sharp stepped up and slotted home the resulting spot-kick.

That proved to be the final highlight of the match.

What it means

The win here helps keep LA in the playoff picture in the Western Conference. They might still be in 13th, but they’re only about seven points off the final postseason spot. They’ll have to be very good for the rest of the season, but considering the talent they have, that might be possible.

For Chicago, they’re in the last playoff spot in the East, but they’re getting dragged further and further into a dogfight. The main concern is that Inter Miami is flying high, so the Fire knows they’ll need to pick up some more points in the next few weeks. It’s not time to panic, but fans should know where the button is.

Notes and takeaways

From what viewers could see on TV, it looked like there were a fair amount of empty seats at the stadium. That’s a shame considering how historic the Galaxy franchise is.

What in the world was Gastón Giménez thinking? He was already on a yellow, it was so early in the contest, and he decided to jump with both feet into a challenge, stamping on the opposition as a result. It was a moment of utter madness, and it really hurt his team.

Chris Brady is very good, and Chicago really should let him go to Europe as soon as possible. He deserves it.

We didn’t see much of Billy Sharp, but he still had a promising showing. He’s a lethal finisher, and if LA can provide him with some service, then he’ll continue to score for them.

Riqui Puig is special, man. He’s probably too good for this league, but I’ll still enjoy him while he’s here.

It didn’t matter much, and he did bottle a chance late on, but Jairo Torres did have a decent little performance off the bench. Fans are still very frustrated with him at the moment, but he could ultimately be a useful figure to have.

Man of the match – Tyler Boyd

It was a relatively quiet night for Tyler Boyd, but he stepped up when it mattered, and that proved to be all the difference.

Pouncing on a loose ball in the box, the American was clinical under pressure, burying a shot from close range to open the scoring just after his team went up a man. The timing could not have been better, and it put the Galaxy in a superb spot to win the contest.

LA will need their attackers to perform down the final stretch of the season, and thankfully for them Boyd seems up to the challenge.