MLS: New York City FC at LA Galaxy Earns 2-0 Victory
On the evening of May 11, 2019, in Carson CA, NYCFC beat LA Galaxy 2-0 in front of their home fans and the famously talented Zlatan got a Yellow Card.
It was a night to remember. New York came, conquered with a 2-0 victory and left LA Galaxy fans stunned and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (9)with a yellow card in the 86th minute.
New York City FC was thrilled to earn another win and extend their unbeaten streak to seven games. And, this was the first time this season that the Galaxy lost at home.
Héber Araújo dos Santos and Maximiliano Moralez were the two goal scorers for New York City FC, with the two goals scored in the first half of the match — leaving LA Galaxy fans a painful second half waiting for the equalizers that never came.
Los Angeles Galaxy’s famous forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic lost his cool in the second half at StubHub Center with NYCFC goalkeeper Sean Johnson – in the 86th minute when he hit the crossbar and missed scoring a goal. Zlatan and Johnson both hit the ground briefly in a quick skirmish. In fact, the referees gave both Zlatan and Johnson yellow cards for the tussle.
“I remember when Leo Messi missed a penalty sometimes in Barcelona, nobody asked about Leo. Are you sure you want to take the penalty? Yes, you have
personality …I told you many times the soccer belongs to the players.”
NYCFC HEAD COACH DOMÉNEC TORRENT on the decisive penalty kick by Maxi Moralez
Zlatan and Johnson Tussle
“… in the heat of the battle, you want to do what you can to protect the guys … we are not going to be walked over. Zlatan is a talented player, he obviously knows what he is doing, he is a clever boy and you know, it is a part of the game. I would be frustrated if I were him too…
NYCFC GOALKEEPER SEAN JOHNSONOn the scuffle with Zlatan towards the end of the match
Los Angeles Galaxy vs New York City FC Lineups
Los Angeles Galaxy: David Bingham; Julian Araujo, Daniel Steres, Giancarlo Gonzalez, Diego Polenta, Diedie Traore (46’ Emmanuel Boateng); Sebastian Lletget, Servando Carrasco (82’ Servando Carrasco), Joe Corona; Uriel Antuna (71’ Chris Pontius), Zlatan Ibrahimovic
SUBS UNUSED: Matt Lampson, Jorgen Skjelvik, Dave Romney, Juninho Pereira
New York City FC: Sean Johnson; Anton Tinnerholm, Maxime Chanot, James Sands, Alex Callens, Ronald Matarrita (74’ Sebastien Ibeagha); Alex Ring, Tony Rocha; Ismael Tajouri-
SUBS UNUSED: Brad Stuver, Jesus Medina, Valentin Castellanos, Juan Pablo
SCORING SUMMARY
44’ – NYC – Héber
45+6’ – NYC – Maxi Moralez (Penalty)
“Anytime I grab the ball I always have confidence. I wouldn’t be the first to miss a penalty so when you go up there you try and thankfully it went in today. It worked to add to our lead.”
NEW YORK CITY FC FORWARD MAXI MORALEZ On scoring the penalty kick
Los Angeles Galaxy 0 – 2 New York City FC Recap
Dome Torrent made three changes to the NYCFC starting XI which kicked the 2-0 road win at Montreal last weekend.
In came Ronald Matarrita, Tony Rocha and James Sands as the Boys in Blue looked to string together three consecutive away victories after winning in D.C. and Montreal.
With confidence flowing, NYC started strong in their three-back system, with Alex Ring, Maxi Moralez and Anton Tinnerholm especially influential through a dominant opening 15′.
It was Ring who had the game’s first meaningful opportunity on 17′ when he won the ball back in the middle third, exchanged passes with Ismael Tajouri-Shradi and unleashed a curling shot which just faded away from the target.
On 22′, more fluid build-up play between Maxi Moralez and Ronald Matarrita created a good look for Héber, who read the near-post cross and and diverted the ball towards goal but his shot took a deflection just over the top.
From the resulting corner, the Brazilian was first to it again but his improvised back-heel was just a foot too high.
On the half-hour mark, Zlatan Ibrahimovic had the ball in the net against the run of play on an LA counter, but the officials correctly ruled the goal out for offside, much to the relief of the City backline who were caught outnumbered.
However, NYCFC went in at the break with the scoreline their play had warranted as two quick-fire goals on 44′ and 45+6′ put the Boys in Blue in a commanding position.
First, Héber netted his third goal in five starts after he reacted first to Bingham’s parry to hammer home a rebound from close range.
It got even better for City in first-half stoppage-time when Anton Tinnerholm’s cross hit a hand and the referee pointed to the penalty spot after a lengthy VAR consultation.
0-2 on penalties so far in 2019, Maxi Moralez bravely stepped up and this time he made no mistake, thrashing the ball into the bottom corner, leaving Bingham with no chance.
After that exciting climax to the first half, the second half started at a more sedate pace, as NYCFC looked to draw the sting from a Galaxy side who came out eager to turn things around.
The hosts enjoyed more possession after the interval but were unable to take advantage, largely thanks to the impressive defensive trio of Alexandr Callens, Maxime Chanot and James Sands.
Alexandru Mitriță was introduced from the bench with 25′ to go to inject some fresh impetus to the City attack but there was more defending to do after the break.
Callens was especially alert on 80′ when Ibrahimovic finally found a way past Sean Johnson, heading the Swede’s goalbound chip out for a corner to preserve the clean sheet.
The NYCFC goal was threatened again with 5′ left as Ibrahimovic lifted the ball over the onrushing Johnson, hitting the underside of the crossbar but that was as close as Galaxy came to scoring, meaning NYCFC held on for another important three points.
Source: NYCFC Press Release
Top Image Caption: May 11, 2019; Carson, CA, USA; New York City midfielder Maximiliano Moralez (10) celebrates with New York City defender Anton Tinnerholm (3) his penalty kick goal scored against Los Angeles Galaxy during the first half at StubHub Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
