For many reasons, the LA Galaxy needed their 2-0 win Wednesday night against the visiting Portland Timbers.
Not only did it help the Galaxy climb from ninth to eighth in the Western Conference standings, thus improving their playoff positioning, but it also allowed them to establish a six-point cushion on three teams sitting below the cut line.
One of those is San Diego, which makes the short trip north Saturday night for the most critical match of its season.
The Galaxy (10-11-9, 39 points) jumped over Colorado for eighth in the West behind a goal and an assist from Marco Reus, as well as a strong performance from a defense that conceded six goals last Sunday night in St. Louis.
Galaxy coach Greg Vanney appreciated his team’s effort after a dud in their previous match.
“I just thought it was a professional performance in a short turnaround with a super busy week,” he said. “To win at home is really important. If you want to have a successful season, you have to win at home.”
San Diego (8-12-9, 33 points), in 12th place in the West, comes in off a 3-3 home draw Wednesday night with Houston thanks to an 86th-minute goal from Gabriel Pirani. However, San Diego surrendered an early 2-0 lead in a match where it needed three points.
The team that earned an expansion-record 63 points last year in winning the Western regular-season title carries a seven-match winless streak (0-4-3) into Los Angeles. San Diego is five points out of a playoff spot with five matches remaining.
“You learn that this league, it’s about finding your level at the end of the season and that’s what we’re trying to do,” said Andres Dreyer, who has 25 goal contributions (12 goals, 13 assists) this year. “If we reach the playoffs, we’ll be underdogs and we can only surprise.”
Given that San Diego’s stretch run also includes road matches against the West’s top two teams, Vancouver and St. Louis, a playoff berth could be difficult to secure.
–Field Level Media
