Bruce Arena’s LA Galaxy have a short turnaround ahead of them. Steven Gerrard and Robbie Keane were rested for the Galaxy’s Saturday afternoon clash against the Portland Timbers at Providence Park in Portland, Ore. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. PT/3:30 p.m. ET. The Live Blog of this match will start at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET.
The Galaxy are coming off 4-2 win over the Seattle Sounders in the U.S. Open Cup at the StubHub Center Track and Field Stadium. Gyasi Zardes and Giovani dos Santos played limited minutes off the bench in the win but were effective in turning the tide against Seattle and scoring three unanswered goals on the trot.
LA Galaxy Gyasi Zardes & Gioavani Dos Santos. Photo by Jorge Galvez for The Stoppage Time
“You roll the dice sometimes,” said Arena. “And the other part you have to think about is that you might be playing 120 minutes and you have to be careful. But obviously we injected those players in the game to get a goal. Dos Santos did a hell of a job and Gyasi, as well. We’re fortunate.
“Anyone thinks that we haven’t tried to [advance this far] – we haven’t been able to do it, but not because it wasn’t important. And it’s still important. So the next game, wherever that is, will be a tough game and we’ll be ready to go. And our tying goal was an odd goal, so I think we neutralized each other with giving away some bad goals.”
Sebastian Llletget, Phot by Jorge Galvez for The Stoppage Time
A key player that Portland will be looking to neutralize is Sebastian Lletget. It took Da Boy well over 80 minutes to find his form, but when he finishes in bunches, it’s pretty much game over if you are any opposition, and the Sounders realized that as the hosts left it late.
“It was good,” said Arena of Lletget’s shift. “Sebastian hasn’t had a regular shift in a while, so it’s good for him. He did a good job and obviously he and [Emmanuel Boateng], Baggio [Husidic] and getting [Nigel] de Jong back and some of the other guys, it’s a good experience for him. Hopefully he has the confidence to help contribute as we move on into the second half of the season.”
Here are 10 Bold Predictions for the match between the Galaxy and Timbers.
- Diego Valeri will score for Portland Timbers.
- Sebastian Lletget will score for LA Galaxy.
- Fanendo Adi will score for Portland Timbers.
- Giovani dos Santos will score for LA Galaxy.
- Gyasi Zardes will score for LA Galaxy.
- Robbie Keane will score for LA Galaxy.
- Jake Gleeson will make at least five saves.
- Brian Rowe will make at least five saves.
- At least four cards will be issued.
- At least 40 fouls will be whistled.
LA Galaxy 4, Portland Timbers 2
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