MLS LA Galaxy

LA Galaxy Advance to Quarterfinals of Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup with 3-1 Win Over LAFC

Published on May 26, 2022 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
LA Galaxy News Release


LOS ANGELES - Continuing their 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup campaign, the LA Galaxy earned a 3-1 win over LAFC at Dignity Health Sports Park to advance to the Quarterfinal round on Wednesday night. Javier "Chicharito" Hernández registered the game-winning goal, while Kévin Cabral and Dejan Joveljić both registered goals in the win over LAFC. Additionally, Samuel Grandsir tallied two assists, while Raheem Edwards notched his sixth assist across all competitions during the 2022 campaign.

Marching On to The Quarterfinal

With the win over LAFC, the LA Galaxy will play host to Sacramento Republic FC at Dignity Health Sports Park in the Quarterfinal round of the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday, June 21. Information on tickets will be provided at a later date. The Galaxy improved to 35-17-1 in 53 all-time U.S. Open Cup matches. Joveljić leads the Galaxy with three goals scored in three U.S. Open Cup matches played this season. Additionally, Cabral has tallied two goals in three U.S. Open Cup appearances during the 2022 campaign. Notably, Chicharito scored his first-ever goal in U.S. Open Cup play.

LA Galaxy Dominance Over LAFC

The Round of 16 match between the LA Galaxy and LAFC marked the first-ever matchup of the two teams in U.S. Open Cup play and the 15th edition of El Tráfico across all competitions, with the Galaxy improving to 7-3-5 in the all-time series. Notably, the Galaxy are unbeaten in eight all-time matches played (6-0-2) against LAFC at Dignity Health Sports Park. Additionally, LA is unbeaten in five consecutive matches played (3-0-2) against LAFC dating back to May 8, 2021.

Goal-Scoring Plays

LA - Kévin Cabral (Samuel Grandsir), 51st minute: On the left flank, Samuel Grandsir cut inside on his right foot and delivered a cross into the six-yard box to Kévin Cabral, whose diving, right-footed shot snuck just inside the left post and into the back of the net.

LA - Javier "Chicharito" Hernández (Samuel Grandsir), 57th minute: After Samuel Grandsir dispossessed the ball off Ilie Sanchez outside the LAFC 18-yard box, Cabral carried the ball to midfield and played it back to his French compatriot. Grandsir dribbled past Latif Blessing and delivered a bouncing cross just outside the six-yard box to Chicharito, whose diving, left-footed shot beat LAFC goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau.

LA - Dejan Joveljić (Raheem Edwards), 81st minute: Working down the left side of the penalty area, Cabral back-heeled a pass into the path of Raheem Edwards. The Canadian international immediately fired a pass into the top of the six-yard box to Joveljić, who stuck his right foot out to redirect the ball just inside the far post.

LFC - Ryan Hollingshead (Jose Cifuentes), 85th minute: Jose Cifuentes' cross into the box found the head of Ryan Hollingshead, who flicked the ball into the back of the net.

Postgame Notes

Following the win over LAFC, the LA Galaxy advanced to the Quarterfinal round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and will play host to Sacramento Republic FC at Dignity Health Sports on Tuesday, June 21.

With the win over LAFC, the LA Galaxy improved to 9-5-2 in 16 matches played across all competitions during the 2022 campaign.

The Galaxy improved to 7-3-5 in 15 matches played across all competitions against LAFC.

LA is unbeaten in eight all-time matches played (6-0-2) against LAFC at Dignity Health Sports Park.

Additionally, LA is unbeaten in five consecutive matches played (3-0-2) against LAFC dating back to May 8, 2021.

Chicharito scored his sixth goal in his 15 appearance (13 start) across all competitions this year.

Raheem Edwards tallied his sixth assist in 14 matches played (14 starts) across all competitions in 2022.

Joveljić leads the Galaxy with three goals scored in three U.S. Open Cup matches played this season.

In four matches played across all competitions against LAFC, Joveljić has tallied three goals.

Cabral has tallied two goals in three U.S. Open Cup appearances during the 2022 campaign.

Samuel Grandsir made his 50th consecutive appearance for the Galaxy across all competitions dating back to April 18, 2021.

Grandsir tallied two assists in the win over LAFC. Notably, Grandsir has tallied four assists in two matches played across all competitions against LAFC this season.

Jonathan Klinsmann improved to 3-0-0 in three U.S. Open Cup matches played this year.

The Galaxy broke their club record for the highest attended U.S. Open Cup in team history with 24,174 fans at Dignity Health Sports Park in the win over LAFC.

Next Game

Next up, the LA Galaxy return to league play to play host to Austin FC at Dignity Health Sports Park on Sunday, May 25. The May 25 match kicks off at 3:00 p.m. PT and features a national broadcast on UniMás and TUDN.

2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup - Round of 16

LA Galaxy vs. LAFC

May 25, 2022 - Dignity Health Sports Park (Los Angeles)

Goals by Half 1 2 F

LA Galaxy 0 1 1

LAFC 0 3 3

Scoring Summary:

LA: Cabral (Grandsir), 51

LA: Chicharito (Grandsir), 57

LA: Joveljić (Edwards), 81

LFC: Hollingshead (Cifuentes), 85

Misconduct Summary:

LA: Delgado (caution), 10

LFC: Acosta (caution), 39

LA: Chicharito (caution), 39

LA: Cabral (caution), 55

LFC: Hollingshead (caution), 64

Lineups:

LA: GK Jonathan Klinsmann; D Julián Araujo, D Nick DePuy, D Derrick Williams, D Raheem Edwards; M Mark Delgado, M Rayan Raveloson (Daniel Aguirre, 7, M Kévin Cabral (Jonathan Pérez, 90+1), M Víctor Vázquez © (Efraín Álvarez, 66), M Samuel Grandsir (Kelvin Leerdam, 75); F Javier "Chicharito" Hernández © (Dejan Joveljić, 74)

Substitutes Not Used: GK Jonathan Bond; D Jalen Neal

TOTAL SHOTS: 17 (Dejan Joveljić, 3); SHOTS ON GOAL: 9 (Dejan Joveljić, Rayan Raveloson, 2); FOULS: 10 (Rayan Raveloson, 3) OFFSIDES: 3; CORNER KICKS: 8; SAVES: 0

LFC: GK Maxime Crepeau; D Mamadou Fall, D Sebastian Ibeagha, D Jesus Murillo, D Diego Palacios (Latif Blessing, 46); D M Jose Cifuentes, M Kellyn Acosta (Ryan Hollingshead, 60), M Ilie Sanchez; F Danny Musovski (Brian Rodriguez, 45), F Cristian Arango, F Carlos Vela © (Kwadwo Opoku, 20, Francisco Ginella, 75)

Substitutes Not Used: GK John McCarthy; D Doneil Henry

TOTAL SHOTS: 10 (Three players tied, 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 1 (Ryan Hollingshead, 1); FOULS: 16 (Jose Cifuentes, Cristian Arango, 4) OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 2; SAVES: 6

Referee: Brandon Stevis

Assistant Referees: Matt Schwartz, Ricardo Ocampo

Fourth Official: Ricardo Ocampo

Weather: Clear, 65 degrees

Attendance: 24,174

All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial

LA GALAXY POSTGAME QUOTES

LA GALAXY HEAD COACH GREG VANNEY

"On the fight after the final whistle:

"Well, what did I see? Was... not a whole lot. At first. Because I was still congratulating players, so I got over there a little bit later. Just trying to get teams to go in opposite directions. Players to go in opposite directions. There was a lot of emotion. I've heard speculation as to what kicked it off, but I didn't see anything specific. But, certainly, there was a lot of emotion through that game. And it certainly carried over at the end."

On what he attributes tonight's performance to, especially after the performance and result of the last two home matches:

"Well, so... what I'll say... the response of our guys, was not just about LAFC. It's about losing two games, back to back, on our field. 3-1 and 3-0. That was a part of our response and a part of our emotion, and the team on the other side happened to be LAFC. Which, is a rivalry, which, also obviously adds a little bit of spice to the game. But our guys, I challenged them after the last game, they challenged each other and themselves. They couldn't play in the LA Galaxy stadium and field the way we lost the games, the previous two. The energy. I thought, the competitive spirit. The energy, the speed at which we were moving and playing set the tone for the game. We stayed organized. We stayed connected. Everybody played on both sides of the ball. With it and without it. And, we worked through the game and we found our opportunities. And, we made them. And our opportunities tonight were a little clearer than the ones that we've had in previous games, and some of that I think was just the pace that Samuel [Grandsir] and Kévin [Cabral] were able to get out and break out. And the speed at which some of our counter attacks were happening fast. So, again, when teams are sitting with these blocks of numbers and numbers in front of the goal, sometimes it's not easy to get clear chances. Today, there was more space. And the chances were clearer for us. I'm just... I'm proud of the guys effort. Just the general response to the game. And, pleased. I felt like a lot of things that didn't go our way were calls, for me tonight. In many ways. I felt like, you know, [Jesús] Murillo got away with an incredible shove on the back of Javier [Hernández] after the [Diego] Palacios incident. Didn't even get a yellow card. He wasn't even identified as the player who made the action. I think those types of things led to the ending. There was some emotion through that, that was happening through the game, that also carried over at the end of the game. Yeah, I think that's where it's at. Many of these guys are friends, you know, and know each other well. I think it was just a competitive boil over at the end, and we'll go about our ways and see where we're at later."

On Samuel Grandsir and Kévin Cabral, and why they were so successful tonight:

"Again, I think one of the big things for both of them, is they played every, single game. They worked hard defensively. They worked hard in attack. They played at the speed that they're capable of playing at. They took advantage of the space when it presented itself and played aggressive. And they key thing, for Sam [Grandsir], and we challenged Sam, is he played every play. And when he plays every play, you see all of the capabilities that he has. Tonight there was... in an emotional game, and he had a lot of emotional control and stability, and just played soccer. And he was outstanding to watch tonight. And Kévin [Cabral], I think, again, he played every play. In the run of play. In the connection to our team. I trust Kévin implicitly to understand tactically what we're doing, and to do the work and to do the running and to do all that stuff. And I was just so happy for him to have end product. And score a goal and be able to celebrate with his teammates. I could just see the glow on him after he was able to help the team out in that way, because he puts in his shift. Always. And so, I'm happy with him. But, I really do believe it's just... they just played the game. And they played the game at the speed that they're capable of. And were thinking about nothing else than just the moment. And being in the moment and playing the moment at the highest level. And I think that immersion into the game just allowed them to be the best version of themselves. And, the game opened up with some space for them to run, and we saw the capacity that they and to play at the speed. The way we were able to get out in transition, I haven't seen that for a little while. And, that was fun to watch."

On if this is the most complete 90 minute performance his squad has put together this year:

"Yes. I think it's the most complete in two years. Since I've been here. In terms of duals. In terms of competition. In terms of playing every play. Staying connected as a group. Having everybody play on both sides of the ball, every play. Finishing our chances, for the most part. I felt like, again, as I said to them, they have to remember this feeling, because what they put out there tonight is how they should play every game. Every game possible. I know it has a little extra emotion and stuff, but we've got to remember that, because that's what... Champions, when you want to be champions, you play every game hard. And you play it with that kind of focus and concentration and attention to detail. And you play every play. And that was a good example of what it looks like for us when we do that. Abd we need to remember that and reproduce it."

On his squad coming out with the right kind of energy and finding the right balance:

"I thought we stayed connected as a group. We made their entry passes hard to find. We took away, for the most part, we took away the space behind us. They did find it a couple times. We made it hard for them to play in between us. We made it difficult for them to separate us. And because of that, we were able to win balls in good spots. We were able to win balls in between our lines. Which, actually, sets you in motion for a counterattack. Right? If you're winning balls behind you, or you're getting played in between. Or you're trying to press and you're not recovering balls, it's very hard to counterattack when you're recovering balls deep in your half of the field. Or there's no space to attack in front of you, because the opposition, you didn't let them out of that space. So, I felt like we were just more connected, and because of that, we were working hard side to side. We made it difficult for them to find, again, passes between our lines. You know, passes behind us. It was hard for them. We kept the game in front of us, and when they gave us the opportunity, we were able to win balls and get out of it. We found our fair share of possession inside of that. We found some chances. So, I just... again, the performance for me was more complete. It was more connected as a group. And it was a good standard for us as a group."

On everyone being much more mindful of building into the game and not coming out too eager:

"I think guys were really mindful of not giving up things behind them. Trying to cut out passing lanes. Trying to, again, make things difficult. Instead of stepping out and just chasing the ball and trying to press it sometimes, or trying to get over excited about pressing. We really made sure that we were taking... that when we couldn't get pressure we were taking away simple passes for them, most of the night. That led to things being a little bit more predictable. Space was easier for us to cover. We were getting to the right spots at the right time most of the night. And, it made the game, again, it was complete in terms of the performance. Which makes the game more efficient. We just dealt with everything in a more efficient way, and then we had that energy in the transition to use it to build attacks."

LA GALAXY FORWARD JAVIER "CHICHARITO" HERNÁNDEZ

On what went on at the end of the game:

"I don't know man, and honestly, it's not because I don't want to answer the question. I actually don't know, and I think we shouldn't give that importance. I think that what you saw, is enough, you know. It's not good. That whoever had the fault, whoever started, whoever kept going. I think it's not good for everyone. Not even ourselves, or LAFC. It's not a great message that we should send to the people here. Here in the stadium and everywhere."

On tonight's response from the team and how important it was to win tonight:

"Yeah, it was huge, it was important. But now the most important thing that we need to show that against any team. That's the mentality and the mindset we should have. That doesn't mean that we're going to score three goals every single game or we're going to win every single game. We're going to aim for that obviously, but I think the mentality, the confidence, the hunger, the bravery. And we show we need to maintain that and mostly in our home. We want to make every team come here, and if they want to take any points, they need to give the game of their lives, you know? So, I think today, it's a great feeling. It's a great game, but as well, we set the bar. This is the minimum that we need to give every single game. And then we can draw, we can lose, and any team can be better. But like I said, if any team is going to be better coming here, they need to have one of the best games in their season. That's what we're aiming [for]."

On the buildup to his goal and what he saw from his teammates in that play:

"Amazing. I think what I said in the answer before, they showed that. They showed that mentality, that mindset, that effort, you know, with, and without the ball, the way we all did. Even starting from JK [Jonathan Klinsmann] and we start doing it. Building up, deciding perfectly when we couldn't play the game, we play long balls, we were very compact. We counterattacked; we built some plays as well. We have great goals as well. We couldn't get the shutout, the clean sheet, because it's LAFC. They are a great and they are the best team so far in MLS. So yeah, Kevin [Cabral] and Samuel [Grandsir] did an amazing game and, that's something that it always happens and that's something that I learned when I was a kid. If you go full on with your effort and then you have the talent. The formula most of the times, it's going to be more positive than negative, you know. So that's why Seattle [Sounders FC] won the [Concacaf Champions League] and they're one of the best teams of the decade. I mean, us in the past, us as an organization. A part of them had talented players, they have a lot of like, like effort players too, you know, everyone, it doesn't matter if you have talent. Or you are on the [B squad] or earning whatever. You shouldn't just wear this shirt. You need to defend this shirt and these organization, as the best one. I said it after the last match against Houston, you know, we need to give this and I swear, I'm not saying this just because we won. But the way that we play, then the result in soccer, that's the beauty of it, any team could win if they score one goal or a referee decision, or something could happen every single moment. For example, in Salt Lake, we played a good game, we lost 1-0. But in the way that we played, we could do better. It's a different sensation than then the games that we played against the Dallas and Houston here. So I think that's it, that's the mindset. The image that we want to send. Not the 3-1, that's a consequence of how we play as a team, how we give everything for the benefit of the team, not for the for the individual benefit."

On what the key elements of the attack were tonight:

"The concentration, the focus on the and the effort. That's it. For example, my father always told me 'give everything in the pitch and then the goals are going to be a consequence.' For example, in my point of view, then if you see the tackle of Derrick [Williams] in the first half, everyone can see just the tackle but the why the tackle was made, and how he got into that point is because he was concentrated, he was in a better tactical position. The decision was better. You become more efficient when you are giving everything inside the pitch when you're running, because when you're focused on running and giving everything, then the rest could come in more positive way. Because if we think that we're going to play just because we have talent and then the ball is going to go behind the net. And we're going to defend everything, that's not how it goes, you know? That's why I want to say it over and over again. It's not about the three goals. It's not only about efficiency, our how ruthless we were in front of the goal. It's because the why, and how. That's what I said to my teammates after the game against Houston, it's not that that we're making mistakes. It's the how we're making the mistakes that we need to change because it's like in every sport, you always have mistakes. It's very rare that you can have a 100% accuracy of a game, it's rare in history. Even [Lionel] Messi and Cristiano [Ronaldo], they miss passes, they miss chances as well. But then they score thousands of goals. But that's the way. The way that they play, the confidence, the effort and putting everything for the benefit of the team, regardless of who's going to score, regardless of who's going to do the tackle, regardless of who's going to play, regardless of that. If you see beyond only yourself, that's how championship teams are built. And that's why a lot of teams get those trophies, you know. Apart from the talent, I think that talent is a consequence in sports as well. We admire a lot of athletes because how much you need to push yourself, how much effort and sacrifices you need to give to every profession."

On why we hadn't seen that kind of effort from the team:

"It didn't happen, and it wasn't there. It's part of life. That's the beauty of it. If you don't have mistakes, you don't have bad games, you don't know what you need to improve. There's no improvement. If you're not doing mistakes, there's no place to improve, you know. That's life. That's the beauty of it. That we are not perfect, we are humans, and we have light, we have shadows, we have mistakes. That's the beauty of it. But the beauty of the most interesting part of life, not only in sports, it's like you need to recognize to be humble enough to accept it and then see that not as a weakness, instead, you see, like a place to improve. Like a gap. Like something more positive than negative. That's how we did it. Now, the challenge is not only celebrate because it was a derby, it was El Tráfico. Now, the challenge is maintaining this on Sunday, that's the challenge. And then after Sunday, we have the break and then we come back against Portland and again and again. And again. That's how you can achieve the championships and winning titles and win mostly everything, you know."

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