CARSON, Calif. – If there was a perfect scenario for the LA Galaxy to snap their 15-game winless streak away from StubHub Center, this might be it.
The LA Galaxy are riding high after tallying an impressive 16 goals in their last three games across all competitions which featured two consecutive five-goal displays—a feat that LA had not duplicated since 1998.
Now they’ll travel to Stanford Stadium to take on the archrival San Jose Earthquakes in the first edition of the California Clásico of 2015.
“The next step is to have the team firing on the road. We’ve taken care of business over the last couple of games which has been great,” former San Jose Earthquakes forward and current Galaxy striker Alan Gordon told LAGalaxy.com. “We’re starting to score a lot of goals and we’ve got a lot of quality players on the field which we didn’t have in the beginning of the season.
“The machine is moving pretty well, so we just have to do it on the road. There wouldn’t be a better opponent to do it against than the Quakes.”
Like the Galaxy, San Jose is currently on a high with just one defeat in their last eight games, and coming off an impressive 2-0 victory on the road against Seattle Sounders FC. But Saturday’s match promises to be a game where form matters little as fireworks have always been common at Stanford Stadium with both teams having combined for a total of 14 goals scored in three wild matches in Palo Alto since 2012.
“It’s our job to get points,” Juninho said. “We’re all looking forward to the Clásico. We never know what could happen but we’re hoping that we can beat them there.”
The Galaxy may be on the road in San Jose, but for in-form midfielder Sebastian Lletget, Stanford Stadium will feel like home as the Northern California native makes his first trip north since joining the Galaxy. Lletget has burst on to the stage as of late with four goals in four straight matches.
When he takes the field against the Earthquakes, the Galaxy’s hottest goal scorer will have a little extra motivation to extend his scoring streak.
“I can't wait till the next one. I can't wait till San Jose,” Lletget said. “I know it's my hometown, so it's a little special one for me,” Lletget told reporters after the win over the Portland Timbers. “I'll have a lot of friends, family, about 50 tickets. It’s going to be ridiculous. Everybody's going to be there, I promise you. My three sisters, my two parents and about 20 friends. Honestly, it's going to be nuts.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog at LAGalaxy.com/Insider and contact him at LAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com.
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES vs LA GALAXY
STANFORD STADIUM, Stanford, Calif.
June 27, 2015 (WEEK 17, MLS Game #173)
7:30 p.m. PT (MLS LIVE)
The California Clásico is featured in MLS Heineken Rivalry Week as the San Jose Earthquakes and LA Galaxy face off for the first time this season at Stanford Stadium on Saturday evening. The Quakes return home off an impressive victory, defeating Western Conference leaders Seattle Sounders FC 2-0 at CenturyLink Field last weekend. The Galaxy have been unstoppable in the past week, scoring five goals in back-to-back matches, last a 5-0 dismantling of the Portland Timbers on Wednesday evening at StubHub Center.
- The Quakes snapped a three-game winless run in league play as Matias Perez Garcia scored his first MLS goal and added an assist for a 2-0 win against Seattle Sounders FC on Saturday afternoon at CenturyLink Field.
- Baggio Husidic scored a goal and added two assists in the Galaxy’s 5-1 win against Philadelphia Union, the second time in his MLS career he’s been involved in three goals in a game. He had two goals and an assist in the 6-0 Galaxy win vs. Colorado, Sept. 5, 2014.
- The Galaxy have won just once in the last 10 regular season meetings in northern California, across three stadiums – a 1-0 victory last June 28 at Stanford Stadium. The Quakes finished undefeated against the Galaxy in league play at their former Buck Shaw Stadium home, with two wins and three draws in five matches there.
- The teams have met on five occasions in the MLS Cup Playoffs, last in the Western Conference Semifinals in 2012. The Quakes won the first leg 1-0 in Carson, but the Galaxy claimed the series with a 3-1 win at Buck Shaw Stadium, the club’s first win in northern California since June 2008.
DOWNLOAD FULL GAME GUIDE (PDF)
REFEREE: Jose Carlos Rivero. AR1 (bench): Jeff Hosking; AR2 (opposite): Mike Rottersman; 4th: Daniel Radford MLS Career: 47 games; FC/gm: 27.1; Y/gm: 3.8; R: 12; pens: 22
SUSPENDED: none
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: SJ: Sanna Nyassi … LA: Alan Gordon, Robbie Rogers
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: SJ: Fatai Alashe … LA: Baggio Husidic, Juninho, Mika Vayrynen, Omar Gonzalez
DISABLED LIST: LA: Brian Perk (season-ending injury)
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (57 meetings): Earthquakes 18 wins (1 shootout), 75 goals…Galaxy 27 wins (4 shootout), 89 goals…Ties 12
AT SAN JOSE (30 meetings): Earthquakes 13 wins (1 shootout), 43 goals … Galaxy 10 wins (2 shootout), 39 goals … Ties 7
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Earthquakes say Matias Perez Garcia is "something special" despite modest stats thus far
Sebastian Lletget eager for San Jose homecoming amid dream start to MLS career
CHECK OUT THE INJURY REPORT HEADING INTO THE MATCH
CHECK OUT THE DISCIPLINARY REPORT HEADING INTO THE MATCH
